“To secure a future for all species, great and small, hovering on the brink of extinction.”
The origin
The Center for Biological Diversity is built around relentless litigation, mostly under the Endangered Species Act, to protect species and the habitat they depend on. Founded in 1989 out of the fight over the Mexican spotted owl, it files hundreds of legal actions a year and is a party in dozens of active federal public lands cases at any given moment. Few organizations are more willing to sue the federal government, repeatedly, and win.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “THE CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY INC, WORKS TO SECURE A FUTURE FOR ALL SPECIES, GREAT AND SMALL, HOVERING ON THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION. WE DO SO THROUGH SCIENCE, LAW AND CREATIVE MEDIA, WITH A FOCUS ON PROTECTING THE LANDS, WATERS AND CLIMATE THAT SPECIES NEED TO SURVIVE.”
Where the money went, FY2024
1. URBAN WILDLANDS PROGRAM- THE CENTER’S URBAN WILDLANDS PROGRAM WORKS TO PROTECT OPEN SPACE AND WILDLIFE FROM INAPPRORPIATE DEVELOPMENT AND DEVELOPMENT-ASSOCIATED IMPACTS, ESPECIALLY IN CALIFORNIA.
Including $217,200 granted onward, most of it $130,000 to The Wildlands Conservancy.
1. URBAN WILDLANDS PROGRAM- THE CENTER'S URBAN WILDLANDS PROGRAM WORKS TO PROTECT OPEN SPACE AND WILDLIFE FROM INAPPRORPIATE DEVELOPMENT AND DEVELOPMENT-ASSOCIATED IMPACTS, ESPECIALLY IN CALIFORNIA. IN 2024 WE ISSUED A REPORT ON THE COST OF SPRAWL AND RESERVOIRS TO HUMANS, WILDLIFE AND OUR CLIMATE, WE WON LEGAL AGREEMENTS AND/OR SUITS TO PROTECT WILDLANDS IN LAKE AND SAN DIEGO COUNTY, WE WON POLICY CHANGE TO IMPROVE WILDLIFE CONNECTIVITY AND LIMIT UNNECESSARY RAT POISONS IN CALIFORNIA. 2. OCEANS PROGRAM- IN 2024, THE CENTER'S OCEANS PROGRAM CONTINUED TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT STRIDES IN MARINE CONSERVATION. OUR ADVOCACY AIMED AT PREVENTING WHALE ENTANGLEMENTS IN FISHING GEAR, PROTECTING THE OCEANS FROM PLASTIC POLLUTION AND OIL SPILLS, AND SECURING ENDANGERED MARINE SPECIES AND THEIR HABITATS' PROTECTIONS. WE USED LAW, SCIENCE, ORGANIZING, AND COMMUNICATIONS TO PROTECT HEALTHY OCEANS AND COASTAL COMMUNITIES. 3. SOUTHWEST PROGRAM- THE CENTER'S SOUTHWEST PROGRAM WORKS TO PROTECT WILDLIFE AND WILD PLACES IN ARIZONA, NEW MEXICO AND NORTHERN MEXICO. 4. POPULATION & SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM- THE CENTER'S POPULATION AND SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM EDUCATES THE PUBLIC AND POLICYMAKERS ON THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN HUMAN POPULATION PRESSURE, UNSUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION, AND THE CLIMATE AND EXTINCTION CRISES, AND ADVOCATES FOR SOLUTIONS THAT ADVANCE REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM, GENDER EMPOWERMENT, CONSCIOUS CONSUMPTION, AND JUST, HUMANE AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM. IN 2024, WE RELEASED A GLOBAL WHITE PAPER AND ROADMAP FOR A JUST FOOD TRANSITION, ANALYZED AND ADVOCATED FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN DIETARY GUIDELINES, AND ADVANCED FOOD CODE POLICY TO SUPPORT REUSE AND REDUCE PLASTIC POLLUTION. WE LAUNCHED CAMPAIGNS TO STOP DEFORESTATION IN THE AVOCADO INDUSTRY, DISTRIBUTE KITS TO SUPPORT REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN CLIMATE-RELATED DISASTERS, ESTABLISH SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION PROGRAMS ON CAMPUSES, AND SUPPORT SECONDHAND RETAILERS. OUR TEAM ALSO ENGAGED ON REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AND FOOD POLICY ISSUES AT THE LOCAL, STATE, NATIONAL, AND INTERNATIONAL LEVEL, OFTEN WITH THE SUPPORT OF OUR MEMBERS AND SUPPORTERS. 5. INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM- THE CENTER'S INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM SEEKS TO PROTECT GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY THROUGH U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL LAWS. IN 2024, WE SOUGHT U.S. TRADE PROTECTIONS FOR NUMEROUS SPECIES THREATENED BY THE PET AND DECOR TRADE INCLUDING BATS FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA AND SECURED DEADLINES FOR PROTECTIONS FOR CRITICALLY ENDANGERED LIZARDS AND WHALES AND DOLPHINS ENTANGLED IN FISHING NET ABROAD. WE WORKED UNDER SEVERAL TREATIES TO GARNER INTERNATIONAL PROESSURE ON THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT TO ENFORCE ITS OWN WILDLIFE LAWS TO PROTECT THE GRAVELY IMPERILED VAQUITA, PROTECT WORLD HERITAGE HABITAT IN ECUADOR, BRAZIL, AND MEXICO, AND TIGHTEN TRADE PROTECTIONS UNDER CONVENTION FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN ENDANGERED SPECIES. 6. CARNIVORE CONSERVATION PROGRAM- THE CENTER'S CARNIVORE CONSERVATION PROGRAM WON PROTECTIONS IN 2024 FOR ECOLOGICALLY IMPORTANT CARNIVORES AND THEIR HABITATS INCLUDING GREY WOLVES, RED WOLVES, MOUNTAIN LIONS, GRIZZLY BEARS, AND MARTENS. IT WON THE DESIGNATION AND PROTECTION OF FEDRAL CRITICAL HABITAT AREAS, FOUGHT AGAINST DAMAGING STATE AND FEDERAL POLICIES, AND SUPPORTED PRO-CARNIVORE POLICIES. 9. THE CENTER HAD PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN OTHER PROGRAMS INCLUDING: FLORIDA AND THE CARIBBEAN, THE GREAT BASIN, NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES, THE SOUTHEAST, AND HAWAII.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
THE CENTER’S CLIMATE PROGRAM WORKS TO REDUCE U.S. GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND AIR POLLUTION TO PROTECT BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY, THE ENVIRONMENT, AND HUMAN HEALTH.
Including $72,535 granted onward.
THE CENTER'S CLIMATE PROGRAM WORKS TO REDUCE U.S. GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND AIR POLLUTION TO PROTECT BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY, THE ENVIRONMENT, AND HUMAN HEALTH. SOME OF THE PROGRAMS ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN 2024 INCLUDE SECURING PROTECTIONS FOR SPECIES THREATENED BY CLIMATE CHANGE, ENSURING COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAW IN ORDER TO REDUCE POLLUTION, ADVOCATING FOR NEW LAWS AND POLICIES TO REDUCE POLLUTION AND SPEED THE ADOPTION OF CLEAN RENEWABLE ENERGY, AND EDUCATING AND MOBILIZING THE PUBLIC ON CLIMATE SCIENCE AND POLICY ISSUES.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
ENDANGERED SPECIES PROGRAM WORKS TO PROTECT ENDANGERED SPECIES AND THEIR HABITATS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES THROUGH SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, PUBLIC EDUCATION, ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSES, AND LITIGATION.
Including $25,995 granted onward.
ENDANGERED SPECIES PROGRAM WORKS TO PROTECT ENDANGERED SPECIES AND THEIR HABITATS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES THROUGH SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, PUBLIC EDUCATION, ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSES, AND LITIGATION. IT LEADS MANY PROTECTION CAMPAIGNS AND PROVIDES SUPPORT FOR CAMPAIGNS IN OTHER PROGRAMS.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
THE CENTER’S PUBLIC LANDS LAW CENTER USES LEGAL ANALYSIS AND LITIGATION TO PROTECT AMERICA’S FEDERAL PUBLIC LANDS, MOST OFTEN THROUGH COLLABORATION WITHIN THE CENTER’S REGIONAL PROGRAMS.
Including $13,305 granted onward.
