irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2023
What they reported doing
- #1 primary $0ORGANIZATION, COORDINATION AND SUPERVISION OF EARTH DAY ACTIVITIES AND
named programs · 7 · from sources
What they call their work
Do Just 1 Thing Campaign
Public engagement campaign encouraging individuals to take simple, actionable steps toward sustainability, starting with climate communication via social media.
Gotham Grazer Program
Leadership program for high school students to engage communities in sustainable food conversations and explore careers in the sustainable food industry.
Negotiation Simulation Volunteering
Interactive simulation where participants role-play stakeholders in a food desert to develop solutions for food security; facilitated by high school interns as a leadership development opportunity.
Parts Per Million Podcast
Podcast series exploring mass movements and individual actions for climate change, with a focus on empowering listeners to create positive environmental impact.
Rooftop Farm Volunteering
Team-building volunteer events at a Midtown Manhattan rooftop farm that supports a local food pantry; involves garden maintenance and urban agriculture activities.
Seed-Ball Planting Volunteer Event
Workshop where teams create seed balls for guerrilla gardening in vacant lots and shoreline areas to promote urban greening and erosion control.
Virtual Interactive Events and Webinars
Hosts virtual discussions with experts on sustainability topics including environmental justice, renewable energy, and youth climate activism for schools, offices, and community groups.
activities · 6 groups
What they do
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Community Stewardship Volunteer Programs 1 activity
- Facilitating community engagement and team-building eventsOrganizes in-person and virtual team-building and community engagement events that connect companies, schools, and organizations with sustainability experts and community leaders, including seed-ball making events and volunteer coordination for urban greening and rooftop farm support.
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Community Festival & Event Production 1 activity
- Organizing annual Earth Day festivals and eventsPlans and hosts large-scale in-person and virtual Earth Day events annually in landmark locations such as Central Park and Union Square, featuring exhibits, workshops, live performances, art installations, kids' activities, and sustainable foods. Events have engaged roughly two million people since 1990, including virtual festivals reaching over 400,000 live viewers in 2020 and 2021.
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Climate Change Public Awareness & Advocacy 1 activity
- Producing climate-focused media contentCreates and publishes a podcast series focused on empowering individuals to take climate action, with a focus on climate communication, and produces virtual stage programming featuring public figures and climate experts discussing climate justice and solutions.
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Onsite & Outreach Environmental Education Programs 1 activity
- Providing environmental education programs and resourcesImplements year-round educational programming for youth and schools, including classroom gardens, sustainable food toolkits, and clean energy negotiation simulations developed with Harvard Law School colleagues. Offers free downloadable educational materials, virtual sessions, lesson plans, and tools such as food maps and group activities for use in schools and community organizations.
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Local Clean Energy Adoption & Education 1 activity
- Supporting clean energy participation and urban sustainability projectsEnables public participation in clean energy programs through a partnership with Arcadia, allowing individuals to support renewable energy via utility bills. Contributes to urban greening and ecological restoration efforts, including fire restoration and rewilding in Prospect Park.
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Uncategorized 1 activity
- Distributing green living and sustainability guidesProduces and freely distributes educational publications and downloadable guides, including the Green Living + School/Office Guide and the Lessons Learned series, which provide actionable checklists, best practices, and guidance on sustainable design, green buildings (including LEED v4), and sustainability in schools and offices.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$462K
Contributions & grants$365K79%
Program service revenue$68K15%
Investment income$29K6%
Other revenue$480
expenses
Total expenses$506K
Program expenses89%
Admin / overhead8%
Fundraising3%
Salaries & benefits$132K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$643K
Cash$634K
Investments$0
Liabilities$37K
Net assets$606K
Liquid reserves15.0 mo
5 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +6.5%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 1
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| JOHN OPPERMANN | EXECUTIVE DI | 40 | $120K |
board members · 11
- ALYSIA REINER — BOARD MEMBER
- DAMON TORRES — BOARD MEMBER
- DOUGLAS DURST — BOARD MEMBER
- ELIZABETH STEIN — BOARD MEMBER
- FRED KENT — BOARD MEMBER
- LUCIUS RICCIO — TREASURER
- MARI BALESTRAZZI — BOARD MEMBER
- PAMELA LIPPE — PRESIDENT
- SARAH CURRIE HALPERN — SECRETARY
- TAYLOR MORTON — BOARD MEMBER
- TRACY STEIN — BOARD MEMBER
relationships · 27
Who they work with
- Arcadia Partner — Clean energy partner that administers renewable energy support through utility bills.
