Rhode Island Natural History Survey

What Rhode Island Natural History Survey does

Rhode Island Natural History Survey (RINHS) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 1994 and headquartered at URI East Farm in Kingston, Rhode Island. Its mission is to gather and disseminate information on Rhode Island's animals, plants, geology, and ecosystems; to support the use of scientific information in natural resource management; and to facilitate the work of agencies, organizations, and individuals interested in the state's ecology. The organization's substantive outputs include the twice-yearly Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin, an annual BioBlitz biodiversity field event (typically identifying 900-1,400 species with 150-200+ participants), and a public Resource Library of publications and checklists. It also maintains biodiversity tracking programs covering rare species, invasive species, and the recently expanded RI Plant Insect Community Network, and has supported policy work such as Rhode Island's first comprehensive invasive plant law.

Operationally, RINHS runs with 1-10 employees (Executive Director David W. Gregg, Ph.D., and Program Administrator Kira Stillwell, plus board and contracted support) and is governed by a Board of Directors. Revenue is generated through four streams: an annual membership program, individual donations (including a Buy Me A Coffee micro-donation channel), Biodiversity Programming Sponsorships from businesses and foundations, and publications sales. The organization distributes its work through a WordPress website, Constant Contact email newsletter, social media on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube, and in-person events (BioBlitz, Moth Night, Last Wednesday Tea, Annual Meeting).

Its customer base spans three primary segments: naturalists and amateur scientists, Rhode Island state and municipal government agencies (notably RIDEM), and conservation organizations. Partnerships include The Nature Conservancy, Block Island Conservancy, Roger Williams Park Zoo, Rocky Point Foundation, City of Warwick, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and the RI Foundation, which funded the organization's 30th anniversary strategic plan covering 2025-2030.

Name

Rhode Island Natural History Survey

Legal name

Rhode Island Natural History Survey

Website

https://rinhs.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rhode Island Natural History Survey is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 1994 that gathers and disseminates state-specific biodiversity data through citizen science events, the Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin, and rare/invasive species tracking, serving naturalists, state agencies, and conservation organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Conservation Research

NAICS

Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Terrestrial Ecology & Habitat Surveys (EUAHAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Threatened & Endangered Species (TES) / Protected Species Surveys & Compliance (EUAHAHAD), Forest Inventory, Mapping & Monitoring (GIS/Remote Sensing/MRV) (IMAMAJAB)

Keywords

• Citizen science programs
• Biodiversity research
• Natural history surveys
• Conservation education
• Environmental monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Kingston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Program: Annual membership program allowing individuals to support the Survey and receive benefits including priority access to the Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin.
2. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, including small donations through platforms like Buy Me A Coffee.
3. Program Sponsorships: Biodiversity Programming Sponsors program where businesses and foundations support Survey programming.
4. Publications Sales: Sale of publications including field guides and reports from major projects, plus the Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rhode Island Natural History Survey (RINHS) is a non-profit organization that gathers and disseminates information on Rhode Island's animals, plants, geology, and ecosystems to support scientific information use in natural resource management. Its core offerings include the Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin, the annual Rhode Island BioBlitz biodiversity field day events, a searchable Resource Library of publications and electronic resources, and biodiversity data tracking programs covering rare species, invasive species, and the RI Plant Insect Community Network.

Product overview

The Rhode Island Natural History Survey is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization offering a unified set of programs focused on ecosystem science and natural history information. The core offerings include the Rhode Island Naturalist bulletin (published twice yearly), the annual Rhode Island BioBlitz biodiversity field day events, a searchable Resource Library with publications and data, and biodiversity data tracking for rare species, invasive species, and the RI Plant Insect Community Network. These programs work together to gather and disseminate information supporting conservation and natural resource management across Rhode Island.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rhode Island BioBlitz Annual 24-hour biodiversity field event where volunteer scientists survey and tally species at a specific Rhode Island location; offered to the general public and amateur/professional naturalists.
• Rhode Island Naturalist Bulletin

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,095 species documented in a single 24-hour BioBlitz event
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Roger Williams Park ZoocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Sponsor and partner for RI BioBlitz events, providing expertise in wildlife conservation and education.
• Rocky Point FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Sponsor and local partner for BioBlitz 2014 at Rocky Point Park in Warwick.
• City of WarwickminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Municipal partner for BioBlitz 2014 at Rocky Point, owning part of the park property.
• Rhode Island Department of Environmental ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014State agency partner for BioBlitz events and conservation initiatives, owning portion of Rocky Point property.
• The Nature ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Block Island Moth Night event, combining expertise in conservation and natural history documentation.
• Block Island ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of Block Island Moth Night event celebrating National Moth Week.
• Lou Perrotti (Roger Williams Park Zoo)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoard member and reptile expert providing expertise on snake identification and wildlife education.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Vermont Center for Ecostudies: A neighboring New England non-profit that conducts ecological research, citizen-science programs, and biodiversity monitoring. Highly comparable to RINHS in mission, organizational structure, and reliance on volunteer scientists and state-level partnerships.
• Native Plant Trust (New England Wild Flower Society): Regional non-profit focused on native plant conservation, botanical surveys, and citizen-science programs like Plant Conservation Volunteers. Comparable to RINHS's botanical, rare-plant, and Plant Insect Community Network work, with a similar membership- and donation-supported model.
• New York Natural Heritage Program: Statewide program that inventories rare species and ecological communities for conservation. While hosted by an academic institution, its biodiversity survey, classification, and government-data work closely parallels RINHS's rare-species tracking and ecological community classification efforts.

Broad incumbents

• Massachusetts Audubon Society: A larger, established New England conservation non-profit with citizen-science programming, sanctuaries, and advocacy. Overlaps with RINHS on citizen-science engagement, education, and conservation data, but operates at substantially greater scale and with broader programming.
• NatureServe: National network aggregator of biodiversity data and conservation status assessments. Comparable in mission to consolidate species and ecosystem data, but operates at a continental scale and standardizes datasets that RINHS produces locally.
• Cornell Lab of Ornithology (eBird): Operates eBird, one of the world's largest citizen-science biodiversity platforms. Represents the scale and tech-stack trajectory that state-level natural history organizations like RINHS are increasingly benchmarked against.

Emerging players

• iNaturalist: A national-scale citizen-science platform for recording biodiversity observations. While not a state-focused survey, it directly competes for volunteer naturalist attention and increasingly aggregates the same biodiversity data that RINHS collects locally.

Regional players

• Audubon Society of Rhode Island: Rhode Island's largest local Audubon chapter, focused on bird conservation, sanctuaries, and education. A natural local peer to RINHS for conservation programming, volunteer engagement, and Rhode Island-specific citizen science.
• Maine Natural History Observatory: Regional non-profit dedicated to documenting Maine's natural history through field observations and publications. Closely analogous to RINHS's role as a New England natural history aggregator with a volunteer-driven, publication-supported model.
• Connecticut Botanical Society: Regional botanical society focused on Connecticut's flora, with publications, field trips, and rare-plant tracking. Comparable in scale, mission, and citizen-science approach to RINHS's botanical and biodiversity work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/rinaturalhist
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/rinaturalhistory
• Facebookfacebook.com/RINHS
• Instagraminstagram.com/explore/locations/957956128/rhode-island-natural-history-survey?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rhode-island-natural-history-survey-inc-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Rhode Island Natural History Survey