| Organization's Mission |
Form 990, Part III, Line 1 TO MOVE HUMAN SOCIETY TO LIVE IN WAYS THAT PROTECT EARTH'S ENVIRONMENT AND ITS CAPACITY TO PROVIDE FOR THE NEEDS AND ASPIRATIONS OF CURRENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS. |
| Program Services |
Form 990, Part III The World Resources Institute (WRI) is an environmental think tank that goes beyond research to find practical ways to protect the earth and improve people's lives. With a staff of over 350 scientists, economists, policy experts, business analysts, statisticians, lawyers, and mapmakers, and nearly 400 partner organizations around the world, WRI administers its activities through the seven programs described below. Every project undertaken by WRI contributes to one or more of the following goals: - People and Ecosystems: Reverse rapid degradation of ecosystems and assure their capacity to provide humans with needed goods and services. - Market and Enterprise: Harness markets and enterprise to expand economic opportunity and protect the environment. - Climate Protection: Protect the global climate system from further harm due to emissions of greenhouse gases and help humanity and the natural world adapt to unavoidable climate change. - Governance: Empower people and support institutions to foster environmentally sound and socially equitable decision-making. |
| Program Service Activity 1 |
Form 990, Part III, Line 4a CLIMATE, ENERGY AND POLLUTION PROGRAM: Focuses on reducing the risk of climate change in ways that drive sustainable development. Projects include developing approaches for global agreements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change; US climate policy efforts at the local, State and national level; and active engagement with the business community. The program develops and maintains tools and databases, designs business models, and convenes stakeholder groups to provide advice to all levels of government and civil society. |
| Program Service Activity 2 |
Form 990, Part III, Line 4b EMBARQ-WRI'S CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT: EMBARQ catalyzes and helps implement socially, financially, and environmentally sustainable transport solutions to improve quality of life in cities. Working through public-private partnerships with politically and financially empowered decision makers in major cities around the world, EMBARQ reduces the cost, risk, time, and complexity of finding and implementing sustainable transport solutions. EMBARQ has created Centers for Sustainable Transport in Mexico, Brazil, and the Andean Region, which manage its day to day interactions with leadership of cities in those regions, and has significant project activities in India and Turkey. Typical solutions which EMBARQ helps cities achieve include: clean fuels/clean vehicles strategies; improved transit services such as Bus Rapid Transit, demand management and non-motorized transport. |
| Program Service Activity 3 |
Form 990, Part III, Line 4c PEOPLE AND ECOSYSTEMS PROGRAM: Works to develop and promote strategies to reverse rapid degradation of ecosystems and assure their capacity to provide humans with needed goods and services. These strategies emphasize multi-scale approaches to managing ecosystems, stress the importance of ecosystem benefits to people, and rely on partnerships to create lasting solutions. Staff work in two focal areas: (1) mainstreaming ecosystem services (the benefits people obtain from nature) and (2) forest landscape information. The first works toward a world in which governments and businesses value and invest in ecosystems-forests, wetlands, coral reefs, etc.-in order to secure economic growth and people's well being. The forest team works to enable governments, businesses, and civil society to act upon better and more widely shared information to strengthen the management of working forests, reduce deforestation, and safeguard primary forest in forest-rich regions. |
| Other Program Service Activities |
Form 990, Part III, Line 4d INSTITUTIONS AND GOVERNANCE PROGRAM: By partnering with governmental and non-governmental organizations in more than 50 countries, IGP promotes greater transparency, inclusiveness, and accountability in decisions regarding natural resources and the environment. IGP's current projects promote systemic improvements in access to information, public participation and access to justice; improve governance in the electricity sector and in forest management in the context of low carbon development; strengthen the environmental and social standards and safeguards of international financial institutions, including those based in emerging economies; and promote the sound management and equitable distribution of benefits derived from natural resources, particularly in Africa. MARKET & ENTERPRISE PROGRAM: WRI's Markets and Enterprise Group produces economically sound policies, bold vision, and practical solutions in collaboration with the business community. To channel the private sector to incorporate environmental and social opportunities into core business strategies, we employ the following approaches: -Build Market Demand: Expand the market for goods and services that protect the climate and ecosystems -- such as green power, certified forest products, and responsibly mined metals -- by enabling the environment for these products to grow and by developing cost-competitive procurement strategies. - Create Sustainable Enterprises: Demonstrate not only a new way of doing business, but also the power of the private sector to reduce poverty and protect the environment. Enable entrepreneurs and corporations to develop profitable business approaches to climate change, ecosystem degradation, and improving people's lives. - Tools and Analysis: WRI has developed tools and databases to give corporations, NGOs, and entrepreneurs from across the globe access to the models and ideas they need for success. For example, WRI has developed a global water risk atlas, called Aqueduct. - Promote Green Investing: Change how financial markets value companies by making the incorporation of environmental value and risk into investment decisions standard practice as a means to influence corporate performance and strategy. SPECIAL STUDIES AND INNOVATION PROGRAM: Undertakes or mentors new activities designed to foster innovation across the institute. Activities focus on new projects or objectives, and on new tools and capacities in areas such as modeling and communications. EXTERNAL RELATIONS PROGRAM: Manages WRI's efforts to communicate its work to diverse audiences, including governments, corporations, and international organizations to support the accomplishment of the objectives outlined in program plans. In addition, we seek ways of enhancing WRI's overall profile through continued attention to communication opportunities. We utilize a wide variety of mechanisms to communicate WRI's work appropriate to the goals of each program; we are constantly exploring new means of communicating our work more effectively to key audiences. Program Description Grants Expenses BUSINESS CENTER $5,000 $611,292 ENERGY $39,487 $641,186 FINANCE CENTER $100,110 $1,810,419 GOVERNANCE CENTER $1,279,334 $4,846,147 SPECIAL PROJECTS $5,606,253 $11,010,856 COMMUNICATIONS $1,247,555 Total $7,030,184 $20,167,455 |
| Form 990 Review Process |
Form 990, Part VI, Line 11A The institute's Management reviewed a draft of the Form 990 which was prepared by WRI's external accounting advisors. The organization shared a copy of the Form 990 with its board of directors before filing the return with the IRS. Comments from board members are sent to the CFO or Controller. A deadline is given for board members to respond. If the draft is available before a board meeting, it is also given out at the meeting. |
| Conflict of Interest Policy |
Form 990, Part VI, Line 12c Board Members: A copy of conflict of interest form is given to board members annually with list of vendors that WRI does business with. Each board member signs the form letting the organization know if there are any conflicts. Those with conflicts are not permitted to participate in any deliberations and decisions affecting the source of the conflict. Employees/Officers: Every staff member signs off on a conflict of interest form. Officers and management team are supposed to re-sign conflict of interest forms each calendar year. Staff members are directed to raise questions to their immediate supervisors or Program Directors/VPs if they have a question on an activity which they think might pose a conflict of interest. Human resources staff is available to assist with questions. Any Program Director or VP can determine that there is a conflict of interest and request that the activities stop. The conflict of interest policy specifies that the staff member is prohibited from participating in the deliberations process if their activity is in question. Human resources staff inform staff when there is a conflict of interest and assist with ensuring copmliance. |
| Compensation Determination |
Form 990, Part VI, Lines 15a & 15b The organization brings in independent consultants periodically to do a comparative review of its salary structure and also reviews salary surveys. The Managing Director sets pay increases for all department heads; the President does the same for the Managing Director, CFO, and all Vice-Presidents; the board of directors does the same for the President. The Executive Committee of the Board of Directors determines the President's annual salary increases and bonuses as appropriate. The Human resources Director makes a recommendation on the percentage increase and bonus amount, and participates in the Executive Committee of the Board meeting which evaluates the President's performance. The Human resources Director takes notes/minutes of this portion of the meeting to document the decision made regarding the President's annual salary. |
| How Documents are Made Available to the Public |
Form 990, Part VI, Line 19 The organization makes its governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements available to the public to the extent required by law. |
Attach to Form 990 or 990-EZ.