- City Roots Hospitality Partner — Co-hosted a plant-based cooking demo with Chef Guy Vaknin at the Earth Day 2026 festival.
- Climate Words Partner — Collaborated with Climate Words to host a climate and sustainability bookswap at the Earth Day 2024 Festival.
- Columbia University Government — Lou Riccio, representative from Columbia University, serves as Treasurer.
- Con Edison Partner — Long-time partner collaborating on environmental initiatives and community engagement during Earth Month.
- Coral Restoration Consortium Partner — Participated in the “Storyteller Spotlights: Tides of Connection” event at the Earth Day 2026 festival.
- Durst Organization Partner — Supporter of the Do Just 1 Thing campaign
- Earth Day Initiative Partner — Organization implementing sustainability education programs including indoor gardens and negotiation simulations in schools.
- Environmental Defense Fund Partner — Elizabeth Stein, representative from Environmental Defense Fund, serves on the board.
- GBCI Partner — Collaborated with GBCI to develop LEED v4 guidance resources.
- Galli Theater New York Partner — Presented the kids' performance “Mother Earth Speaks to Her Friends” at the Earth Day 2026 festival.
- Harvard Law School Partner — Collaborated with colleagues from Harvard Law School to develop a negotiation simulation program on sustainable food and community solutions.
- Hunts Point community Partner — Uses a case study based on the Hunts Point community in the Bronx to model sustainable food access challenges and solutions in educational programming.
- Lessons Learned Network — Publication serving as a resource for green buildings industry developments.
- March for Science NYC Partner — Collaborated with Earth Day Initiative on the Earth Day Virtual Stage programming.
- Mercy for Animals Partner — Co-hosted a plant-based cooking demo at the Earth Day 2026 festival.
- Midtown Manhattan rooftop farm Partner — Partners with a rooftop farm in Midtown Manhattan to support its operations and enable food production for an on-site food pantry.
- New York University Government — Tracy Stein, representative from New York University, serves on the board.
- Oak Hill Partner — Supporter of the Do Just 1 Thing campaign
- Oceanic Global Partner — Co-hosted the “Storyteller Spotlights: Tides of Connection” event at the Earth Day 2026 festival.
- OnePointFive Partner — Collaborates with OnePointFive to provide climate consulting and sustainability expertise to corporate partners.
- Project for Public Spaces Partner — Fred Kent, representative from Project for Public Spaces, serves on the board.
- Re:Dish Partner — Partners with Re:Dish to promote reusable dishware solutions that reduce waste in institutional dining operations.
- The Durst Organization Partner — Collaborates on green building projects and Earth Day events; Douglas Durst serves on the board.
- Tracy Stein & Marco Masotti Partner — Supporter of the Do Just 1 Thing campaign
- USGBC Partner — Collaborated with USGBC to develop LEED v4 guidance resources.
- WE ACT for Environmental Justice Partner — Taylor Morton, representative from WE ACT for Environmental Justice, serves on the board.
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.
- Collective Individual Action Modelmethodology: collective_individual_actionBy mobilizing individuals to take small, personal environmental actions, we generate large-scale societal change, because widespread adoption of these behaviors creates measurable environmental impact and signals public demand for systemic shifts to policymakers and industry.
- Community-Based Social Messagingmethodology: community_based_social_messagingBy leveraging personal networks and peer influence, we increase public concern and action on climate change, because messages from trusted community members are more credible and motivating than institutional outreach alone.
- Experiential Learning Through Role-Based Simulationsmethodology: experiential_learningBy engaging participants in role-based negotiation simulations, we build understanding of complex sustainability challenges and foster collaborative problem-solving skills, because immersive, experiential formats promote deeper learning and empathy than didactic instruction alone.
- Incremental Behavioral Change via Nudgesmethodology: incremental_behavior_changeBy encouraging individuals to adopt one simple, high-impact environmental behavior at a time, we foster sustained engagement and broader action over time, because small, manageable changes reduce psychological overwhelm and build momentum through early success.
- Year-Round Engagement to Sustain Awarenessmethodology: year-round_engagementBy combining annual Earth Day events with ongoing programs, we maintain public involvement in environmental issues beyond symbolic dates, because sustained contact and repeated messaging deepen commitment and prevent disengagement.