Winter Wildlands Alliance
“Protect and promote quiet, human-powered winter recreation on public lands.”
1 comment to the agencies, 77 cents of every dollar to the work.
The origin
How they started
Winter Wildlands Alliance was founded in February 2000 by backcountry ski and quiet-use groups from Idaho, California, Colorado, and Nevada to give human-powered winter recreation a voice on public lands. From Boise it coordinates more than 100 grassroots partners and pushes on Forest Service winter travel planning that decides where snowmobiles can and cannot go. It also runs the SnowSchool program for kids and the touring Backcountry Film Festival.
Every year they sign one sentence and file it with the federal government: “To inspire and empower people to protect America's wild snowscapes.” as filed.
Where the money went, FY2025
The work, and what it cost
National Policy and Advocacy
$263K, 35% of spendingFostered and led public policy and stewardship efforts promoting human-powered recreation and protecting public lands.
Read it as they filed it
NATIONAL POLICY AND ADVOCACY - FOSTERED AND LED PUBLIC POLICY AND STEWARDSHIP EFFORTS PROMOTING HUMAN-POWERED RECREATION AND PROTECTING PUBLIC LANDS.
IRS Form 990 Part III for fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Grassroots Constituency Building
$207K, 28% of spendingExpanding and inspiring a network of individuals and groups to work toward protecting wild snowscapes and sustainable human-powered recreation access.
Including $9,082 granted onward.
Read it as they filed it
GRASSROOTS CONSTITUENCY BUILDING: EXPANDING AND INSPIRING A NETWORK OF INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS TO WORK TOWARD PROTECTING WILD SNOWSCAPES AND SUSTAINABLE HUMAN-POWERED RECREATION ACCESS. THIS INCLUDES BACKCOUNTRY FILM FESTIVAL, TRAIL BREAK PRINT NEWSLETTER, BI-ENNIAL GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY CONFERENCES AND GENERAL DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.
IRS Form 990 Part III for fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Education
$103K, 14% of spending“snowschool” education program designed to teach school age children about snow ecology.
Read it as they filed it
EDUCATION - "SNOWSCHOOL" EDUCATION PROGRAM DESIGNED TO TEACH SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN ABOUT SNOW ECOLOGY.
IRS Form 990 Part III for fiscal year 2025, signed under penalty of perjury.
Follow the dollar
77 cents of every dollar goes to the work
Read it as a snapshot, not a scorecard. Splits move year to year with grants and campaigns, and healthy shops live all across this range.
$572,495 programs, $125,442 management, $49,342 fundraising. Form 990, FY2025.
The backers
Backed, each with its source, by 444S Foundation, Clif Bar Family Foundation, Simplot Company Foundation and 4 others, 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 the Winter Wildlands Alliance? Claim this page.
Those 700 volunteers are people who decided this ground was theirs to defend. If the Winter Wildlands Alliance is fighting for your place too, the matchmaker will find your way in.
Find your way inThe filings
13 years of filings
Total revenue by fiscal year as filed. Point at or tap the line for any year.
| Year | Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2012 | $513,348 |
| 2013 | $535,774 |
| 2014 | $550,621 |
| 2015 | $462,573 |
| 2016 | $578,901 |
| 2017 | $472,608 |
| 2018 | $674,333 |
| 2019 | $591,827 |
| 2020 | $610,432 |
| 2021 | $665,255 |
| 2022 | $700,097 |
| 2023 | $704,729 |
| 2025 | $798,613 |
From $513K in 2012 to $799K in FY25, across 13 public filings (none on record for 2024).
The returns as e-filed with the IRS, 3 years:
- FY2025Download the return
- FY2024Download the return
- FY2023Download 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.
In court
Fights alongside Center for Biological Diversity (2 shared cases), Friends of the Earth (2 shared cases), National Parks Conservation Association (2 shared cases), National Wildlife Federation (2 shared cases) and Ocean Conservancy (2 shared cases) and 7 more. Same case, same side, on the federal docket. Their dockets on CourtListener.
The record
On the record with the agencies
1 comment on federal decisions since 2023, each filed under the group’s own name on regulations.gov, none yet on a decision we track. Read them on regulations.gov.
Year by year
In order
- 2000Winter Wildlands Alliance is formed.the return, formation year
- 2020Alaska Community Action on Toxics v. Council on Environmental Quality: plaintiff, closed.the docket
- 2022First appears in 444S Foundation’s grants.the funder’s return
- 2023First appears in Clif Bar Family Foundation’s grants.the funder’s return
- 2024State of Iowa v. Council on Environmental Quality: intervenor, closed.the docket
- First appears in the grants of Denver Foundation, Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation, Robert And Judith Sturgis Family Foundation and Seattle Foundation.the funders’ returns
- 20251 comment to the Fish and Wildlife Service, under the group’s own name.regulations.gov
- First appears in Simplot Company Foundation’s grants.the funder’s return
- 20262 cases filed, all closed: Northern Alaska Environmental Center v. Burgum; Northern Alaska Environmental Center, et al. v. Burgum, et al..the docket
Green, a funder’s return. Hollow, a filing. Every row comes from a public record: 4 federal cases with the group on the docket, 1 comment filed under its own name, 7 funders whose returns name it. Nothing here is written from memory.
Their ground
The places they defend
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 ↗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 the Winter Wildlands Alliance
The mission is theirs. The backing is yours.