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Updated through 2024NTEE C · Environment

Environment nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 4,948 environment nonprofits, 2020 – 2024. Each organization is counted once at its most recent filing, using the highest-paid leader reported on IRS Form 990, Schedule J.

Organizations that preserve and protect the natural environment through conservation, pollution control, beautification, and environmental education.

Median executive pay
$88,398
The typical environment nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $88,398 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$46k
75th pct
$143k
90th pct
$226k
4,948 organizations · 2020 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $46k and $143k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $226k, roughly 2.6 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$225,726Top 10% of earners
75th$143,08825% earn more than this
50th · median$88,398The typical executive
25th$46,28125% earn less than this
10th$16,50010% of executives earn less than this
By organization size

Bigger budgets, bigger paychecks.

Median executive pay rises with organization revenue. Each band shows the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile of top-executive pay for environment nonprofits in that revenue range.

Revenue band25thMedian75thOrgs
Under $1M$28k$57,983$86k2,750
$1M – $10M$98k$131,977$184k1,862
$10M – $100M$179k$265,392$387k312
$100M – $500M$353k$548,640$859k22
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
By role

Benchmark a specific Environment role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within environment nonprofits.

Board & trustee pay

Environment board & trustee pay norms

8% of environment nonprofits pay at least one board member or trustee, with a typical per-person payment of $38,679 across a median board of 4 paid members.

Organizations paying board members
8%
Median board pay
$38,679
Median paid board size
4
By filing type
Form 990: 9%
Form 990-EZ: 5%
Form 990-PF: 8%
Directory

Conservation groups, environmental advocacy organizations, botanical gardens, and wildlife preservation nonprofits. Includes pollution control, land conservation, and environmental education. There are 10,983 environment organizations in our database with compensation data from IRS Form 990 filings. Use the table below to browse them, or sort by revenue, location, or number of reported executives.

Organizations in Environment

10,983 organizations · Page 3 of 220

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON CLEAN TRANSPORTATION INCWashingtonDC$34.9M10
MDS FAMILY FOUNDATION INCMaitlandFL$34.9M0
OCEANA INCWashingtonDC$34.7M11
GRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCYTraverse CityMI$34.5M6
THE PENNSYLVANIA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETYPhiladelphiaPA$34.3M8
ELEMENTAL EXCELERATOR INCHonoluluHI$34.1M10
Greenacres Foundation IncCincinnatiOH$33.8M3
THE BARN GROUP LAND TRUST INCBrooksGA$33.7M3
CENTER FOR ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTMinneapolisMN$33.7M11
RAREArlingtonVA$33.6M14
THE SUNRISE PROJECT INCWilmingtonDE$33.3M10
COLORADO OPEN LANDSLakewoodCO$33.1M1
NIA TERO FOUNDATIONSeattleWA$32.9M9
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA CONSERVANCYPittsburghPA$32.8M12
WEST MICHIGAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY INC DBA FREDERIK MEIJER GARDENSGrand RapidsMI$32.8M9
ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE ACTION FUNDNew YorkNY$32.7M5
DALLAS ARBORETUM AND BOTANICAL SOCIETY INCDallasTX$32.2M13
Water Environment FederationAlexandriaVA$31.9M8
SERC RELIABILITY CORPORATIONCharlotteNC$31.5M13
Earth Island Institute IncBerkeleyCA$30.9M6
PENINSULA OPEN SPACE TRUSTPalo AltoCA$30.3M10
IOWA NATURAL HERITAGE FOUNDATIONDes MoinesIA$29.8M3
COUNCIL ON THE ENVIRONMENT INCNew YorkNY$29.8M8
CALIFORNIA WATERFOWL ASSOCIATIONRosevilleCA$29.6M7
CLIMATE AND CLEAN ENERGY EQUITY FUNDWashingtonDC$29.5M9
WESTERN RESERVE LAND CONSERVANCYMoreland HillsOH$29.2M0
NATIONAL TROPICAL BOTANICAL GARDENKalaheoHI$29.2M2
The Partnership Project IncWashingtonDC$29.2M3
CLASPWashingtonDC$28.9M9
SHELBURNE FARMSShelburneVT$28.5M6
PECONIC LAND TRUST INCSouthamptonNY$28.1M8
THE NEIGHBORHOOD RECYCLING CORPORATIONMinneapolisMN$27.9M8
VerraWashingtonDC$27.8M17
Texas Agricultural Land TrustSan AntonioTX$27.8M2
THE LAND CONSERVANCY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTYSan Luis ObispoCA$27.7M4
Naples Botanical Garden IncNaplesFL$27.4M8
THE VOLGENAU FOUNDATIONMcLeanVA$27.2M6
VERMONT LAND TRUST INCMontpelierVT$26.7M16
DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN INCPhoenixAZ$26.7M7
COASTAL CONSERVATION ASSOCIATIONHoustonTX$26.5M12
GREENPEACE FUND INCWashingtonDC$26.3M8
American ForestsWashingtonDC$26.3M11
FAIRMOUNT PARK CONSERVANCYPhiladelphiaPA$26.1M6
THE MONTANA LAND RELIANCEHelenaMT$26.1M3
NEW ENGLAND INTERSTATE WATER POLLUTION CONTROL COMMISSIONLowellMA$26.1M7
SONOMA LAND TRUSTSanta RosaCA$25.8M7
CATSKILL WATERSHED CORPORATIONArkvilleNY$25.8M18
THE CHRISTENSEN FUNDSan FranciscoCA$25.6M10
MONTGOMERY COUNTY GREEN BANK CORPORATIONRockvilleMD$25.5M3
WESTERN RIVERS CONSERVANCYPortlandOR$25.2M9