Name

Alaska Conservation Foundation

Legal name

Alaska Conservation Foundation

Website

https://alaskaconservation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Conservation Grantmaking and Environmental Philanthropy

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Biodiversity & Habitat Conservation (BPAGAGAA), Land Trusts & Protected Areas (BPAGAGAC), Nature, Biodiversity & Ecosystem Conservation (BPADALAE)

Keywords

• Conservation grantmaking
• Environmental philanthropy
• Land conservation funding
• Wildlife habitat protection
• Indigenous-led stewardship

Headquarters

HQ city

Anchorage

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Alaska Conservation Foundation raises funds from thousands of individual donors worldwide who share a passion for Alaska conservation. Donors can give via the website, by mail (check), or by phone (credit card). The organization also offers planned giving options including bequests, donor advised funds, endowments, gifts of securities, gifts of life insurance, gifts of retirement assets, gifts of real estate, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder unitrusts, and charitable lead trusts. Members of the Denali Legacy Society are donors who have included ACF in their wills, trusts, or other planned giving arrangements.
2. Foundation and Corporate Grants: ACF receives grants and gifts from foundations and businesses from around the country. The organization actively cultivates these relationships as part of its fund development strategy.
3. Grants to Conservation Organizations: ACF serves as an intermediary funder, distributing grants to grassroots conservation organizations and Tribal entities. Its grantmaking programs include Rapid Response Grants, Alpenglow Grants (for small grassroots organizations), Watchable Wildlife Conservation Trust, Alaska Defense Fund, Conservation Internship Program, Conservation Achievement Awards, Martha Levensaler Leadership Fund Grants, Donor Advised and Restricted Grants, Alaska Mining Impacts and Prevention Fund, and the Alaska Native Fund. Since 1980, ACF has awarded more than $63 million in grants.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Alaska Conservation Foundation is the only public foundation solely dedicated to conservation in Alaska. It operates as an intermediary funder, collecting donations from individual donors, foundations, and businesses worldwide and channeling them through competitive grant programs (Rapid Response Grants, Alaska Defense Fund, Alpenglow Grants, Watchable Wildlife Conservation Trust, Alaska Mining Impacts and Prevention Fund, Martha Levensaler Leadership Fund Grants, Donor Advised and Restricted Grants) to over 100 grassroots conservation organizations and Tribal entities. The foundation also runs capacity-building programs (Ted Smith Conservation Internship Program, Conservation Achievement Awards, Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program) and coordinates multi-stakeholder conservation networks (Northern Latitudes Partnerships, Sustainable Southeast Partnership). Since 1980, ACF has awarded more than $63 million in grants.

