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CLOUD FOREST FUND
MANHASSET HILLS, NY · EIN 920769384 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE C30 · Environment · Small ($100K-$1M) · cloudforestfund.org
revenue
$270K
expenses
$285K
net assets
$-4K
employees
0
program ratio
83%
mission · from form 990

CLOUD FOREST FUND IS ACTIVELY WORKING WITH INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE MAJOR ECOLOGIES OF THE GLOBE

profile · synthesized from sources

Cloud Forest Fund supports indigenous communities and grassroots NGOs in protecting biodiversity across global forest and marine landscapes. It provides small grants and strategic support to initiatives that integrate traditional knowledge, cultural preservation, and ecological stewardship. The organization focuses on replicating community-led conservation models like the Vertical University in regions facing threats from deforestation, industrial expansion, and climate change.

named programs · 3 · from sources

What they call their work

Indigenous Knowledge Portal
Documents and revitalizes traditional knowledge, stories, and practices of indigenous communities in threatened ecosystems
Learning Grounds Expansion
Expands community-based ecological education and land stewardship programs in the Himalayas and other mountain regions
Vertical University Replication
Supports replication of the KTK-BELT Nepal model in Borneo, Congo Basin, and other regions to strengthen indigenous knowledge and biocultural conservation
activities · 2 groups

What they do

  • Environmental Conservation Grantmaking 8 activities
    • Direct conservation of endangered species and habitats
      Supports conservation of endangered primates in the Annamites, including the grey shanked douc langur, yellow-cheeked gibbon, and Tonkin snub-nosed monkey, and conducts surveillance of illegal logging while supporting biocultural territorialities and resilient livelihoods in the Ucayali and Pui Pui regions at the Peru-Brazil border.
    • Funding biodiversity protection projects aligned with Indigenous values
      Provides small grants for biodiversity protection initiatives that reflect Indigenous values of reciprocity, trust, and balance, supporting community-led conservation across ecological regions globally.
    • Funding general support for land ethic and conservation education
      Provides general operating support to Almost Heaven Farms in Ilam, Nepal to preserve land ethics through permaculture, and to Birds Nepal and Women in Conservation to engage young women in birding and bird conservation in western Nepal.
    • Funding grassroots conservation and habitat protection efforts
      Provides financial support to grassroots organizations like Syr-Ap in Bateré to meet community land needs for protecting pangolins and bonobos, and funds KOPEL to prepare a larger proposal to revive seven oxbow lakes in the Kinabatangan River, critical habitat for pygmy elephants, orangutans, and crocodiles.
    • Funding institutional and educational conservation models
      Supports the institutionalization and expansion of the Learning Grounds approach from the KTK-BELT project in Nepal and beyond, and funds PACOS Trust and TONIBUNG to develop feasibility studies and conceptual designs for protection villages around Mt. Kinabalu and a Borneo 'Vertical University'.
    • Funding land rights and conservation initiatives for Indigenous communities
      Awards grants to support legal land rights for Indigenous groups such as the Koi, Banong, and Tay peoples, and funds land rights and birding programs for Wounaan communities in Panama through Native Future.
    • Funding prevention of illegal infrastructure and resource exploitation
      Provides small grants to NGOs and Indigenous federations to develop strategies that prevent illegal roads, mining, and industrial palm oil expansion in threatened Amazon regions.
    • Funding rainwater catchment and drought mitigation projects
      Finances rainwater catchment systems in Loita division, Narok district, to reduce drought impacts for Maasai pastoralists and their livestock.
  • Indigenous-Led Ecosystem Stewardship 3 activities
    • Advocacy and strategy development for ecosystem protection
      Develops strategies and reports to control feral animals in the Galápagos Islands and drafts strategies to curb deforestation and habitat loss in Madagascar by applying the Learning Grounds approach and documenting Indigenous knowledge.
    • Collaborating with Indigenous and local communities in high-integrity ecosystems
      Works directly with Indigenous peoples and local communities in major ecological regions worldwide, particularly in areas with high forest and marine landscape integrity, to advance conservation and resilience.
    • Direct support for Indigenous land reclamation and biocultural heritage
      Supports Yagan families in Ushuaia to reclaim ancestral lands and spiritual sites, and supports the creation of a roadless biocultural heritage landscape for Musk Deer in Nepal’s Karnali Zone.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$270K
Contributions & grants$270K100%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$170%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$285K
Program expenses83%
Admin / overhead17%
Fundraising0%
Salaries & benefits$147K
Grants paid out$80K
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$1K
Cash$1K
Investments$0
Liabilities$5K
Net assets$-4K
Liquid reserves0.0 mo
3 years on record · 2022–2024 · YoY revenue -61.1%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
RAJEEV GOYAL ESQ EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 56 $147K
board members · 3
  • LOKENDRA BAHADUR YAKHA — VICE PRESIDENT/TREASURER
  • RAVINDRA GOYAL — PRESIDENT
  • WILLIAM THATCHER — DOWELL DIRECTOR
relationships · 17

