High Desert Museum
“Explore the connections between people and the high desert landscape.”
The work
What they do
Natural and cultural history museum focused on the high desert of the American West. Education about BLM and USFS landscapes, wildlife, and indigenous cultures.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “THE HIGH DESERT MUSEUM WILDLY EXCITES AND RESPONSIBLY TEACHES THROUGH INNOVATION, INTERDISCIPLINARY EXPERIENCES, CREATING CONNECTION TO AND DIALOGUE ABOUT THE HIGH DESERT.”
Where the money went, FY2025
The work, and what it cost
Bringing people into the fight
$7.4MEDUCATIONAL EXHIBITS AND ACTIVITIES DESIGNED TO INTERPRET AND MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC INFORMATION ON THE CULTURAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES OF THE ARID INTERMOUNTAIN WEST.
Read it as they filed it
EDUCATIONAL EXHIBITS AND ACTIVITIES DESIGNED TO INTERPRET AND MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC INFORMATION ON THE CULTURAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES OF THE ARID INTERMOUNTAIN WEST.
IRS Form 990 Part III, fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
83 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 High Desert Museum is nowhere near one.
$7,441,739 programs, $886,394 management, $671,981 fundraising. Form 990, FY2025.
The people
Who does the work
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 High Desert Museum? Claim this page.
Those 150 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If High Desert Museum is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Make it 151The filings
14 years of filings
14 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year, as filed. Point at the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2011 | $3,723,075 |
| 2012 | $4,172,777 |
| 2013 | $4,708,638 |
| 2014 | $3,775,791 |
| 2015 | $5,088,140 |
| 2016 | $4,381,816 |
| 2017 | $4,432,238 |
| 2018 | $5,049,194 |
| 2019 | $5,793,514 |
| 2020 | $4,522,552 |
| 2021 | $13,034,112 |
| 2022 | $11,931,465 |
| 2023 | $13,589,414 |
| 2025 | $16,576,322 |
From $3.7M in 2011 to $16.6M in FY25, across 14 public filings. The 2025 peak of $16.6M reads like one-time gifts, so trust the line, not the peak.
The Oregon congressional delegation averages 87 of 100 on public lands. See the full scorecard
Ways in
How to help
83 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 High Desert Museum
44 years on the ground, 150 volunteers, 83 cents of every dollar on the line. That is who is holding it. There is room for one more.