Product overview

Alaska Conservation Foundation is a nonprofit foundation (501(c)(3)) offering grantmaking programs and conservation initiatives rather than a technology product. Its portfolio includes grant programs (Rapid Response Grants, Alpenglow Grants, Watchable Wildlife Conservation Trust, Alaska Defense Fund, Martha Levensaler Leadership Fund Grants, Donor Advised and Restricted Grants, Alaska Mining Impacts and Prevention Fund), youth leadership programs (Ted Smith Conservation Internship Program, Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program), award programs (Conservation Achievement Awards), and collaborative conservation initiatives (Northern Latitudes Partnerships with ABSI, WALI, and NWBP sub-partnerships; Sustainable Southeast Partnership). The foundation serves as an intermediary funder connecting donors with grassroots conservation organizations across Alaska.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rapid Response Grants Provides rapid grant funding to respond quickly to fast-breaking, unforeseen environmental threats of statewide or national significance in Alaska. The only program of its kind in Alaska.
• Alpenglow Grants Supports small grassroots conservation organizations in Alaska through dedicated grant funding.
• Watchable Wildlife Conservation Trust Broadens support for conserving Alaska's wildlife through dedicated funding.
• Alaska Defense Fund Combats threats to Alaska's natural environment by providing essential, unrestricted general operating support resources to defend Alaska's landscapes, communities, and ways of life.
• Martha Levensaler Leadership Fund Grants Provides grants benefitting people involved in improving conservation efforts, honoring Martha Levensaler's legacy.
• Donor Advised and Restricted Grants Offers donors a way to give money directly to a particular group or issue, with donor advised funds that may or may not be permanently endowed.
• Alaska Mining Impacts and Prevention Fund Supports Alaska Mining Impacts Network participants in creating resources, building relationships, fostering collaboration, and strengthening advocacy efforts focused on hardrock mining impacts in Alaska.
• Ted Smith Conservation Internship Program Develops the next generation of Alaska's conservation leaders by matching highly qualified undergraduate, graduate, and recent-graduate interns with host organizations for 12-week placements with a $7,000 stipend.
• Conservation Achievement Awards Annually recognizes extraordinary achievements of individuals and organizations committed to protecting Alaska's natural environment and cultural heritage across multiple award categories; Lifetime Achievement recipients are inducted into the Alaska Conservation Hall of Fame.
• Northern Latitudes Partnerships Coordinates and funds statewide collaborative conservation across Alaska through three regional partnerships — Aleutian & Bering Sea Initiative (ABSI), Western Alaska Landscape Initiative (WALI), and Northwest Boreal Partnership (NWBP) — addressing climate change adaptation, food security, environmental hazards, and resource management.
• Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program Elevates youth voices in international arenas, empowers future Arctic leaders, and builds greater understanding of life in the Arctic through co-hosting by ACF with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and World Wildlife Fund.
• Sustainable Southeast Partnership An innovative regional partnership building trust and finding common ground among unlikely allies for cultural, ecological, and economic prosperity in Southeast Alaska, with ACF as primary funder.
• Denali Legacy Society Planned giving program that supports legacy gifts through bequests, donor advised funds, endowments, gifts of securities, life insurance, retirement assets, real estate, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder unitrusts, and charitable lead trusts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $63 million in grants awarded to the Alaska conservation movement since 1980
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers33 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

