Wild Things

What Wild Things does

Wild Things is a nonprofit conservation education conference program operated under Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves (FINP), a 501(c)(3) organization based in Illinois. Founded in the 1970s and headquartered in Rosemont, IL, Wild Things has grown into one of the largest conservation gatherings in the Midwest, with a peak of 2,596 in-person attendees at its 2025 event. The organization employs 21 people and operates as a single-event-driven community platform centered on an annual conference supplemented by a winter virtual lecture series.

The core offering is the annual Wild Things Conference, a one-day in-person event held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center that features seven thematic session tracks (Arts & Culture, Community Engagement, Environmental Education, Environmental Justice & Advocacy, Flora Fauna & Fungi, Stewardship & Ecology, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge), workshops, keynote speakers, exhibitor booths, and networking sessions. Supporting products include Wild Things Wednesdays (a winter Zoom-based presentation series with recordings on YouTube), Mission Monarch (a conference-wide QR-code scavenger hunt game partnered with Wild Ones), Author Meet n' Greet, and branded merchandise. There is no proprietary software platform; the underlying technology consists of standard event and community tools (WordPress CMS, Mailchimp email, Zoom, iatspayments.com for merchandise, and YouTube for video distribution).

Wild Things generates revenue through three streams: conference registration fees (specific pricing not publicly disclosed), multi-tier corporate sponsorships (Presenting, Program, Event, Scholarship), and merchandise sales ($22 t-shirts). The Forest Preserve District of Cook County serves as the Presenting Sponsor for 2027, with Illinois Audubon Society, Natural Communities, Native Garden Network, The Conservation Fund, Illinois Environmental Council, and The Nature Conservancy participating across lower tiers. The audience is primarily individual nature enthusiasts and conservation volunteers in Illinois and the broader Midwest, with secondary segments of conservation professionals and partner/sponsor organizations. A 2026 experiment relocating the event to O'Fallon, IL drew only 586 attendees and the 2027 conference has returned to Rosemont.

Name

Wild Things

Legal name

Wild Things

Website

https://wildthingscommunity.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Wild Things is a nonprofit conservation education conference run under Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves, hosting an annual Midwest gathering for nature enthusiasts, conservation volunteers, and professionals. It supplements the core in-person event with virtual programming and sponsorship-funded content delivery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Conservation Education Events

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Educational Adventure Programs (Outdoor Education, Skill Development) (THAAAAAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Recreation & Activity Services (Hiking, Boating, Climbing, Fishing—Guided/Authorized) (THAAAGAF)

Keywords

• Conservation conference
• Nature education events
• Environmental workshops
• Wildlife community gatherings
• Ecology networking programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Rosemont

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Conference Registration: The organization generates revenue through conference registration fees. Attendees purchase tickets to attend the annual Wild Things Conference which features workshops, presentations, keynote speakers, exhibitor booths, and networking opportunities. Registration opens in October for the following year's conference.
2. Sponsorships and Exhibitor Fees: Wild Things generates significant revenue through corporate sponsorships at various levels (Presenting, Program, Event, Scholarship) and exhibitor booth fees. Organizations sponsor the conference to gain visibility among conservation professionals and enthusiasts in the Midwest region.
3. Merchandise Sales: The organization sells conference merchandise including t-shirts featuring Wild Things branding. T-shirts are priced at $22 and range from S to XL sizes with shipping included.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Wild Things organizes and operates an annual one-day conservation conference in the Midwest (typically held in Rosemont, IL) that brings together nearly 2,000 nature enthusiasts, conservation professionals, and volunteers for workshops, expert presentations, exhibitor booths, and networking. It is an educational program of Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves (FINP), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and supplements the annual event with winter virtual presentations (Wild Things Wednesdays), conference merchandise, and sponsored scholarships.

