Alberta Ecotrust Foundation
STAR RATINGCi's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics: |
✔+
FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY
Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.
B+
RESULTS REPORTING
Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.
n/r
DEMONSTRATED IMPACT
The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.
NEED FOR FUNDING
Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.
88%
CENTS TO THE CAUSE
For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 88 cents are available for programs.
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OVERVIEW
About Alberta Ecotrust Foundation:
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation is a 3-star charity that is financially transparent. It has an above-average results reporting grade of B+ and reasonable overhead spending of 12%.
Founded in 1991, Alberta Ecotrust Foundation (AEF) works with environmental groups to create healthy ecosystems for Albertans. AEF supports environmental charities with grants, initiates and invests in projects, and advocates for climate change solutions. Alberta Ecotrust Foundation runs two core programs: Grants and Foundation Initiatives. In F2023, AEF spent $4.2m on its programs.
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation funded two main grant programs: the Environmental Grant Program and the Climate Innovation Grant Program. AEF supports work like the identification of key biodiversity and conservation areas in Alberta, the advancement of climate technology, or ecological restoration work on farms, creeks, and landscapes across the province. In F2023, AEF granted funding to 29 projects, totalling $1.3m. This includes 10 climate innovation projects and 19 environmental projects.
In the Foundation Initiatives program, AEF initiates and delivers collaborative projects with partners. In these projects, AEF emphasizes three Focus Areas: climate change and resilience, circular economy, and nature-based solutions. Some projects include Retrofit Accelerator, Green Home Loans Study, and Carbon Capture for Non-profits. In F2023, AEF worked on eight foundation initiative projects.
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Results and Impact
In F2023, the estimated 20-year cumulative greenhouse gas emissions savings was 1,199,879 tCO2e (tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent).
AEF reported on the impact of scaling up retrofits for social and affordable housing properties. Assuming an annual retrofit rate of 6-7% of properties in Calgary and Edmonton, the following impacts were simulated between 2023-2050: lifetime energy savings of 23 petajoules (PJ) or 0.5 PJ per year, on average, equivalent to a 28% reduction in baseline energy consumption; lifetime utility bill savings of $439 million (2022 dollars) or $8.8 million per year, on average; and lifetime greenhouse gas emissions savings of 1,347,730 tCO2e or 26,955 tCO2e per year, on average, equivalent to a 27% reduction in baseline GHG emissions.
Although Ci highlights these key results, this may not be a complete representation of Alberta Ecotrust Foundation’s results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).
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Finances
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation has changed its fiscal year end from December to March, meaning Ci is reporting on a 15-month year ending March 2023.
Alberta Ecotrust Foundation had donations of $1.7m in F2023. The charity received $506k in government funding representing 9% of total revenues.
Administrative costs are 6% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 6% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 12%, which is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.
AEF has $45.7m in reserve funds. These reserve funds are the charity’s cash and investments. In these reserve funds, $38.0m are endowed by the government. Excluding these funds, the charity has 5 years and 4 months of annual program costs covered by its current reserves.
This charity report is an update that has been sent to Alberta Ecotrust Foundation for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.
Updated on July 26, 2024, by Lily Ferguson.
Financial Review
Fiscal year ending March
|
2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative costs as % of revenues | 5.8% | 15.4% | 0.5% |
| Fundraising costs as % of donations | 6.4% | 0.0% | 1.9% |
| Total overhead spending | 12.1% | 15.4% | 2.3% |
| Program cost coverage (%) | 538.4% | 3,731.0% | 9,999.0% |
Summary Financial StatementsAll figures in $000s |
2023 | 2021 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donations | 1,656 | 1,170 | 1,254 |
| Government funding | 506 | 180 | 202 |
| Fees for service | 86 | 61 | 52 |
| Special events | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Investment income | 196 | 1,033 | 45 |
| Other income | 3,185 | (272) | 42,528 |
| Total revenues | 5,629 | 2,174 | 44,089 |
| Program costs | 2,446 | 1,272 | 832 |
| Grants | 1,716 | 801 | 791 |
| Administrative costs | 313 | 175 | 198 |
| Fundraising costs | 105 | 0 | 24 |
| Total spending | 4,580 | 2,248 | 1,844 |
| Cash flow from operations | 1,049 | (74) | 42,244 |
| Capital spending | 8 | 5 | 6 |
| Funding reserves | 45,697 | 44,439 | 44,447 |
Note: Ci included unrealized loss on investments, affecting revenues by ($590k) in F2023, $520k in F2021, and $43k in F2020. Ci did not include endowment allocation in revenue as it is an interfund transfer, affecting revenues by ($3.0m) in F2023, ($368k) in F2021, and ($573k) in F2020. Ci adjusted for grants committed, affecting revenue by $439k in F2023, ($245k) in F2021, and ($188k) in F2020. Ci adjusted for deferred grant revenue, affecting revenues by $3.1m in F2023, ($272k) in F2021, and ($577k) in F2020. Ci used AEF's T3010 filing with the CRA to report fundraising costs and backed them out of program spending.
Salary Information
$350k + |
0 |
$300k - $350k |
0 |
$250k - $300k |
0 |
$200k - $250k |
0 |
$160k - $200k |
0 |
$120k - $160k |
3 |
$80k - $120k |
7 |
$40k - $80k |
0 |
< $40k |
0 |
Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2023
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Comments & Contact
Comments added by the Charity:
Charity Contact
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 403-209-2245