Canadian Wildlife Federation

250 Michael Cowpland Drive
Kanata, ON K2M 2W1
Executive Director: Rick Bates
Board President: Bob Morris

Website: www.cwf-fcf.org
Charitable Reg. #: 10686 8755 RR0001
Sector: Environment
Operating Charity

Charity Rating

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Donor Accountability

Grade: C+

The grade is based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

Financial Transparency

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity's website [ Audited financial statement for most recent year ]

Need for Funding

Funding Reserves Program Costs

Spending Breakdown

Cents to The Cause

♦ ♦ ♦
95¢
75¢
avg
65¢
50¢
2014 2015 2016
For a dollar donated, cents funding the cause after fundraising and admin costs, excluding surplus.

Full-time staff #64

Avg. Compensation $76,343

Top 10 Staff Salary Range

$350k + 0
$300k - $350k 0
$250k - $300k 0
$200k - $250k 1
$160k - $200k 0
$120k - $160k 3
$80k - $120k 6
$40k - $80k 0
< $40k 0
Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2016

About Canadian Wildlife Federation:

Founded in 1962, Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) works to conserve and inspire conservation of Canadian wildlife and land for future generations to enjoy. Its programs include conservation, education, and awareness. CWF designed its programs around three main strategies: connecting Canadians to nature, maintaining healthy wildlife populations, and conserving and restoring the environment. CWF reports that it engages over 575,000 people and reaches over 2.5 million annually through its activities.

Canadian Wildlife Federation runs education programs that connect Canadians with the environment. WILD Migrations provides a visual map of all species at risk of endangerment in Canada. Through this program, CWF educated 29,300 people on at-risk species and their migratory patterns in F2016. WILD Spaces is an online education program where kids aged 9 to 12 learn about pollinators and pollinator-friendly practices. In F2016, over 13,000 students participated. The WILD Family Nature Club offers outdoor activities for kids and training for adults who want to get their kids more involved with nature. In F2016, 10,400 people participated in 77 communities. WILD Outside is a leadership program for youth aged 12 to 26. Participants develop teamwork skills as well as a conservation ethic, plan a community-based action project, and then deliver the project to major cities across Canada in teams. 48 youth participated in F2016. CWF also states in its F2016 annual report that it trained 760 educators in wild education during the year and over 74,200 people participated in outdoor education programs.

Canadian Wildlife Federation’s conservation programs use science to restore Canadian habitats and wildlife. The charity divides its conservation programming into four focus areas: endangered species & biodiversity, lakes & rivers, coasts & oceans, and forests & fields. In 2016, CWF assessed 5,689 shorelines through its Love Your Lake shoreline stewardship program. Since 2013, the charity reports assessing a total of 15,364 properties across 51 Ontario lakes. As part of its efforts to protect the American Eel population in Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, CWF reports helping Hydro Ottawa start building its first hydro generator in Canada that provides safe upstream and downstream passage for eels. The Saving Turtles At Risk Today (START) Muskoka Turtle Project aims to protect the eight species of freshwater turtles in Canada with unstable populations. In F2016, the START program increased legal protection of turtle wetland habitat to over 1,000 square kilometers in Muskoka and Parry Sound, protected 122 nests and released over 1,000 turtle hatchlings that were rescued from at-risk nests or injured mothers.

Canadian Wildlife Federation’s awareness activities aim to connect more Canadians with nature – the charity reports that Canadians spend most of their time inside, and lack of exposure to nature can contribute to human illness. CWF’s awareness activities for F2016 included airing PSAs 15,118 times and holding 79 Walk For Wildlife events. CWF’s website had over 1.3m unique visitors in F2016, and over 10,000 people committed to camping through the charity’s Great Canadian Campout.

Financial Review:

Charity Intelligence consolidated CWF with its associated Foundation in the following financial analysis. Transfers between the two charities are not reported as revenues or expenses.

Canadian Wildlife Federation is a big-cap charity with total donations of $15.5m in F2016. Administrative costs are 8% of revenues and fundraising costs are 32% of donations. Per dollar donated to the charity, $0.60 goes toward its programs, which falls outside Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. Ci notes that the charity capitalizes a portion of its fundraising costs. CWF’s funding reserves of $9.9m include a $200k endowment fund held by CWF and a $235k endowment fund held by the Foundation. Excluding endowed funds, the charity’s reserves can cover 78% of annual program costs.

This charity report is an update that is currently being reviewed by Canadian Wildlife Federation. Comments and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on August 14, 2017 by Katie Khodawandi.

Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending February 		201620152014
Administrative costs as % of revenues 7.7%7.8%10.6%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 31.8%29.7%30.6%
Program cost coverage (%) 81.7%71.5%80.2%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s 		201620152014
Donations 15,53713,43912,344
Goods in kind 2,2823,449699
Government funding 758538382
Fees for service 1,1071,118835
Investment income (370)288349
Other income 226271231
Total revenues 19,54019,10314,840
Program costs 12,11512,97110,132
Administrative costs 1,5241,4691,539
Fundraising costs 4,9343,9923,776
Cash flow from operations 967671(607)
Funding reserves 9,8999,2778,121
Note: Ci reported unrealized gains/losses on investments for both the Federation and Foundation, affecting investment income by ($649k) in F2016, $82k in F2015 and $160k in F2014. Ci backed out amortization of tangible capital assets from program, administrative and fundraising costs. Ci backed out amortization of donor acquisition costs from fundraising and included donor acquisition costs capitalized during the year, affecting expenses by $127k in F2016, ($29k) in F2015 and $6k in F2014. Ci reported Foundation revenues in donations, less fund transfers from the Federation to the Foundation. Ci reported Foundation expenses in program costs, fundraising costs, and administrative costs, less administrative services paid by the Federation.  

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