Product overview

Wild Things is a conference organization (not a software platform) that operates a single main offering: the annual Wild Things Conference. The portfolio includes the core conference event plus supporting programs: Wild Things Wednesdays (online presentations), Mission Monarch (interactive game), Session Tracks (educational categories), Author Meet n' Greet, and T-Shirt merchandise. The organization also provides scholarships for conference attendance and hosts various session tracks covering conservation topics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wild Things 2027: The flagship annual conference event for the Wild Things conservation community, featuring workshops, presentations, keynote speakers, exhibitors, and networking opportunities.
• Wild Things Wednesdays
• Mission Monarch

Products and services

• Wild Things Annual Conference
• Wild Things Wednesdays
• Wild Things T-Shirts
• Mission Monarch

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Friends of Illinois Nature PreservesflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerWild Things is an educational program of Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves (FINP). FINP is the parent organization that oversees and supports the Wild Things conference. The conference has roots going back to the 1970s and has been organized under various names through its history, now running biennially as Wild Things.
• FPCC (Forest Preserve District of Cook County)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference. FPCC is the presenting sponsor, providing significant support for the annual conference.
• Illinois Audubon SocietycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference, supporting conservation education and outreach efforts.
• Natural CommunitiescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference, supporting the conservation community gathering.
• Native Garden NetworkminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference.
• The Conservation FundcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerScholarship Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference, providing financial support for attendee scholarships.
• Illinois Environmental Council (IEC)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerScholarship Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference, supporting conservation education access.
• The Nature Conservancy (TNC)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerScholarship Sponsor for the Wild Things 2027 Conference, supporting conservation community development.
• Wild OnescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization powering Mission Monarch at Wild Things 2026, an interactive conference-wide engagement game that gets attendees moving, exploring, and engaging with the conference through QR code scanning.
• Bold Bison Communications & ConsultingminorOthersMedia contact for press inquiries related to the Wild Things conference. Patrick Williams serves as the media contact.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Indiana Native Plant Society: Operates a regional native plant and ecology conference in Indiana. Comparable in format and audience (regional conservation enthusiasts and professionals) but serves the adjacent geography rather than directly competing.

Broad incumbents

• The Nature Conservancy: Global conservation nonprofit and a current Wild Things scholarship sponsor. Operates at much larger scale with regional programs across the Midwest, with overlapping audience of conservation professionals and volunteers.
• Audubon Society (National): National bird and habitat conservation organization. Illinois Audubon is a Wild Things event sponsor; the broader Audubon network runs comparable regional conservation gatherings and education programming.
• Sierra Club: Large environmental advocacy organization with active chapters in Illinois and the Midwest. Comparable mission, audience of conservation-minded volunteers, and chapter-driven event programming.
• National Wildlife Federation: Large national conservation nonprofit running education programs, events, and community engagement across the U.S. Broader portfolio than Wild Things but overlaps in conservation education and volunteer activation.
• The Conservation Fund: National conservation nonprofit working on land and resource protection. A current Wild Things scholarship sponsor with overlapping Midwest conservation community and mission alignment.

Direct peers

• The Wildlife Society: Operates the Annual Wildlife Conference, a major national professional gathering for wildlife biologists and conservation practitioners. Directly comparable single-event, education-and-networking-driven conservation conference model.
• Wild Ones: Native plant and natural landscaping nonprofit with chapters across the Midwest. Already a Wild Things partner (powers Mission Monarch); operates comparable community-building events focused on regional ecosystem restoration.
• North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference: Long-running (since 1936) annual wildlife and natural resource conference covering conservation policy and management. Directly comparable as a multi-decade conservation professional gathering with sponsors and exhibitors.
• Ecological Society of America: Runs the ESA Annual Meeting, the largest professional ecology conference in North America. Comparable format as a multi-track educational conference serving conservation and ecological science professionals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@wildthings-f7p
• Facebookfacebook.com/wildthingscommunity
• Instagraminstagram.com/wildthingscommunity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wild-things-community

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Wild Things