Utah · Nonprofit
ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION
ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION (Utah) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $5,359,327 to it, the largest being NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION ($4,125,863). 10 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $14M
- Funders on record
- 23
- Grants received
- $5.4M
- Net assets
- $22M
What Zion Natural History Association does
Mission
Our mission is to conserve and enhance public lands in the zion region for current and future generations by engaging communities, visitors, and partners. The following principles guide zfps strategies, decisions, and day-to-day work: we exist solely and entirely to support zion national park, cedar breaks, pipe spring national monuments (the parks), and the dixie national forest (the forest), and to advocate for their needs. As such, our mission and priorities are fully aligned with theirs. Our work and impact rest entirely on our trust-based partnership with the national park service, the u.s. Forest service, and other stakeholders. We are an honest broker who can be relied upon to create productive, apolitical spaces with diverse stakeholders. In these spaces, we work together to solve problems with the long-term interest of the parks and the forest in mind. Together with the national park service and u.s. Forest service, we seek to create a memorable, authentic, high-quality experi
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Support during the recent federal government shutdown: zion forever project played a critical role in sustaining essential services and protecting the visitor experience at zion national park. As the parks official nonprofit partner, the organization stepped in to provide operational and financial support at a time when federal resources were constrained, helping ensure continuity of key functions including visitor services, facility support, and resource protection. Through close coordination with national park service staff, zion forever project deployed philanthropic funding and organizational capacity to mitigate impacts to park operations, maintain public access where feasible, and safeguard critical infrastructure and natural resources. This response underscores the organizations mission- driven commitment to stewardship, partnership, and resilience in the face of funding disruptions affecting americas public lands.
$1,674,257 spent25% of program spendingAddressing infrastructure and deferred maintenance needs: zion forever project continues to play a vital role in addressing deferred maintenance and critical infrastructure needs within zion national park by leveraging philanthropic investment to advance high-priority projects that preserve park resources and enhance visitor experiences. In the past year, the organization supported major infrastructure improvements, including contributions toward essential sewer system upgrades to ensure environmental compliance and long-term operational reliability, as well as the replacement of aging solar infrastructure to improve energy resilience and sustainability within the park. These efforts are part of a broader strategy to reduce the parks deferred maintenance backlog, extend the life of critical assets, and align infrastructure investments with evolving environmental and visitation demands. Through targeted funding and close partnership with the national park service, zion forever project helps bridge the gap between federal appropriations and on-the-ground needs, ensuring that vital systems are modernized and maintained for future generations.
$4,958,989 spentof which $4,733,887 as grants75% of program spendingAdvancing solutions to park housing challenges: zion forever project is actively advancing solutions to address critical staff housing challenges within zion national park, recognizing that adequate housing is essential to sustaining park operations and delivering a high-quality visitor experience. In response to ongoing workforce shortages driven by limited and unaffordable housing in the region, the organization has prioritized investment and partnership efforts to expand and improve housing availability for national park service employees and seasonal staff. Through strategic planning, philanthropic support, and collaboration with federal and local partners, zion forever project is working to develop and enhance housing infrastructure that supports recruitment, retention, and overall workforce stability. These efforts directly contribute to the parks operational resilience and ensure that the people responsible for protecting and stewarding zion are able to live and work within the communities they serve.
Enhancing the visitor experience through education initiatives: we continue to fund all of zion's education initiatives, including distance-learning programs that broadcast globally, bringing zion and zion rangers into classrooms around the world. Our junior ranger program engages 43,000 children annually, helping them explore and learn about the park. Additionally, our flagship programs, such as "concrete to canyon," bring title 1 schoolchildren into the park for their first zion experience and fund ranger visits to local classrooms, providing invaluable educational experiences. Zfp also funds southern utah universitys (suu) intergovernmental internship cooperative (iic), which places students in public land positions across the region, offering hands-on experience and fostering the next generation of conservation leaders. Funding for search and rescue (sar) training programs: in 2025, zfp provided essential funding for various search and rescue (sar) training programs, enhancing the capabilities and preparedness of our responders. These comprehensive training sessions covered basic sar techniques, climbing and rappelling, swiftwater rescue, and psychological training.…
The 4 programs described on its FY2025 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $6,633,246.
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 2024 to 2025, from $18M to $23M (+27%).
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 1% · 2018 2% · 2020 1% · 2021 0% · 2022 17% · 2023 9% · 2024 4% · 2025 0%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
46% of ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION’s revenue is contributions — more earned-revenue than three-quarters of its peers (87% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 0 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
Shain Manuele
Board chair
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 6 funders to 7 funders, grant income fell $481k → $178k.
6 of 23 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 9% 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 ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION’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
ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION leans on a few funders — its largest provides 77% of grant income and the top three 87%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
89% 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 ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 57% · 2018 91% · 2019 39% · 2020 51% · 2021 78% · 2022 85% · 2023 65% — 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
38% of ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 43% 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
ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION draws 91% of its grant income from funders outside Utah, across 9 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $496k arriving through sponsors registered in 5 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
ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION runs a healthier operating margin than half of the 195 environment nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 195 environment nonprofits $10M–$100M, FY2025
Government funding ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION receives
Grants and contracts to this organization from federal (USASpending) and state checkbooks, reconciled to its EIN. $5k on record.
- Department of Agriculture$5k
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 ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION
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 Utah
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
68% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION: 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 ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION?
- ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION (Utah) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $5,359,327 to it, the largest being NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION ($4,125,863). 10 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION have?
- IRS filings report 23 organizations giving $5,359,327 in grants to ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION, 10 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION?
- NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $4,125,863 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like ZION NATURAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Utah. 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 23 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