Virginia · Nonprofit
International Biochar Initiative
International Biochar Initiative (Virginia) receives grants from 5 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,724,340 to it, the largest being Woka Foundation ($1,700,000). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $674k
- Funders on record
- 5
- Grants received
- $1.7M
- Net assets
- $252k
What International Biochar Initiative does
Mission
Empower communities and inspire industries to integrate biochar-based solutions towards healthier ecosystems and economies worldwide. Continued in Schedule O
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Academy - During FY24-25, IBI delivered the Biochar Academy Kenya in collaboration with regional partners. The in-person program brought together more than 80 participants, including biochar producers, researchers, practitioners, and project developers from across the region. The Academy provided structured technical training, peer exchange, and site-based learning focused on biochar production, applications, and climate relevance, supporting capacity building and regional ecosystem development.
$72,242 spent$54,073 earned by the program32% of program spendingStudy Tour - During FY24-25, IBI successfully delivered the Wales Biochar Study Tour, with participation from more than 30 attendees. The program included site visits, technical presentations, and peer exchange, offering hands-on exposure to biochar production systems, applications, and regional approaches to implementation.
$45,833 spent$57,755 earned by the program20% of program spendingOther Programs - During FY2425, IBI advanced several additional strategic initiatives and special projects that did not fall under its core program categories but directly supported the organizations mission. These included the development and coordination of externally funded and partner-supported projects, such as early-stage work related to international biochar initiatives in Pakistan, as well as grant-supported research and program design activities linked to philanthropic partners, including work associated with the Bezos Earth Fund. These efforts focused on project scoping, partner coordination, technical review, and early implementation planning, laying the groundwork for future education, deployment, and capacity-building activities.
$44,391 spent$12,357 earned by the program20% of program spendingConference/Events - Throughout FY2425, IBI participated in and contributed to multiple national and international conferences and convenings to support knowledge exchange and sector positioning. These included attendance and engagement at events such as the North American Biochar Conference and Climate Week NYC, as well as additional regional and partner-led events. Participation focused on strengthening partnerships, increasing visibility of biochar solutions, and supporting coordination across the global biochar community.
$29,318 spent$12,000 earned by the program13% of program spendingOnline Courses - IBI continued to offer its two established online biochar courses throughout FY2425, providing ongoing access to foundational biochar education for a global audience. In addition, IBI delivered a live Virtual Graduate Lecture Series featuring expert-led sessions. Recordings of these sessions were made available to extend educational access beyond the live events and support continued learning.
$26,252 spent$17,617 earned by the program12% of program spendingBiochar Marketing Campaign - In FY2425, IBI completed the Biochar Perception Study, a research-based initiative designed to better understand how biochar is perceived both within and outside the sector. The results have supported internal strategy development, communications planning, and stakeholder engagement by providing data-driven insights into awareness gaps, messaging challenges, and opportunities for sector-wide outreach.
$8,295 spent4% of program spending
The 6 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $226,331.
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 2020 to 2021, from $67k to $420k (+522%).
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.
77% of International Biochar Initiative’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (88% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 3 of the last 9 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.
Board chair
Lucia Brusegan
Chairman
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2020 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 3 funders, grant income rose $104 → $500k.
1 of 5 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 0% 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 International Biochar Initiative’s funders (the co-funder graph). 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
International Biochar Initiative leans on a few funders — its largest provides 99% of grant income and the top three 100%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
Largest funder’s share by year: 2020 100% · 2021 100% · 2022 95% · 2023 100% — broadly stable.
“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.
Where its funders are
International Biochar Initiative draws 100% of its grant income from funders outside Virginia, across 3 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $240 arriving through sponsors registered in 1 state 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
International Biochar Initiative has grown faster than three-quarters of the 2,433 environment nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 2,433 environment nonprofits $100k–$1M, FY2025
Government funding International Biochar Initiative receives
Grants and contracts to this organization from federal (USASpending) and state checkbooks, reconciled to its EIN. $10k on record.
- Department of Agriculture$10k
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 International Biochar Initiative
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 Virginia
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
37% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
27%
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 International Biochar Initiative: 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 International Biochar Initiative?
- International Biochar Initiative (Virginia) receives grants from 5 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,724,340 to it, the largest being Woka Foundation ($1,700,000). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does International Biochar Initiative have?
- IRS filings report 5 organizations giving $1,724,340 in grants to International Biochar Initiative, 2 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of International Biochar Initiative?
- Woka Foundation is the largest funder on record, with $1,700,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like International Biochar Initiative find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Virginia. 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 International Biochar Initiative →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 5 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 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing