California · Nonprofit
AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION
AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION (California) receives grants from 151 organizations whose IRS filings report $17,816,857 to it, the largest being Silicon Valley Community Foundation ($2,255,000). 108 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2024
- $59M
- Funders on record
- 151
- Grants received
- $18M
- Net assets
- $86M
What Aquarium of the Pacific Corporation does
Mission
The aquarium of the pacific's mission is to instill a sense of wonder, respect, and stewardship for the pacific ocean, its inhabitants, and ecosystems.
As stated on its FY2024 Form 990.
Programs
Animal care - the husbandry department manages the care, feeding, and life support systems for more than 14,924 animals representing over 787 species across 100+ exhibits, including interactive touch tanks. Animals cared for include sea lions, sea otters, sharks, rays, diving birds, sea jellies, corals, turtles, and diverse fish species from temperate to tropical habitats. Care includes feeding sustainable, high-quality seafood; monitoring water quality and life support systems, conducting medical exams and procedures, and maintaining appropriate exhibit and behind-the-scenes environments.see schedule o for continuationguest services guest services is responsible for all guest interactions not related to education or interpretation. Guest services manages onsite revenue collection, guest safety, and overall cleanliness of the facility.retail operations the retail department designs, develops, and selects merchandise reflecting the visitor experience. This includes original books and other products that educate and reinforce conservation messages while extending the guest's connection to the aquarium beyond their visit.
$39,897,160 spent$51,903,018 earned by the program87% of program spendingThe aquarium's conservation work extends across the institution including the husbandry teams, veterinary services, education department and volunteer services. In 2024 the aquarium continued its mountain yellow-legged frog, white abalone, and sea otter surrogacy programs by releasing individuals to their native habitats. The sunflower sea star program expanded with a formal partnership across the state. Aquarium staff responded to emergency events including rehabilitating and releasing three injured sea turtles.see schedule o for continuation the education department of the aquarium of the pacific strives to ignite interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (stem) by providing opportunities for people of all ages, interests, and backgrounds to wonder, explore, discover, and learn. We do this through programs onsite, online, and in the community. In 2024, the department reached approximately 159,000 people.- 76% were with onsite programs including school programs, whale watches, and public programs- 21% were with engagements offsite in the community such aquarium on wheels, tabling at festivals, and community science programs- 3% were through our virtual programming…
$6,183,718 spent$634,036 earned by the program13% of program spending
The 2 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $46,080,878.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2018 to 2019, from $79M to $102M (+28%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2017 4% · 2018 4% · 2019 6% · 2020 26% · 2021 32% · 2022 1% · 2023 3% · 2024 0%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
7% of AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION’s revenue is contributions — more earned-revenue than three-quarters of its peers (67% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 1 of the last 8 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
Dr Peter Kareiva
President & CEO
As listed on its FY2024 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 41 funders to 70 funders, grant income fell $3.2M → $1.8M.
19 of 151 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 39% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION’s funders (the co-funder graph). Top 30 of 151 funders by total. Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 13% of grant income, and it takes 10 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 10 funders to its left
48% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 45% · 2018 35% · 2019 27% · 2020 16% · 2021 17% · 2022 19% · 2023 9% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How long its funders stay
56% of AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 72% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
74% of AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION's grant income comes from California funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $6.9M arriving through sponsors registered in 13 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION holds deeper cash reserves than three-quarters of the 235 animals nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 235 animals nonprofits $10M–$100M, FY2024
Government funding AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION receives
Grants and contracts to this organization from federal (USASpending) and state checkbooks, reconciled to its EIN. $1.2M on record.
- Department of Commerce$974k
- Institute of Museum and Library Services$232k
Federal grants vs contracts are distinguished; state line items keep their reported category. Matched by name + geography (the BMF), so coverage is partial and precision-first.
Organizations like AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In California
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
86% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
97%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION?
- AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION (California) receives grants from 151 organizations whose IRS filings report $17,816,857 to it, the largest being Silicon Valley Community Foundation ($2,255,000). 108 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION have?
- IRS filings report 151 organizations giving $17,816,857 in grants to AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION, 108 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION?
- Silicon Valley Community Foundation is the largest funder on record, with $2,255,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in California. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Aquarium of the Pacific →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2024 (financials across 2017–2024), and the filings of 151 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 22, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing