Cascadia Wild

What Cascadia Wild does

Cascadia Wild is a volunteer-led 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Portland, Oregon, founded in 1998. Its flagship program is the Wolverine Tracking Project, a community science initiative that monitors rare carnivores (wolverine, gray wolf, Sierra Nevada red fox, Pacific marten) and other wildlife in Mt. Hood National Forest through three core methodologies: year-round motion-activated trail camera surveys, snowshoe-based winter tracking surveys, and species-targeted scat collection (notably fox and wolf scat). Field data is contributed to institutional partners including the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and the Cascades Carnivore Project for genetic analysis, and the organization's accumulated survey data has contributed to the Conservation Strategy for the Sierra Nevada Red Fox.

The organization's business model is a hybrid nonprofit construct. It derives operating support from annual memberships ($50/year, hosted on Zeffy), donations and trail camera sponsorships, branded merchandise sales (T-shirts at $25, sweatshirts at $45, stickers at $3-$5 plus shipping), fee-based educational classes (Naturalist Training Program, tracking, botany, outdoor survival), and corporate team building experiences. Customer segments comprise individual nature enthusiasts and volunteers (primary), corporate groups seeking novel outdoor team-building experiences (e.g., R & W Engineering), and partner nonprofit organizations (e.g., BARK). The organization additionally runs a Tracking Leader Apprenticeship and free monthly community clubs (Tracking Club, Nature Book Club) that serve as volunteer pipelines and community engagement surfaces.

Operational scope is regional: Mt. Hood National Forest and the Portland metro area. The organization has approximately 6 staff supported by a much larger volunteer base of interns, citizen scientists, field leaders, and apprentices. Communications are distributed across a website, blog, Facebook, Instagram, Flickr, and a monthly newsletter. No app, API, or proprietary software platform is in evidence; the technology footprint is field-instrumented rather than software-driven.

Name

Cascadia Wild

Legal name

Cascadia Wild

Website

https://cascadiawild.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cascadia Wild is a volunteer-led Portland-based 501c3 nonprofit running the Wolverine Tracking Project, a community science effort that monitors rare carnivores in Mt. Hood National Forest via camera, scat, and tracking surveys, supported by memberships, donations, classes, and corporate team building.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wildlife Conservation Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAGAB

Wildlife Conservation & Species Protection

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Environmental & Conservation Organizations

SECONDARYTHAJAIAB

Wildlife Safaris & Game Drives

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Nature & Wildlife Experiences (National Parks, Wildlife Encounters, Eco-tours)

SECONDARYTHAKAFAG

Safari & Wildlife Travel Agencies

Travel & Hospitality/Travel Agencies, Tour Operators & OTAs/Specialty/Niche Travel Agencies (Luxury, Adventure, Honeymoon, etc.)

SECONDARYTHAAADAI

Jungle/Rainforest Expedition & Survival Tour Operators

Travel & Hospitality/Adventure, Amusement Parks & Ecotourism/Outdoor Adventure Tour Operators (Hiking, Rafting, Climbing, Safari)

SECONDARYTHAJABAH

Winter Adventure Experiences (Ski Touring, Snowshoeing, Dog Sledding)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Adventure & Outdoor Experiences (Hiking, Rafting, Zipline, Safaris)

Keywords

• Wildlife monitoring
• Community science
• Conservation education
• Naturalist training
• Wildlife tracking

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership program at $50 per year, providing access to newsletters, discounts from partner businesses, and exclusive educational opportunities.
2. Donations and Sponsorships: Community-supported nonprofit receiving donations and trail camera sponsorships to sustain wildlife monitoring efforts.
3. Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including T-shirts ($25), sweatshirts ($45), and stickers ($3-$5) through online shop.
4. Corporate Team Building: Fee-based team building experiences for corporate groups, community organizations, and nature enthusiasts conducted in Mt. Hood National Forest or local Portland parks.
5. Educational Classes: Revenue from naturalist training programs, outdoor survival skills classes, tracking classes, and botany classes offered from spring through fall.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Cascadia Wild is a volunteer-led nonprofit that runs the Wolverine Tracking Project, a community science effort collecting wildlife data in Mt. Hood National Forest through camera, scat, and tracking surveys focused on rare carnivores. The organization supplements its field programs with naturalist training classes, tracking and botany workshops, corporate team building experiences, and community clubs. It is sustained through memberships, donations, sponsorships, and merchandise sales.

Product overview

Cascadia Wild is a volunteer-led nonprofit organization offering community science wildlife monitoring programs centered around the Wolverine Tracking Project. The core offering consists of field-based wildlife surveys including camera surveys (motion-activated trail cameras), winter tracking surveys (snowshoe-based), fox scat surveys, and wolf surveys conducted in Mt. Hood National Forest. Supporting educational offerings include naturalist training programs, tracking classes, outdoor survival skills, and botany classes. The organization also provides corporate team building experiences and operates community clubs including a tracking club and nature book club. Membership and trail camera sponsorship programs enable public support of conservation efforts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wolverine Tracking Project: A community science effort that collects data on the wildlife of Mt. Hood National Forest through camera, scat, and tracking surveys. This is the organization's primary volunteer-powered research program.

