Friends of the Earth
“To defend the environment and champion a healthy and just world.”
The work
What they do
International environmental advocacy fighting for a more healthy, just world.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “FRIENDS OF THE EARTH DEFENDS THE ENVIRONMENT AND CHAMPIONS A HEALTHY AND JUST WORLD.”
Where the money went, FY2025
The work, and what it cost
Bringing people into the fight
$6.7MTHE OUTREACH PROGRAM EDUCATES MEMBERS AND ACTIVISTS AS WELL AS THE GREATER PUBLIC ABOUT SIGNIFICANT THREATS TO THE ENVIRONMENT, AND ENCOURAGES THEM TO PARTICIPATE WITH FRIENDS OF THE EARTH TO ACHIEVE POSITIVE OUTCOMES IN...
Including $376,500 granted onward, most of it $360,000 to Friends Of The Earth (Action) Inc.
Read it as they filed it
OUTREACH AND MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM - THE OUTREACH PROGRAM EDUCATES MEMBERS AND ACTIVISTS AS WELL AS THE GREATER PUBLIC ABOUT SIGNIFICANT THREATS TO THE ENVIRONMENT, AND ENCOURAGES THEM TO PARTICIPATE WITH FRIENDS OF THE EARTH TO ACHIEVE POSITIVE OUTCOMES INCLUDING PROTECTING POLLINATORS FROM TOXIC PESTICIDES, PROTECTING PUBLIC LANDS FROM POLLUTION, AND PREVENTING INDUSTRIAL PROJECTS THAT WOULD HARM COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS. THIS IS DONE THROUGH ONLINE ACTION ALERTS, ONLINE ADVERTISING, MAILINGS, PRINT NEWSLETTERS (TO MEMBERS), AS WELL AS SOCIAL MEDIA SITES LIKE FACEBOOK. FOE ALSO SEEKS OPPORTUNITIES TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC THROUGH TV AND RADIO INTERVIEWS. THE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTLY REACHED OVER ONE MILLION PEOPLE WHO TOOK NEARLY 3 MILLION ACTIONS IN THE 2024 FISCAL YEAR. THESE ACTIONS CONTRIBUTED TO ACCOMPLISHMENTS LIKE PUSHING CALIFORNIA'S DEPARTMENT OF PESTICIDE REGULATION (DPR) TO DEVELOP A BINDING AGREEMENT TO PROPOSE REGULATIONS FOR PESTICIDE-TREATED SEEDS, PUSHING COUNTRIES TO CUT UP TO $15 BILLION IN FOSSIL FUEL FUNDING, AND DELAYING A DESTRUCTIVE GEOENGINEERING PROJECT IN CAPE COD.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Saving land outright
$3.5MTHE FOOD AND TECHNOLOGY TEAM CONDUCTS MARKET CAMPAIGNS, SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND POLICY ADVOCACY TO PROMOTE A MORE JUST AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM.
Including $298,737 granted onward.
Read it as they filed it
FOOD AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM - THE FOOD AND TECHNOLOGY TEAM CONDUCTS MARKET CAMPAIGNS, SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND POLICY ADVOCACY TO PROMOTE A MORE JUST AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM. IN THE PAST YEAR, THE TEAM CAMPAIGNED TO CONVINCE GARDEN STORES AND GROCERS TO STOCK MORE BEE-FRIENDLY AND ORGANIC PRODUCTS AND ADVOCATED FOR PUBLIC POLICIES TO PHASE-OUT BEE-KILLING PESTICIDES. IT ALSO HELPED INSTITUTIONS SUCH AS SCHOOLS TO ADOPT MORE CLIMATE-FRIENDLY PURCHASING POLICIES, ENCOURAGED FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS TO DIVEST FROM FACTORY FARMS, AND ADVOCATED FOR BETTER REGULATION OF PRODUCTS MADE FROM SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Reading every lease sale
$1.9MTHE ECONOMIC POLICY TEAM AIMS TO CREATE A MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE AND SOCIALLY JUST WORLD BY TRANSFORMING FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEMS.
Including $89,107 granted onward.