THE CENTER'S PUBLIC LANDS LAW CENTER USES LEGAL ANALYSIS AND LITIGATION TO PROTECT AMERICA'S FEDERAL PUBLIC LANDS, MOST OFTEN THROUGH COLLABORATION WITHIN THE CENTER'S REGIONAL PROGRAMS. IN 2024, OUR UINTA BASIN RAILWAY CASE IN UTAH WAS ARGUED BEFORE THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT IN DECEMBER. WE CONTINUED TO MAKE PROGRESS IN ARIZONA AND NEW MEXICO TO KEEP CATTLE OUT OF SENSITIVE RIPARIAN AND AQUATIC HABITATS. WE WON AN IMPORTANT CASE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, WITH THE COURT FINDING THAT THE BLM FAILED TO PROPERLY MINIMIZE IMPACTS TO THE DESERT TORTOISE AND OTHER WILDLIFE FROM OFF-ROAD VEHICLES IN THE WESTERN MOJAVE DESERT. WE CHALLENGED A NUMBER OF LOGGING PROJECTS IN THE NORTHERN ROCKIES, INCLUDING THE BLM'S MAJOR PROPOSED PROJECT IN THE CLARK FORK RIVER SUB-BASIN, EAST OF MISSOULA, MONTANA. AND WE MADE CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS IN OUR CAMPAIGNS AGAINST MAJOR PROPOSED MINING PROJECTS ON IMPORTANT FEDERAL LANDS, INCLUDING WITHIN THE BOUNDARY WATERS WATERSHED IN NORTHERN MINNESOTA, AND AT OAK FLAT, ON THE TONTO NATIONAL FOREST IN ARIZONA.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2024, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
That ratio is a good sign, not a scorecard. Plenty of great groups run leaner and lumpier. What matters is the extremes, and Center for Biological Diversity is nowhere near one.
Backed on the record by Western Conservation Foundation, latest filing FY23.
$30,576,430 programs, $1,128,138 management, $2,925,603 fundraising. Form 990, FY2024.
The people
Honesty note: leadership comes from each year’s federal filing, so it can run a year behind. Orgs that claim their page can update it same-day. Work at CBD? Claim this page.
Those 19 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If CBD is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Make it 20The record
And 76 more in our case database: a selection we track, not their full docket.
Total revenue by fiscal year, as filed. Point at the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2012 | $6,786,706 |
| 2013 | $9,368,271 |
| 2014 | $14,036,639 |
| 2015 | $12,425,883 |
| 2016 | $14,758,498 |
| 2017 | $20,139,563 |
| 2018 | $20,512,577 |
| 2019 | $22,570,922 |
| 2020 | $27,326,157 |
| 2021 | $36,653,414 |
| 2022 | $27,585,235 |
| 2023 | $34,484,948 |
| 2024 | $45,735,714 |
From $6.8M in 2012 to $45.7M in FY24, with no missed filing in 13 years. The 2024 peak of $45.7M reads like one-time gifts, so trust the line, not the peak.
Fights alongside Sierra Club (27 shared cases), Earthjustice (19 shared cases), Defenders of Wildlife (15 shared cases), Natural Resources Defense Council (13 shared cases) and Friends of the Earth (10 shared cases) and 41 more. Same case, same side, on the federal docket.
The record
Center for Biological Diversity files its own federal lobbying reports: 34 filings from 2019 to 2026, naming 26 bills. The filings, at the Senate.
Most filed on animals, budget/appropriations and natural resources.
Their ground
Plaintiff challenging the Ambler permit reinstatement under ANILCA, NEPA, and the Clean Water Act
Who’s defending it On the groundDinosaur National MonumentLed the coalition suit against the Uinta Basin Railway, whose oil trains would run the river corridors below the monument
Who’s defending it On the groundLos Padres National ForestPlaintiff in the 2020 suit that halted new federal oil leasing across the Los Padres region
Who’s defending it On the groundOak Flat / Chi'chil BildagoteelPlaintiff in the federal litigation over the Resolution Copper land exchange, now on appeal at the Ninth Circuit
Who’s defending it On the groundBasin and Range National MonumentSued the Bureau of Land Management in March 2024 over its failure to complete the overdue management plan for Basin and Range National Monument.
Who’s defending it On the groundGold Butte National MonumentSued the Bureau of Land Management in March 2024 for failing to produce the legally required management plan for Gold Butte National Monument.
Who’s defending itSee every threatened place on one map, and who stands for each.
Center for Biological Diversity files one related organization on its return: Center Action Fund (501C4). A related organization shares people or purpose; it does not share the books.
Ways in
88 cents of your dollar goes straight to the work above.
Give on their site ↗Show upVolunteer with themFind their volunteer door on their own site.
Find it on their site ↗SpeakComment and callOpen comment windows and call scripts for fights like these, ready to send.
Public Lands Action NetworkFollowWatch the mapEvery threatened place in the country, tracked, with who stands for each.
Threatened Lands Map37 years on the ground, 19 volunteers, 14 live lawsuits, 88 cents of every dollar on the line. That is who is holding it. There is room for one more.