The Burning Foundation
Seattle, WA · EIN 91-1815335. Reported 213 grants totalling $3,739,000 to 85 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. The Burning Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $15,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $15,000 and $20,000; the smallest was $6,000 and the largest $30,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Futurewise | Seattle, WA | $130,000 | 6 | 4 | 2024 |
| Conservation Northwest | Seattle, WA | $105,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Puget Soundkeeper Alliance | Seattle, WA | $105,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Re Sources | Bellingham, WA | $95,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Waterwatch of Oregon | Portland, OR | $95,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Friends of the San Juans | Friday Harbor, WA | $92,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Greater Hells Canyon Council | Enterprise, OR | $90,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Oregon Natural Desert Association | Bend, OR | $90,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Methow Valley Citizens Council | Twisp, WA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho | Yakima, WA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Skagit Land Trust | Mount Vernon, WA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Twin Harbors Waterkeeper | Rochester, WA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| North Cascades Institute | Sedrowoolley, WA | $80,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Room One | Twisp, WA | $80,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Cascade Forest Conservancy | Vancouver, WA | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood of the Columbia Willamette Inc | Portland, OR | $74,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center | Ashland, OR | $70,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Washington Association of Land Trusts | Seattle, WA | $70,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Audubon Society of Portland | Portland, OR | $65,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Central Oregon Landwatch | Bend, OR | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest Hawai'i Alaska Indiana Kentuck | Seattle, WA | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Sound Action | Vashon, WA | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership | Washington, DC | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Wild Salmon Center | Portland, OR | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Center for Responsible Forestry | Tacoma, WA | $63,000 | 4 | 3 | 2024 |
| Advocates for the West | Boise, ID | $60,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Washington Wild | Seattle, WA | $60,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Firefighters United for Safety Ethics and Ecology | Eugene, OR | $55,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Oregon Desert Land Trust | Bend, OR | $55,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Oregon Wild | Portland, OR | $55,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Cascadia Wildlands | Eugene, OR | $53,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project | Fossil, OR | $52,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Capitol Land Trust | Tumwater, WA | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Neighborcare Health | Seattle, WA | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| North Olympic Land Trust | Port Angeles, WA | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Silvix Resources | Portland, OR | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Spokane Riverkeeper | Spokane, WA | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| The Lands Council | Spokane, WA | $47,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Deschutes River Alliance | Portland, OR | $40,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| National Audubon Society Inc | New York, NY | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Washington Conservation Action Education Fund | Seattle, WA | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Swedish Medical Center Foundation | Seattle, WA | $36,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Foundation for Youth Resiliency and Engagement | Omak, WA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Native Fish Society | Oregon City, OR | $35,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Foundation | Bellingham, WA | $35,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Wild Fish Conservancy | Duvall, WA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Washington Coast Sustainable Salmon Foundation | Aberdeen, WA | $33,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Bark | Portland, OR | $32,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Earthrise Law Center | Portland, OR | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Jefferson Land Trust | Port Townsend, WA | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Umpqua Watersheds | Roseburg, OR | $27,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Willamette Riverkeeper | Portland, OR | $27,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Bird Alliance of Oregon Inc | Portland, OR | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Cascade Forest Conservancy | Portland, OR | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Columbia Insight | Hood River, OR | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Girls Inc of the Pacific Northwest | Portland, OR | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Klamath-Siskyou Wildlands Center | Ashland, OR | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Legacy Forest Defense Coalition | Tacoma, WA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Washington Environmental Council | Seattle, WA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts | Portland, OR | $22,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Cascadia Wild | Portland, OR | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| National Audubon Society | Seattle, WA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Pacific Rivers | Portland, OR | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wallowa Resources | Enterprise, OR | $16,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Audubon Washington | Seattle, WA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Cascades Carnivore Project | Hood River, OR | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Columbia Riverkeeper | Hood River, OR | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Defenders of Wildlife | Washington, DC | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| One Community Health | Hood River, OR | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Roots Young Adult Shelter | Seattle, WA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Sustainable Northwest | Portland, OR | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Teen Feed | Seattle, WA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Western Environmental Law Center | Eugene, OR | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Wildearth Guardians | Santa Fe, NM | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Crag Law Center | Portland, OR | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Wetlands Conservancy Inc | Portland, OR | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Deer Creek Valley Natural Resources Conservation Association | Selma, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ecosource Native Seed and Restoration | Burns, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Friends of the Owyhee | Ontario, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Hunters of Color | Corvallis, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Oregon Agricultural Trust Inc | Salem, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Thrive Hood River | Hood River, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Understory Initiative | Medford, OR | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Washington Water Trust | Seattle, WA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| YWCA Clark County | Vancouver, WA | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
56 of 85 (66%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 77%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is unusually consistent. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Friends of the San Juans
ACHIEVING SHORELINE PROTECTION IN SAN JUAN COUNTY - Futurewise
PROTECTING WILDLIFE AND WATER RESOURCES THROUGH LAND USE - Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center
CLIMATE RESILIENCY & OLD-GROWTH FOREST DEFENSE IN SW OREGON - Oregon Natural Desert Association
CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION IN OREGON'S HIGH DESERT - Re Sources
PROTECTING AND RESTORING THE CENTRAL SALISH SEA - Silvix Resources
GREAT NORTHWEST FORESTS & EO 14072 IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 178 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 57 | $969,000 | $15,000 |
| 2022 | 52 | $867,000 | $15,000 |
| 2023 | 50 | $855,000 | $15,000 |
| 2024 | 54 | $1,048,000 | $20,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 55% of this one's giving went to organizations in Washington. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $15,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Washington.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Burning Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 15275, Seattle, WA, 98115. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 91-1815335 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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