Clear the Air

Identifying environmentalists is the greatest challenge environment-focused organizations face.

That according to Mary O’Connor, vice president of development for The Conservation Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting America’s landscapes and waterways.

“Unlike schools, we don’t have alumni; unlike hospitals, we don’t have former patients,” she says. “Environmentalists come to the sector from different experiences — from traveling to Alaska, to spending summers at the beach, to hiking in the mountains. Nature is so multi-faceted it’s difficult to find one type of conservation project that speaks to all
environmentalists.”