American Conservation Experience
“Engage the next generation of conservationists through hands-on service.”
3 funders on the record, 90 cents of every dollar to the work.
The work
What they do
Conservation corps placing individual interns and crews on federal lands. Trail work, invasive species removal, wildlife monitoring, and facilities maintenance.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “To provide rewarding environmental service opportunities that harness the idealism and energy of a volunteer labor force to help restore aca's public lands.” as filed.
Where the money went, FY2024
The work, and what it cost
The program, as they filed it
$40.0M, 90% of spendingAMERICAN CONSERVATION EXPERIENCE (ACE) PROVIDES TRAINED, SUPERVISED, COST EFFECTIVE LONG TERM VOLUNTEER CREWS TO ACCOMPLISH ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION PROJECTS FOR FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY, AND CITY LAND MANAGEMENT…
Read it as they filed it
AMERICAN CONSERVATION EXPERIENCE (ACE) PROVIDES TRAINED, SUPERVISED, COST EFFECTIVE LONG TERM VOLUNTEER CREWS TO ACCOMPLISH ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION PROJECTS FOR FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY, AND CITY LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCIES. VOLUNTEERS SERVE IN ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS IN NATIONAL PARKS, FORESTS, WILDLIFE REFUGES, WILDERNESS AREAS AND OTHER PUBLIC LANDS WHILE LEARNING CONSERVATION AND LEADERSHIP ROLES. ACE IS GROUNDED IN THE PHILOSOPHY THAT COOPERATIVE LABOR ON MEANINGFUL CONSERVATION PROJECTS FOSTERS CROSS-CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING AND OPERATES ON THE BELIEF THAT CHALLENGING VOLUNTEER SERVICE UNITES PEOPLE OF ALL BACKGROUNDS IN COMMON CAUSE. ACE PERFORMS CONSERVATION PROJECTS THROUGH CONTRACTS WITH VARIOUS AGENCIES INCLUDING THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, UNITED STATES FOREST SERVICE, AND BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT. THE TWO LARGEST ACE PROGRAMS INCLUDE THE CONSERVATION CORPS AND THE EMERGING PROFESSIONALS IN CONSERVATION. 1. CONSERVATION CORPS PROGRAM - ORIGINALLY FORMED UNDER THE CONSERVATION CORPS MODEL, ACE PROVIDES A RANGE OF VOLUNTARY SERVICE PROGRAMS PARTICIPANTS. ACES CONSERVATION CORPS PROGRAM IS FOR AMERCIAN PARTICIPANTS, AGED 18-30 (up TO AGE 35 FOR VETERANS) WHO ARE CONSIDERING LAND MANAGEMENT AS A CAREER PATH OR POTENTIAL COURSE OF STUDY. CORPS MEMBERS SERVE IN PROFESSIONALLY SUPERVISED TEAMS AS THEY EXPLORE FUTURE OUTDOOR CAREERS, LEARN PRACTICAL SKILLS, AND DEVELOP CONFIDENCE AS EMERGING LEADERS IN THE FIELD OF CONSERVATION. CORPS MEMBERS ARE SUPPORTED DURING THEIR 3-12 MONTH SERVICE TERMS WITH COST OF LIVING ALLOWANCES, FOOD ON PROJECTS, AND FREE COMMON HOUSING ON OFF DAYS. 2. EMERGING PROFESSIONALS IN CONSERVATION PROGRAM (EPIC) - ACE EPIC Internships and Fellowships program provide young adults ages 18-30 (up to age 35 for veterans) with focused, hands-on opportunities to work alongside and under the guidance of land management agency mentors as they apply their knowledge of resource management on their path to becoming the next generation of resource and land managers. The EPIC program not only provides an invaluable step for those seeking a link between the academic and professional worlds but also allows members to explore, connect, and preserve America's natural and cultural resources as they gain professional skills and cultivate their careers in the resource management field. EPIC operates in coalition with partners such as the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and other conservation focused groups. Positions available through EPIC and its partners are spread across a wide range of specialized conservation oriented vocations and typically last 3-12 months. EPIC members (interns) often have degrees and /or experience in disciplines such as, but limited to: conservation or wildlife biology, botany, ecology, entomology, forestry, geography, archeology, paleontology, geology, environmental sciences, recreation or natural resources management, or cultural resources.
IRS Form 990 Part III for fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
90 cents of every dollar goes to the work
A good sign, not a scorecard: what matters is the extremes, and this is nowhere near one.
$40,029,262 programs, $4,549,846 management, $0 fundraising. Form 990, FY2024.
The backers
Backed, each with its source, by National Park Foundation, National Fish And Wildlife Foundation and National Forest Foundation, latest filing FY25.
The people
Who does the work
Honesty note: leadership comes from each year’s federal filing, so it can run a year behind. If it’s out of date, tell us. Work at ACE? Claim this page.
Those 1,806 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If ACE is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Find your way inThe filings
14 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year as filed. Point at or tap the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2011 | $4,455,197 |
| 2012 | $5,425,968 |
| 2013 | $6,115,221 |
| 2014 | $8,009,250 |
| 2015 | $9,740,744 |
| 2016 | $12,506,523 |
| 2017 | $16,642,393 |
| 2018 | $20,275,082 |
| 2019 | $21,291,175 |
| 2020 | $22,570,850 |
| 2021 | $27,606,484 |
| 2022 | $31,067,046 |
| 2023 | $40,985,967 |
| 2024 | $44,653,332 |
From $4.5M in 2011 to $44.7M in FY24, with no missed filing in 14 years. FY24 is the highest year on file.
The returns as e-filed with the IRS, 3 years:
- FY2024Download the return
- FY2023Download the return
- FY2022Download the return
Source: IRS Form 990 e-file data, each return by its IRS object id, served by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. A year in the chart without a link here is read from a later return’s own history table; its return is on ProPublica’s page for the group.
Their ground
ACE is not on our editors’ record for a threatened place yet. See every threatened place on one map, and who stands for each.
Ways in
How to help
Straight to their own donation page. Your dollar never passes through us.
Give on their site ↗Show upVolunteer with themFind their volunteer door on their own site.
Find it on their site ↗FollowWatch the mapEvery threatened place in the country, tracked, with who stands for each.
Threatened Lands MapStand with American Conservation Experience
The mission is theirs. The backing is yours.