Read it as they filed it
ECONOMIC POLICY PROGRAM - THE ECONOMIC POLICY TEAM AIMS TO CREATE A MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE AND SOCIALLY JUST WORLD BY TRANSFORMING FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEMS. ACTIVITIES INCLUDE EFFORTS TO END SUBSIDIES FOR POLLUTING INDUSTRIES AND ENCOURAGE INVESTMENTS IN CLEAN ALTERNATIVES. DURING THE LAST YEAR, IT WORKED TO ALTER LENDING PRACTICES AT LARGE FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS THAT FUND FOSSIL FUELS AND HARM COMMUNITIES AND BIODIVERSITY IN THE US AND ABROAD. IT ENCOURAGED INSTITUTIONAL INVESTORS TO ADOPT POLICIES TO DEFUND DEFORESTATION, PARTICULARLY RELATED TO PALM OIL PRODUCTION.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Reading every lease sale
$1.7MTHE CLIMATE & ENERGY TEAM PROMOTES CLEAN ENERGY AND CONSERVATION AND FIGHTS TO END OUR DEPENDENCE ON DIRTY, HARMFUL SOURCES OF ENERGY INCLUDING COAL, OIL, NATURAL GAS AND NUCLEAR.
Including $208,000 granted onward.
Read it as they filed it
CLIMATE AND ENERGY PROGRAM - THE CLIMATE & ENERGY TEAM PROMOTES CLEAN ENERGY AND CONSERVATION AND FIGHTS TO END OUR DEPENDENCE ON DIRTY, HARMFUL SOURCES OF ENERGY INCLUDING COAL, OIL, NATURAL GAS AND NUCLEAR. IN THE LAST YEAR, THE TEAM HELPED LEAD EFFORTS TO PREVENT FOSSIL FUEL SUBSIDIES AND RESISTED ATTEMPTS TO OPEN UP PUBLIC WATERS AND LANDS TO FOSSIL FUEL DEVELOPMENT. IT CONTINUED ITS CAMPAIGN EFFORTS TO PROMOTE ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND/OR RENEWABLE ENERGY IN NC AND ALSO ADVOCATED FOR THE REGULATION OF GEOENGINEERING.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
84 cents of every dollar goes to the work
That ratio is a good sign, not a scorecard. Plenty of great groups run leaner and lumpier. What matters is the extremes, and Friends of the Earth is nowhere near one.
Backed on the record by David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, William & Flora Hewlett Foundation and 1 other, latest filing FY24.
$15,310,827 programs, $1,153,816 management, $1,851,618 fundraising. Form 990, FY2025.
The people
Who does the work
Took the helm from Erich G Pica, who drew $230,400 in the final year on file.
Honesty note: leadership comes from each year’s federal filing, so it can run a year behind. This one caught a changing of the guard in the act: the FY2025 officer table lists Erich G Pica, the return itself is signed by Erich Pica. Orgs that claim their page can update it same-day. Work at FOE? Claim this page.
Those 1,000 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If FOE is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Make it 1,001The record
The court record
And 6 more in our case database: a selection we track, not their full docket.
14 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year, as filed. Point at the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2011 | $5,495,897 |
| 2012 | $6,151,456 |
| 2013 | $7,475,073 |
| 2014 | $7,495,818 |
| 2015 | $12,759,708 |
| 2016 | $10,486,418 |
| 2017 | $12,545,714 |
| 2018 | $10,051,439 |
| 2019 | $10,801,719 |
| 2020 | $11,961,583 |
| 2021 | $17,624,249 |
| 2022 | $17,950,451 |
| 2023 | $16,789,731 |
| 2025 | $20,396,676 |
From $5.5M in 2011 to $20.4M in FY25, across 14 public filings.
Fights alongside Center for Biological Diversity (10 shared cases), Earthjustice (7 shared cases), Sierra Club (7 shared cases), Natural Resources Defense Council (6 shared cases) and Alaska Wilderness League (4 shared cases) and 17 more. Same case, same side, on the federal docket.
The record
On the Hill
Friends of the Earth files its own federal lobbying reports: 28 filings from 2019 to 2025, naming 50 bills. The filings, at the Senate.
Most filed on environment/superfund, budget/appropriations and energy/nuclear.
Their ground
The places they defend
See every threatened place on one map, and who stands for each.
Friends of the Earth files 2 related organizations on its return: Foe Action Healthy World Victory Fund (527) and Healthy World Fund. A related organization shares people or purpose; it does not share the books.
Help complete this profile. If you work here, claim it to add your current campaigns, recent wins, and the best way for supporters to get involved.
Ways in
How to help
84 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 MapStand with Friends of the Earth
57 years on the ground, 1,000 volunteers, 2 live lawsuits, 84 cents of every dollar on the line. That is who is holding it. There is room for one more.