Alberta Wilderness Association
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.
A
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.
78%
CENTS TO THE CAUSE
For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 78 cents are available for programs.
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OVERVIEW
About Alberta Wilderness Association:
Alberta Wilderness Association is a 4-star charity. It has an A Results Reporting grade, which is above average. Its overhead spending is within Ci's reasonable range; however, it holds reserves that can cover program costs for over 3.5 years, outside Ci's reasonable range.
Founded in 1965, Alberta Wilderness Association (AWA) aims to preserve Alberta’s wilderness, wildlife, and water. AWA advocates for the protection of regions necessary for native species and biodiversity. AWA runs two main programs: Wilderness Stewardship and Outreach. In F2024, the charity spent $394k on its programs. The charity did not provide a program spending breakdown.
Wilderness Stewardship: AWA advocates to the government and other regulatory agencies in the form of letters, petitions, forums, and legal action, to protect land, water, and endangered species. AWA prioritizes six natural regions in Alberta: the Boreal Forest, the Rocky Mountains, The Foothills, the Grasslands, the Canadian Shield, and the Parklands. In F2024, AWA published five op-eds, issued 22 news releases, mobilized 1,800 letters to the government from citizens, sent 25 letters to the government, and was quoted in 140 news articles by over 60 different media outlets.
Outreach: Alberta Wilderness Association also focuses on outreach to citizens. In F2024, AWA hosted 31 adventures through its “Adventures for Wilderness” program, which had a total of 428 participants. AWA connected with over 200 youths through school visits, youth groups, and summer camps in F2024. The charity’s social media gained 2,000 followers and recorded 138,293 impressions in F2024.
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Results and Impact
Alberta Wilderness Association reports changes made by governments due to its advocacy.
AWA met with the mayor and town planners of the Banff Railway Lands Area Redevelopment Plan (ARP) and provided detailed feedback on the plan. Following this meeting, the ARP made key amendments to the plan. This includes removing the gondola terminus and a commitment to move the rehabilitation and restoration work north of the railway tracks to the short-term phase of the plan.
The Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada sought input from Alberta Wilderness Association to inform the Cabinet’s decision on whether to add, reclassify, or remove 13 species on the federal list of wildlife species at risk. AWA supplied comments for all species found within Alberta, which included the small-flowered sand-verbena, the eastern red bat, the hoary bat, and the silver-haired bat.
In December 2023, AWA expressed concerns over the irrigation expansion of Snake Lake Reservoir. AWA reports the expansion would flood a region that is primarily native grassland. Some of AWA’s comments were incorporated into Alberta’s Final Terms of Reference report on the expansion project.
While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Alberta Wilderness Association’s results.
AWA is not yet rated on impact. This shows as n/r and it does not affect its star rating.
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Finances
Alberta Wilderness Association uses activity-based costing, which is a best practice.
AWA received $884k in donations and $95k in government funding. It spent $394k on its programs, which is 35% of revenue, and recorded a surplus of $507k, which is 54% of revenue.
AWA spent $106k on fundraising, which is 12% of donations, and $104k on administration, which is 10% of revenue (excluding investment income). Total overhead spending is 22%. For every dollar donated to the charity, 78 cents are available to go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range.
AWA has $1.4m in reserve funds (cash and investments). These reserves can cover its annual program costs for 3 years and 6 months. This is outside Ci’s reasonable range.
This charity report is an update that has been sent to Alberta Wilderness Association.
Updated on June 6, 2025 by Liam Chapleau.
Financial Review
Fiscal year ending July
|
2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative costs as % of revenues | 9.9% | 9.5% | 12.1% |
| Fundraising costs as % of donations | 11.9% | 14.8% | 15.5% |
| Total overhead spending | 21.8% | 24.3% | 27.6% |
| Program cost coverage (%) | 351.4% | 211.2% | 171.8% |
Summary Financial StatementsAll figures in $s |
2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donations | 883,622 | 660,461 | 552,656 |
| Goods in kind | 0 | 106,000 | 0 |
| Government funding | 95,365 | 16,455 | 29,860 |
| Fees for service | 17,027 | 21,348 | 50,976 |
| Special events | 10,474 | 76,012 | 10,284 |
| Investment income | 61,089 | 28,864 | 15,708 |
| Other income | 44,439 | 0 | 0 |
| Total revenues | 1,112,016 | 909,140 | 659,484 |
| Program costs | 394,324 | 479,855 | 461,716 |
| Administrative costs | 104,026 | 84,004 | 77,959 |
| Fundraising costs | 106,316 | 108,972 | 87,415 |
| Total spending | 604,666 | 672,831 | 627,090 |
| Cash flow from operations | 507,350 | 236,309 | 32,394 |
| Capital spending | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Funding reserves | 1,385,760 | 1,013,584 | 793,319 |
Note: 1. Deferred donations: Ci adjusted for deferred donations and deferred contributions within other revenue. This affected revenue by $44k in only F2024.
Salary Information
$350k + |
0 |
$300k - $350k |
0 |
$250k - $300k |
0 |
$200k - $250k |
0 |
$160k - $200k |
0 |
$120k - $160k |
0 |
$80k - $120k |
1 |
$40k - $80k |
6 |
< $40k |
0 |
Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2024
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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: 403-283-2025