THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE FOUNDATION Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE FOUNDATION

EIN 52-2092229 · Arts & Culture (A20)

What they do

A NON-PROFIT ESTABLISHED IN 1998, THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE FOUNDATION (TCLF) CONNECTS PEOPLE to PLACES. TCLF EDUCATES and ENGAGES THE PUBLIC to MAKE OUR SHARED LANDSCAPE HERITAGE MORE VISIBLE, IDENTIFY ITS VALUE, and EMPOWER ITS STEWARDS. TCLF ACHIEVES THIS MISSION THROUGH THE ONGOING DEVELOPMENT of ITS FOUR CORE PROGRAMS:WHATS OUT THERE, NORTH AMERICAS LARGEST and MOST EXHAUSTIVE DATABASE of CULTURAL LANDSCAPES; PIONEERS of AMERICAN LANDSCAPE DESIGN, AN IN-DEPTH MULTIMEDIA LIBRARY, INCLUSIVE of VIDEO ORAL HISTORIES, CHRONICLING THE LIVES of SIGNIFICANT LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS and EDUCATORS; LANDSLIDE, AN ONGOING COLLECTION of IMPORTANT LANDSCAPES and LANDSCAPE FEATURES THAT ARE THREATENED; THE CORNELIA HAHN OBERLANDER INTERNATIONAL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE PRIZE, A BIENNIAL PRIZE IN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE THAT INCLUDES A US $100,000 MONETARY AWARD and TWO YEARS of PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $65.30 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders30 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

55.78%of revenue went to mission work65.3% of expenses · Program services

4.71%of revenue went to fundraising5.5% of expenses

$85.46spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

24.97%of revenue went to management and office costs29.2% of expenses

$7.03in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

70.1%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $283,894 for CHARLES BIRNBAUM (PRESIDENT & CEO). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$1,847,948

Mission workProgram services$1,030,81555.78% of revenue65.3% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$461,38724.97% of revenue29.2% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$87,0864.71% of revenue5.5% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$268,66014.54% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$1,579,28885.46% of revenue

Gray means reported revenue left after expenses for this filing year. It does not necessarily mean cash sitting in a bank account.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 65.3% mission · 29.2% management · 5.5% fundraisingTotal expenses: 85.46% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 65.6% mission · 29.1% management · 5.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 89.17% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 59.4% mission · 34.8% management · 5.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 87.40% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 69.6% mission · 26.8% management · 3.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 82.38% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 73.2% mission · 18.6% management · 8.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 61.43% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 69.8% mission · 18.3% management · 11.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 55.98% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 67.2% mission · 21.5% management · 11.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 89.35% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 71.7% mission · 18.7% management · 9.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 36.92% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$1,847,948

Expenses$1,579,288

Annual surplus $268,660 Revenue was higher than expenses for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$1,030,815 · 65.3% of expenses

Management and office costs$461,387 · 29.2% of expenses

Fundraising$87,086 · 5.5% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$1,847,948

Expenses$1,579,288

Assets$11,105,495

Income$2,377,921

Contributions$1,296,121

Mission work (program services)$1,030,815

Fundraising$87,086

Management and general$461,387

Stocks and bonds$9,076,812

Accounting fees$86,531

Investing fees$9,979

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

CHARLES BIRNBAUMPRESIDENT & CEO · 40 hrs/week $283,894Base $256,693 · Other $27,201

NORD WENNERSTROMDIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS · 40 hrs/week $195,641Base $171,356 · Other $24,285

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (30)

CHARLES BIRNBAUMPRESIDENT & CEO

NORD WENNERSTROMDIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

JULIE DONNELLDIRECTOR

TREY TRAHANDIRECTOR

TINA BISHOPDIRECTOR

TIFFANY BEAMERDIRECTOR

THOMAS WOLTZDIRECTOR/CO-CHAIR (FROM 5/24)

SUSANNAH ROSSDIRECTOR

SUSAN TURNERSECRETARY

NANCY BEMISDIRECTOR (THRU 5/24)

MAURA ROCKCASTLEDIRECTOR

MARIO NIEVERADIRECTOR

MARGARET PLUMBDIRECTOR

LYNDSEY TYLERTITLE (FROM 5/2024)

LIZA GILBERTDIRECTOR

KEITH LEBLANCDIRECTOR

ANGELA KYLEDIRECTOR (FROM 5/24)

JOEB MOOREDIRECTOR

JOAN SHAFRANDIRECTOR/VICE-CHAIR

JEFFREY CARBODIRECTOR

HOLLY SHARPTREASURER

GERDO AQUINODIRECTOR

ERIC KRAMERDIRECTOR

ERIC GROFTDIRECTOR/CO-CHAIR (THRU 5/24)

EMMA SKALKADIRECTOR/CO-CHAIR

DOUG REEDDIRECTOR

CHRISTOPHER LAGUARDIADIRECTOR (THRU 5/24)

CARROLL CONWAYDIRECTOR

BRIAN SAWYERDIRECTOR

ANN CAWRSEDIRECTOR

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1998
Location: 1711 CONNECTICUT AVENUE NW 200, WASHINGTON, DC 20009
County: District of Columbia
In care of: CHARLES A BIRNBAUM
Primary officer: CHARLES A BIRNBAUM, PRESIDENT & CEO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Phone(202) 483-0553

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: January 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: CHERRY BEKAERT ADVISORY LLC
NTEE classification: Arts & Culture (A20)
IRS tax category: Arts & Culture