31 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Northern Latitudes Partnerships (NLP) — Steering Committee Partners (35+ organizations)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACF coordinates and funds the Northern Latitudes Partnerships, a network of federal, state, tribal, corporate and regional players collaborating across Alaska and northwest Canada. The Steering Committees include over 35 partners. NLP addresses climate change adaptation, food security, environmental hazards, and resource management by informing policy, building networks, sharing information, and collaborating on outcome-driven projects. Three regional partnerships fall under NLP: Aleutian & Bering Sea Initiative (ABSI), Western Alaska Landscape Initiative (WALI), and Northwest Boreal Partnership (NWBP).
• Aleutian & Bering Sea Initiative (ABSI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA regional program of ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships dedicated to Indigenous-led conservation in the Aleutians and Pribilof Islands. ABSI has a 13-year close relationship with the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The initiative is guided by a Steering Committee representing seven of 13 Aleut Tribes and is currently focused on co-stewardship of Aleutian lands and waters.
• Western Alaska Landscape Initiative (WALI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three regional partnerships within ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships, focused on communities in Western Alaska. WALI brings together federal, state, tribal, and regional partners to develop collaborative solutions to climate change impacts in the region.
• Northwest Boreal Partnership (NWBP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three regional partnerships within ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships. NWBP is pursuing cross-border Guardians connections between Interior Alaska and Yukon Territory, Canada. The partnership is working on funding proposals to deepen connections and support Indigenous-led stewardship.
• Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge (USFWS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA key federal partner in the Aleutian Bering Sea Initiative (ABSI). The refuge has been a co-founder of ABSI alongside the Qawalangin Tribe of Unalaska and works with Aleut/Unangax̂ Tribes on co-stewardship of Aleutian lands and waters. The refuge brought federal leadership into productive discussions on managing lands with Tribes at the Aleutian Pribilof Guardians Workshop.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program in 2015 alongside the U.S. Department of State. USFWS co-hosts the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program with ACF. The program elevates youth voices in international arenas and empowers future Arctic leaders.
• World Wildlife Fund (WWF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in co-hosting the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program alongside ACF and USFWS. WWF contributes to the program's mission of building greater understanding of life in the Arctic and empowering future Arctic leaders.
• Alaska GeographiccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal nonprofit partner that co-founded the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program in 2015 with USFWS and the U.S. Department of State. The program is currently hosted by ACF in partnership with USFWS and WWF.
• U.S. Department of StatecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program in 2015 alongside USFWS and Alaska Geographic. The program elevates youth voices in international arenas including meetings in Washington D.C., Finland, Iceland, and France.
• Native American Fish & Wildlife SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer with ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships of the 2026 gathering 'Building Connections to Strengthen Guardians & Indigenous-led Stewardship' in Fairbanks, which brought close to 100 Indigenous peoples from across Interior Alaska and northern Canada together to explore Indigenous Guardians programs.
• Alaska Sea GrantcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 2026 Indigenous Guardians gathering alongside ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships. Contributed to the three-day knowledge-sharing event focused on the future of Indigenous-led stewardship.
• Alaska Climate Adaptation Science Center at UAFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 2026 Indigenous Guardians gathering alongside ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships. Contributed expertise on climate adaptation to the knowledge-sharing about Indigenous-led stewardship.
• Permafrost PathwayscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 2026 Indigenous Guardians gathering alongside ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships. Contributed climate science expertise to discussions about Indigenous-led stewardship.
• Spruce RootcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 2026 Indigenous Guardians gathering alongside ACF's Northern Latitudes Partnerships. Part of the Indigenous-led stewardship network working to expand Guardians programs across Interior Alaska and northern Canada.
• Southeast Alaska Conservation Council (SEACC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey ACF grantee and partner in the Tongass protection efforts. SEACC exemplifies the importance of rapid funding when federal policy shifts. ACF has provided grants to SEACC for Tongass National Forest protection and opposition to public lands sell-offs and Roadless Rule changes.
• Sitka Conservation SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-time ACF partner in the Sustainable Southeast Partnership. Creates educational materials about the Roadless Rule and Tongass protection. Works with ACF-funded partners on advocacy against logging of old-growth trees in the Tongass.
• The Nature ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-time ACF partner working within the Sustainable Southeast Partnership alongside SEACC, Sitka Conservation Society, and Renewable Energy Alaska Project. Contributes to innovative approaches balancing community development with environmental protection in Southeast Alaska.
• Renewable Energy Alaska ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Sustainable Southeast Partnership, ACF's innovative network for Southeast Alaska. Works with ACF-funded partners to advance sustainable economies and conservation alongside community development.
• Conservation FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn June 2021, the Conservation Fund agreed to buy land easements on more than 44,000 acres from the Pedro Bay Alaska Native village corporation for $18.3 million to protect against Pebble Mine development in Bristol Bay. This effort was supported by the coalition of organizations ACF has funded over the years.
• Chickaloon Village Traditional CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAhtna Athabascan tribe and key partner in the coalition that defeated the Wishbone Hill coal mine. ACF provided administrative and financial support to the coalition. The mine's 2016 defeat was a major conservation victory ACF contributed to.
• Stand for SalmoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived $110,000 from ACF's Alaska Defense Fund to support strengthening Alaska salmon protection laws. Represents a key investment in policy-level conservation advocacy.
• EarthjusticecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived $15,000 from ACF's Alaska Defense Fund for legal defense of Alaska public lands and waters. ACF supports litigation efforts that protect Alaska's conservation priorities.
• Trout UnlimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived $10,000 from ACF's Alaska Defense Fund for organizing on the Pebble Mine project in Bristol Bay area. Works to protect salmon habitat through advocacy and community organizing.
• Alaska Longline Fishermen's AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived $10,000 from ACF's Alaska Defense Fund to safeguard the Magnuson-Stevens Conservation and Management Act, protecting fishing livelihoods and sustainable marine ecosystems.
• Trustees for AlaskacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit public interest environmental law firm that provided successful legal argument defeating the Wishbone Hill coal mine. ACF supported Trustees for Alaska throughout the coalition effort. Also received $63,788 from Alaska Defense Fund for legal defense of Alaska public lands and waters.
• Qawalangin Tribe of UnalaskacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of the original founders of the Aleutian Bering Sea Initiative (ABSI), alongside Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. Presented the Usugilix Awakun (We are working together) approach blending science and culture across fisheries, remediation, and community health at the 2025 Aleutian Pribilof Guardians Workshop.
• Aleut Community of St. Paul IslandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRepresented at the Aleutian Pribilof Guardians Workshop organized by ABSI. Showcased their Indigenous Sentinels Network, a Tribally-led monitoring program supported by ACF for several years to strengthen Indigenous Data Sovereignty.
• Sacred KigluaitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity-based organization focused on educating community members about hardrock mining impacts and revitalizing ancestral connections to the Kigluaik Mountains as a sacred site. ACF grant recipient through the Alaska Mining Impacts Network (AKMIN). Led a gathering of 23 tribal leaders to address the Graphite Creek mine threat.
• Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic (SILA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded and led by Iñupiat peoples, SILA received a $9,500 Rapid Response grant from ACF to organize testimony against the Colville Delta 8 oil project. More than a quarter of ACF's FY26 Alaska Defense Fund grantees are Indigenous-led or Tribal organizations including SILA.
• Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with SILA and ACF to organize 15 people at the Anchorage hearing on the Colville Delta 8 oil project. Helped fly community members to Anchorage for the meeting. Also an Alaska Defense Fund grantee.
• Alaska Mining Impacts Network (AKMIN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACF-coordinated network supporting Alaska Mining Impacts Network participants and their efforts to create and share resources, build relationships, foster collaboration, and strengthen advocacy focused on impacts of hardrock mining in Alaska. Supported through the Alaska Mining Impacts & Prevention Fund.

