Wilderness Committee

46 East 6th Avenue
Vancouver, BC V5T 1J4
Executive Director: Beth Clarke
Board Chair: Emet Davis

Charitable Reg. #:11929 3009 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 4/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

A-

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

61%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 61 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About Wilderness Committee:

Western Canada Wilderness Committee is a 4-star charity with an above-average results reporting score. It is financially transparent and its overhead costs are outside Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending

Founded in 1980, Western Canada Wilderness Committee (WCWC) works to protect Canada’s natural environment through research and public education. WCWC has offices in Manitoba, Ontario, and British Columbia. The charity reports that it reaches 12 million people each year through its awareness activities. WCWC has three main campaign areas: Protecting Nature, Defending Wildlife, and Fighting Climate Change. The charity does not provide a breakdown of spending on these programs.

Under its Protecting Nature program, WCWC advocates for the protection of provincial parks, forests, grasslands, and freshwater sources. In F2021, the charity published a report card on the Government of British Columbia’s progress in protecting old-growth forests.

Through its Defending Wildlife program, WCWC campaigns for the protection of wildlife, especially species at risk, and their habitats. The species that the charity works to protect include the spotted owl, southern mountain caribou, boreal woodland caribou, and bees.

Under its Fighting Climate Change program, WCWC opposes oil, gas, and coal expansion with the goal of reducing emissions from these sources of energy. In F2021, the charity published Planet on Fire: Lets End Fracking in BC which contains information on British Columbia’s fracking industry. The charity also published Voices and Vision of Northern BC, which highlighted economic alternatives to fossil fuels.

The data used above reflects WCWC's most recent 2021 Annual Report, while the financial analysis below reflects F2022 financial information.

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Results and Impact

In F2021, WCWC discovered an illegal mining claim in Nopiming Provincial Park in Manitoba. The charity successfully advocated for the removal of this claim. Additionally, the province of Manitoba banned oil and gas development in Turtle Mountain Provincial Park.

In F2021, the governments of BC and Canada announced a one-year halt to all logging within the forests of Spô’zêm First Nation territory. The Spuzzum and Utzlius watersheds within this territory are home to spotted owls, a critically endangered species. Additionally, the government of BC halted logging in the Argonaut Creek caribou habitat while herd planning was underway.

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Western Canada Wilderness Committee’s results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r). 

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Finances

Western Canada Wilderness Committee received $2.9m in donations in F2022. Administrative costs are 14% of revenue and fundraising costs are 25% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 39%. For every dollar donated, 61 cents go to the cause. This is outside Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

WCWC has reserve funds of $1.0m which could cover eight months of annual program costs.

Charity Intelligence sent an update of this report to Western Canada Wilderness Committee for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on July 25, 2022 by Kiara Andrade.

 

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending April
202220212020
Administrative costs as % of revenues 13.8%14.6%14.0%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 25.1%23.3%31.8%
Total overhead spending 38.9%37.9%45.7%
Program cost coverage (%) 67.4%63.9%36.5%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $s
202220212020
Donations 2,905,4332,709,4692,497,609
Government funding 084,12827,673
Business activities (net) (57,205)(62,802)(44,791)
Other income 17,60219,6019,863
Total revenues 2,865,8302,750,3962,490,354
Program costs 1,529,4351,305,6051,478,848
Administrative costs 396,373402,533347,451
Fundraising costs 728,172630,976793,485
Total spending 2,653,9802,339,1142,619,784
Cash flow from operations 211,850411,282(129,430)
Capital spending 12,77013021,838
Funding reserves 1,030,910834,035540,212

Note: Ci reported the sale of educational materials net of direct expenses in business activities, decreasing total revenue and expenses by $109k in F2022, $115k in F2021, and $105k in F2020. Ci reconciled for government funding from the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 27

Avg. compensation: $68,122

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
0
$80k - $120k
5
$40k - $80k
5
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2022

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

No comments have been added by the charity.

Charity Contact

Website: www.wildernesscommittee.org
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 604-683-8220

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Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001