National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance
Fort Collins, CO · EIN 30-0656123. Reported 146 grants totalling $2,248,425 to 84 organizations across tax years 2021-2025, on Form 990 Schedule I.
Does this grantmaker accept applications?
Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.
Three things in the filing do bear on it:
- What kind of organization it is. For National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance, the IRS classifies it under environment rather than as a grantmaker (NTEE C30) -- it is an operating charity that also makes grants.
- How spread out its giving is. 84 distinct organizations, with 5% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is genuinely spread out -- the mark of a funder making many independent decisions rather than underwriting one institution.
- How much its list changes. 35% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 4 year-to-year transitions. That is below the 56% median for grantmaking charities, and well below the 67% median for private foundations. It describes the organizations it already funds, not whether it would consider a new one.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $11,376. Half of what it reported fell between $8,683 and $18,000; the smallest was $5,012 and the largest $80,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation Inc | Hungry Horse, MT | $119,900 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Wild Arizona | Tucson, AZ | $118,228 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| New Mexico Wilderness Alliance | Albuquerque, NM | $114,884 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Sitka Conservation Society | Sitka, AK | $103,956 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Wild Alabama a Nonprofit Corporation | Double Spgs, AL | $92,074 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards | Asheville, NC | $90,272 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Selway-Bitterroot Foundation | Boise, ID | $78,940 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Washington Trails Association | Seattle, WA | $75,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Wyoming Wilderness Association | Sheridan, WY | $73,660 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Continental Divide Trail Coalition | Golden, CO | $70,740 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers | Carbondale, CO | $66,474 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Ventana Wilderness Alliance a Non Profit California Corporation | Monterey, CA | $62,066 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Ascend Wilderness Experience | Weaverville, CA | $50,916 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Friends of the Inyo | Bishop, CA | $45,338 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Citizens Committee to Save Our Canyons | Cottonwd Hts, UT | $45,210 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Sky Island Alliance | Tucson, AZ | $39,728 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Friends of Panthertown | Cashiers, NC | $34,372 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| National Forest Foundation | Missoula, MT | $33,385 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado Inc | Denver, CO | $33,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| International Mountain Bicycling Association | Driggs, ID | $32,130 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Friends of the Central Cascades Wilderness | Bend, OR | $31,527 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of Nevada Wilderness | Reno, NV | $31,188 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Colorado Fourteeners Initiative | Lakewood, CO | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Yosemite Rivers Alliance | Sonora, CA | $29,723 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Colorado Mountain Club | Golden, CO | $26,971 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wildlands Restoration Volunteers | Longmont, CO | $25,012 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Southern Appalachian Wilderne | Asheville, NC | $24,460 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Idaho Conservation League Inc | Boise, ID | $22,809 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness Foundation | Red Lodge, MT | $22,622 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| San Juan Mountains Association | Durango, CO | $21,592 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bchc Education Fund Inc | Bakersfield, CA | $20,976 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| American Endurance Ride Conference Inc | Auburn, CA | $20,381 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cottonwood Canyons Foundation | Holladay, UT | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Headwaters Trails Alliance | Granby, CO | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| White Mountain Collective | Ashland, NH | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Appalachian Trail Conservancy | Harpers Ferry, WV | $19,399 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Vail Valley Mountain Trails Allianc | Avon, CO | $19,320 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Tucson Off Road Cyclists | Tucson, AZ | $18,400 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Idaho Trails Association | Boise, ID | $18,006 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Eagle Summit Wilderness Alliance | Frisco, CO | $18,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Upper Gila Watershed Alliance | Silver City, NM | $16,869 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Potomac Appalachian Trail Club Inc | Vienna, VA | $15,556 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Gila Chapter Back Country Horsemen of New Mexico | Silver City, NM | $15,167 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Post Wildfire Ohv Recovery Alliance | Penngrove, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Yavapai Trails Association | Prescott, AZ | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends of Pathways | Jackson, WY | $14,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness Inc | Sandpoint, ID | $13,949 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Backcountry Horsemen of Ca | North Highlands, CA | $13,046 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mammoth Lakes Recreation | Mammoth Lakes, CA | $11,550 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Wilderness Institue | Missoula, MT | $11,063 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Back Country Horsemen of the Virginia Highlands | Fries, VA | $10,655 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Foothill Collaborative for Sustainability | Sonora, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship | Quincy, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wildlands Restoration Volunte | Longmont, CO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| New Mexico Off-Highway Vehicle Alliance | Santa Fe, NM | $9,982 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wilderness Workshop | Carbondale, CO | $9,939 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Western Colorado University Foundation | Gunnison, CO | $9,834 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Arizona Trail Association | Tucson, AZ | $9,744 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chequamegon Area Mountain Bike Association | Hayward, WI | $9,688 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Nfria Wserc Conservation Center Inc | Paonia, CO | $9,656 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Reno Area Dirt Riders | Sparks, NV | $9,598 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Green Mountain Club Inc | Waterbury Ctr, VT | $9,286 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Methow Valley Trails Collaborative | Winthrop, WA | $8,908 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Ojai Valley Land Conservancy | Ojai, CA | $8,840 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| International Mountain Bicycling Association | Santa Fe, NM | $8,683 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Back Country Horsemen of America | Columbia Fls, MT | $8,156 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Jmt Wilderness Conservancy | Truckee, CA | $8,122 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Enchanted Circle Trails Association | Taos, NM | $7,882 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Camp Grier | Old Fort, NC | $7,850 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| New Mexico Volunteers for the Outdoors | Albuquerque, NM | $7,848 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of Mount Evans & Lost Creek Wildernesses | Evergreen, CO | $7,421 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| La Veta Trails Incorporated | La Veta, CO | $6,589 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Overland Mountain Bike Association | Fort Collins, CO | $6,482 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Backcountry Horsemen of Oregon Inc | Klamath Falls, OR | $6,136 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Munising Bay Trail Network | Munising, MI | $6,058 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of Blackwater Inc | Thomas, WV | $5,942 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wallowa Mountains Hells Canyon Trails Association | Enterprise, OR | $5,830 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Yosemite South Gate Trail Cooperative | Fresno, CA | $5,636 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Hamlin Lake Preservation Society | Ludington, MI | $5,515 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wild South | Spruce Pine, NC | $5,311 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Love in Motion Foundation Inc | Bayamon, PR | $5,265 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Great Old Broads for Wilderness | Durango, CO | $5,138 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Vermont Mountain Bike Advocate Inc | Waterbury, VT | $5,060 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Nevada County Woods Riders Inc | Grass Valley, CA | $5,012 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
33 of 84 (39%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.
- Bob Marshall Wilderness Found
WILDERNESS AND TRAIL STEWARDSHIP - Wild Arizona
WILDERNESS AND TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AC
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 61 of 84 recipients we could match to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's, not ours -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants reported | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 40 | $442,200 | $9,733 |
| 2022 | 38 | $464,043 | $10,939 |
| 2023 | 26 | $437,880 | $15,208 |
| 2024 | 35 | $828,010 | $16,826 |
| 2025 | 7 | $76,292 | $10,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.
Where its money goes
18% of its giving went to organizations in Colorado. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this grantmaker
- Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
- Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $11,376 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Colorado.
- Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2021-2025). Grant figures are from its returns. Recipient classifications, the concentration and retention figures and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations from them, described in how we build this.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 0 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 7 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 1248, Fort Collins, CO, 80522.
EIN 30-0656123 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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