Scale indicators5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• National Fish and Wildlife Foundation: Federally-chartered nonprofit that funds conservation projects through grants, closely matching ACF's intermediary funder model. Operates with similar grant programs, donor cultivation, and project-based conservation funding, including significant Alaska work.
• Earthjustice: Nonprofit public interest environmental law organization that has received Alaska Defense Fund grants from ACF for legal defense of Alaska's public lands. Operates in the same advocacy ecosystem on Alaska conservation litigation.
• Resources Legacy Fund: Environmental grantmaking foundation that funds conservation advocacy, policy, and capacity-building organizations. Operates a parallel intermediary-funder model supporting place-based environmental campaigns, making it a strong structural peer to ACF.
• Trust for Public Land: National nonprofit that protects land through purchases, conservation easements, and partnerships. Active in Alaska and across the West, with a comparable land-conservation mission and state-level grantmaking approach that overlaps with ACF's protected-areas work.
• Conservation Fund: National nonprofit focused on conservation real estate and land protection, including the $18.3M Bristol Bay land easement purchase from Pedro Bay Alaska Native Village Corporation that ACF-supported organizations helped enable. Closely aligned mission and Alaska presence.
• Defenders of Wildlife: National wildlife conservation organization with significant Alaska focus on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, polar bears, and carnivores. Operates a parallel advocacy and grantmaking role on overlapping wildlife and habitat issues.
• Sierra Club Foundation: Charitable foundation supporting the Sierra Club's conservation programs, including Sierra Club Alaska which is an ACF grantee. Closely aligned as an environmental grantmaking foundation with overlapping Alaska conservation footprint.

Broad incumbents

• National Wildlife Federation: Large national conservation organization with active Alaska programs on salmon habitat, wildlife, and Arctic conservation. Shares ACF's conservation priorities around Bristol Bay, Arctic Refuge, and Indigenous-led stewardship.
• The Wilderness Society: National advocacy organization focused on federal public lands, including Alaska's Tongass, Arctic Refuge, and wilderness areas. Operates in the same federal-lands advocacy space as ACF and its grantees, with overlapping mission on Roadless Rule and ANWR protections.
• The Nature Conservancy: Largest global conservation organization with an active Alaska program. Directly comparable as a peer conservation organization operating in Alaska's Tongass and Bristol Bay landscapes and partnering with ACF on the Sustainable Southeast Partnership and other initiatives.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AKConservation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Alaska Conservation Foundation