Who they work with

  • Almost Heaven Farms Partner — Provides general support for permaculture-based land ethic preservation in Ilam, eastern Nepal.
  • Birds Nepal Partner — Provides support for initiatives engaging young women in birding and bird conservation in western Nepal.
  • Damyanti Goyal Funder — Provided initial funding to support small grants for biodiversity projects.
  • Dr. Ravindra Goyal Funder — Provided initial funding to support small grants for biodiversity projects.
  • Government of Ecuador Government — Collaborates with the government to develop strategies for invasive species and feral animal control in the Galápagos.
  • Indigenous peoples Partner — Collaborates with Indigenous peoples in environmental conservation efforts.
  • KOPEL Partner — Receives grant funding from Cloud Forest Fund to prepare a larger grant proposal for reviving oxbow lakes in the Kinabatangan River.
  • KTK-BELT Partner — Collaborates on expanding the Learning Grounds approach and institutionalizing its programs.
  • Local communities Partner — Works with local communities to support conservation across major ecological regions.
  • Native Future Partner — Receives grant funding from Cloud Forest Fund to support land rights and birding initiatives for the Wounaan communities in Panama.
  • PACOS Trust Partner — Receives grant funding from Cloud Forest Fund for a feasibility study on protection villages around Mt. Kinabalu.
  • Syr-Ap Partner — Grassroots organization supported by Cloud Forest Fund to assist communities in Bateré with land needs for wildlife protection.
  • TONIBUNG Partner — Receives grant funding from Cloud Forest Fund to design a concept for a Borneo 'Vertical University'.
  • Women in Conservation Partner — Provides support for initiatives engaging young women in birding and bird conservation in western Nepal.
  • communities Partner — Local communities involved in forest conservation and policy advocacy
  • grassroots NGOs Partner — Non-governmental organizations working at the local level to protect forests and promote policy change
  • indigenous federations Partner — Collaborates with indigenous federations to develop strategies protecting threatened Amazon regions from illegal activities.
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Biocultural Conservation
    methodology: cultural-ecological conservation
    By integrating the preservation of Indigenous knowledge, cultural practices, and worldviews with ecological conservation, we protect biodiversity because cultural systems and traditional ways of life are inherently linked to and sustain ecological balance.
  • Community-Led Conservation with Institutional Partnerships
    methodology: community-and-government-partnership
    By partnering with both local communities and government entities, we develop locally grounded yet scalable conservation strategies because combining grassroots leadership with institutional support enables effective responses to threats like invasive species and illegal resource extraction.
  • Indigenous-Led Conservation
    methodology: indigenous-led conservation
    By supporting indigenous communities to develop and lead their own conservation strategies, we achieve more effective and sustainable environmental stewardship because these communities possess deep traditional knowledge and cultural relationships with their ecosystems that are essential to long-term biodiversity protection.
  • Land Defense and Legal Empowerment for Indigenous Communities
    methodology: land-defense
    By supporting indigenous communities in reclaiming ancestral lands and defending against land invasions through legal and advocacy tools, we strengthen both cultural survival and environmental conservation because secure land tenure enables long-term stewardship and resilience.
  • Replication of Biocultural Education Models
    methodology: Learning Grounds
    By adapting and replicating place-based, community-developed educational models like Learning Grounds and the Vertical University, we create biocultural conservation corridors because these models embed traditional knowledge into local ecosystems and foster intergenerational stewardship.