Florida · Nonprofit
THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (Florida) receives grants from 264 organizations whose IRS filings report $34,737,807 to it, the largest being JOHN & CAROL WALTER FAMILY FOUNDATION INC ($7,995,902). 179 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $45M
- Funders on record
- 264
- Grants received
- $35M
- Net assets
- $136M
What The Conservancy of Southwest Florida does
Mission
We are a grassroots organization focused on the critical environmental issues of sw florida. We accomplish this through a myriad of efforts by the teams in our programmatic departments: science, policy, education and wildlife rehabilitation.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida's environmental education team is committed to developing the environmental leadership of tomorrow. We strive to provide children and adults an appreciation and understanding of southwest florida's unique natural resources. Through this work, we aim to equip our community with the knowledge and understanding to make a difference for the environment and create the next generation of environmental leaders. Individuals who appreciate the importance of these unique natural resources are more willing to help protect and to address the critical environmental issues facing southwest florida's land, water and wildlife. (continued on schedule o)accomplishments for the education team in fy 2024-2025: during the year, education programs reached more than 35,000 participants, representing a significant increase over the prior year. Program evaluations showed measurable gains in environmental knowledge and increased intent to engage in stewardship behaviors. The learning adventure bus expanded its reach through new community partnerships, delivering stem-based environmental education to schools and community locations throughout the region. The conservancy…
$2,924,747 spent33% of program spendingThe Conservancy of Southwest Florida's von arx wildlife hospital admits thousands of native animals every year. The wildlife hospital is designed to meet the medical needs of injured, sick and orphaned native birds, mammals and reptiles, ultimately improving their ability to be released back in to the wild. The second goal is to provide education to our nature center visitors on how to prevent injuries to wildlife. (continued on schedule o)the von arx wildlife hospital is the only facility of its kind within collier county. The injured, sick and orphaned native wildlife are cared for by a dedicated staff of seven full-time employees, a staff veterinarian, and seasonal interns. Staff efforts are supported by volunteers who assist with diet preparation, cage cleaning, animal restraint and wildlife rescue and release. Accomplishments for the wildlife rehabilitation team in fy 2024-2025: during the year, the hospital treated 3,457 animals, including birds, mammals, and reptiles, addressing injuries related to vehicle collisions, habitat loss, disease, and human interference. In response to avian influenza risks, staff implemented enhanced biosecurity protocols, including protective…
$2,303,773 spent26% of program spendingThe environmental science program conducts applied research and long-term monitoring to inform conservation, restoration, and land-use decisions in southwest florida. Conservancy scientists collaborate with academic institutions, government agencies, and conservation partners to address coastal resilience, invasive species management, wildlife conservation, and ecosystem health. (contnued on schedule o)accomplishments for the environmental science team in fy 2024-2025: during the year, the conservancy documented one of the strongest sea turtle nesting seasons in more than four decades on keewaydin island, monitoring 558 nests and recording 38,179 hatchlings.long-term data collected through this program supports regional conservation planning and public education. The conservancy's invasive species program reached a significant milestone, surpassing 20 tons of invasive burmese pythons removed since 2013. During the year, staff and interns removed 6,549 pounds of pythons and 2,945 developing eggs while tracking scout snakes across approximately 250 square miles to reduce reproductive success. Scientists also monitored 7,961 mangroves across permanent plots in clam bay and goodland…
$1,970,653 spent22% of program spendingThe Conservancy of Southwest Florida's environmental policy team uses a science-based approach to tackle broad regional environmental issues and collaborates with partners such as business, environmental, academic and government leaders to ensure the proper stewardship of southwest florida's water, land and wildlife. They provide our region's decision makers with the tools necessary to make informed decisions on environmental and conservation issues. Specific objectives tackled by the team are smart growth, water issues, mining, endangered species and wildlife habitat protection. Accomplishments for the policy team in fy 2024-2025: during the year, the conservancy actively defended federal clean water act protections and opposed efforts to weaken wetland permitting oversight. Staff provided technical analysis, submitted formal comments, and mobilized community engagement through policy action alerts. The policy team launched public-facing tools, including a wetlands story map and a panther dashboard, to provide accessible data on habitat protection and development impacts. A total of 8,243 individuals participated in policy action alerts addressing major land-use and wildlife…
$1,797,534 spentof which $22,696 as grants$170,896 earned by the program20% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $8,996,707.
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.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2024 to 2025, from $101M to $137M (+36%).
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 0% · 2018 0% · 2021 19% · 2023 1% · 2024 1% · 2025 0%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
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.
Chief executive
Rob Moher
CEO
Board chair
Charlie Mueller
Chairman of board
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 77 funders to 123 funders, grant income rose $1.3M → $4.3M.
35 of 264 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 25% 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 THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA’s funders (the co-funder graph). Top 30 of 264 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
THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 23% of grant income, and it takes 7 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 7 funders to its left
28% 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 THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 12% · 2018 13% · 2019 26% · 2020 8% · 2021 18% · 2022 18% · 2023 17% — growing more concentrated.
“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
54% of THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 68% 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
56% of THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA's grant income comes from Florida funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $8.6M arriving through sponsors registered in 19 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.
Organizations like THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
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 Florida
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
71% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
64%
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 THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA: 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 THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA?
- THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (Florida) receives grants from 264 organizations whose IRS filings report $34,737,807 to it, the largest being JOHN & CAROL WALTER FAMILY FOUNDATION INC ($7,995,902). 179 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA have?
- IRS filings report 264 organizations giving $34,737,807 in grants to THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA, 179 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA?
- JOHN & CAROL WALTER FAMILY FOUNDATION INC is the largest funder on record, with $7,995,902 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like THE CONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Florida. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
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 264 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