Products and services

• Wolverine Tracking Project A volunteer-powered community science project collecting data on rare carnivores and other wildlife in Mt. Hood National Forest through camera surveys, scat surveys, and tracking surveys, engaging volunteers, interns, citizen scientists, field leaders, and apprentices.
• Camera Surveys Year-round trail camera monitoring program using motion-activated cameras with bait stations to capture wildlife photos and video footage for species documentation and conservation research.
• Winter Tracking Surveys Snowshoe-based wildlife tracking surveys conducted during winter months to identify and document animal tracks and sign in snow-covered terrain.
• Fox Scat Surveys Scat collection and analysis program targeting Sierra Nevada red fox, with samples sent to Cascades Carnivore Project for genetic analysis.
• Wolf Survey Wolf monitoring program collecting scat samples for ODFW analysis and documenting wolf activity in Mt. Hood National Forest area.
• Naturalist Training Program Comprehensive seasonal training program running from spring through fall that develops skills in wildlife tracking, botany, ecology, navigation and naturalist practices.
• Tracking Classes Educational classes teaching wildlife tracking skills for various skill levels, including Intensive Tracking Classes and Pressure Release workshops.
• Outdoor Survival Skills Classes Wilderness survival training covering fire making, knife skills, making natural cordage, and navigation techniques.
• Botany Classes Plant identification and ecology classes teaching participants to identify plants and understand how plants and animals interact.
• Corporate Team Building Customized team building experiences for corporate groups and organizations featuring wildlife surveys, naturalist skills, animal tracking, and wilderness survival activities in Mt. Hood National Forest or local Portland parks.
• Tracking Club Monthly community club providing ongoing tracking education and practice opportunities for volunteers, meeting online and exploring tracking skills topics each month.
• Nature Book Club Free monthly online book club meeting on the second Wednesday of each month, exploring topics related to the natural world.
• Cascadia Wild Membership Annual membership program ($50/year) providing discounts from partner businesses, a subscription to the Cascadia Wild Weekly newsletter, and access to exclusive educational opportunities and events.
• Trail Camera Sponsorship Donor program that directly supports trail camera surveys, with sponsors receiving access to wildlife photos and videos captured by sponsored cameras.
• Merchandise Shop Online store selling Cascadia Wild branded merchandise including t-shirts ($25), sweatshirts ($45), and stickers ($3-$5), with a $5 shipping fee added for online purchases.

Quantifiable outcome

• Wildlife survey data contributing to Conservation Strategy for the Sierra Nevada Red Fox
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Think WildminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Think Wild for wildlife-related programming and collaboration.
• BARK (Bark org)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal advocacy group for Mt. Hood National Forest transformation. Partnership on snowshoe tracking trip with 29 volunteers at Cooper Spur. BARK's mission is to transform Mt. Hood National Forest into a place where natural processes prevail, wildlife thrives, and local communities have social, cultural, and economic investment in its restoration and preservation.
• Cascades Carnivore ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for analyzing Sierra Nevada red fox scat samples. The Cascades Carnivore Project also researches Cascade red fox, a cousin species in alpine areas north of the Columbia River. Scat samples are sent for genetic analysis to contribute to broader carnivore research.
• Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerODFW confirmed wolf pair on Mt. Hood in January 2018 and confirmed pups in August 2018. Cascadia Wild cameras captured wolf photos in July 2018 near Warm Springs boundary. ODFW receives wolf scat samples from Cascadia Wild for analysis. ODFW also loaned a wolverine specimen for display/education.
• First Nature ToursminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRecommended travel partner for transportation to field destinations for team building experiences in Mt. Hood National Forest.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Earthwatch Institute: International nonprofit that engages volunteers in scientific field research and citizen science. Broad incumbent with a much larger footprint; directly comparable community-science methodology and volunteer-led research model to Cascadia Wild's Wolverine Tracking Project.
• Sierra Club: One of the oldest and largest U.S. environmental organizations with a significant Oregon chapter. Broad incumbent competing for the same Pacific Northwest conservation donors, members, and volunteers as Cascadia Wild.
• Defenders of Wildlife: National wildlife conservation nonprofit focused on imperiled species and habitat protection, including wolverine and gray wolf recovery. Broad incumbent operating in the same species-protection and policy space as Cascadia Wild but at a national scale.
• National Audubon Society: Large national conservation organization focused on birds and broader wildlife habitat protection. Shares the community-science volunteer model (e.g., Christmas Bird Count) but operates at much greater scale and with different target species.

Direct peers

• Cascades Carnivore Project: A Pacific Northwest nonprofit conducting field research on rare Cascade carnivores (including Sierra Nevada red fox), Cascades Carnivore Project is a direct peer and existing analysis partner of Cascadia Wild, sharing the same geography, target species, and community-science methodology.
• Oregon Wild: Oregon-based conservation nonprofit focused on protecting Oregon's wildlands, forests, and wildlife. Direct peer sharing the same regional mission, donor pool, and volunteer base as Cascadia Wild, though Oregon Wild is significantly larger and operates more on policy advocacy.
• BARK (Mt. Hood advocacy group): Grassroots nonprofit advocating for the ecological restoration of Mt. Hood National Forest. Direct peer and existing joint-program partner (Cooper Spur snowshoe tracking trip with 29 volunteers) — shares both geography and citizen-engagement model.
• Think Wild: Wildlife education and rehabilitation nonprofit in Central Oregon with which Cascadia Wild has an explicit programming partnership. Comparable in mission and educational programming focus, though with a stronger rehab/animal-care component.

Emerging players

• Conservation Biology Institute: Science-based nonprofit using technology and data to support conservation planning. Comparable in mission relevance (data-driven wildlife and habitat protection) but operates more on geospatial analytics rather than field citizen-science; an emerging peer in the data-conservation intersection.
• Adventure Scientists: Nonprofit that equips outdoor adventurers to collect scientific data for conservation and research projects. Highly comparable community-science methodology to Cascadia Wild, though Adventure Scientists operates nationally and on a broader range of species and projects.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/CascadiaWild
• Instagraminstagram.com/cascadiawild
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cascadia-wild-official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cascadia Wild