Saint Paul, MN

FRIENDS OF THE BOUNDARY WATERS WILDERNESS

EIN 36-3414821

Environment & Animal Welfare Environmental Education & Advocacy Children & youth Low-income

Mission

Our mission is to protect the Boundary Waters and to connect people of all backgrounds to the wilderness, so that this and future generations benefit from this special place.

IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity Contributions are tax-deductible

Claim this page Visit www.friends-bwca.org

About FRIENDS OF THE BOUNDARY WATERS WILDERNESS

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness is a Saint Paul–based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in the 1970s that advocates for the protection, preservation, and restoration of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the adjacent Quetico-Superior ecosystem. The organization combines legal and legislative advocacy, public mobilization, stewardship and volunteer programs, and environmental education—including its "No Boundaries to the Boundary Waters" program—to keep proposed copper‑sulfide mining and other threats out of the region and to expand access to the wilderness. Friends maintains an active membership base, a staffed statewide office and a northern office in Ely, and works with partners and public agencies to steward lands and provide immersive educational experiences for students and underserved communities.

Notable achievements

Longstanding protection record

Since its founding in 1976, Friends has been a leading voice for the Boundary Waters and reports a history of protecting and defending more than 1.1 million acres of lakes and forests in the Quetico‑Superior region, including playing an instrumental role in passage of landmark Boundary Waters protection legislation in the 1970s.

Major state grant recommendation (2025)

Friends secured a Legislative‑Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) recommendation in December 2025 for a $1,252,000 project to expand environmental education and wilderness experiences—enabling plans to reach roughly 12,000 students statewide and to provide at least 600 students with week‑long canoe trips into the Boundary Waters.

Sustained advocacy against sulfide mining

The organization has led multi‑year campaigns mobilizing members, providing legal counsel, and supporting legislative and administrative actions aimed at preventing copper‑sulfide mining proposals from threatening the Boundary Waters and surrounding watersheds.

At a glance

Total assets: $4.8M
Annual revenue: $3.1M
Tax status: 501(c)(3)Public charity
EIN: 36-3414821
Location: Saint Paul, MN
Website: www.friends-bwca.org
On Mahalo since: September 2026

Financial figures from the IRS Business Master File, the IRS’s registry of tax-exempt organizations.

Recognition

Verified, active 501(c)(3) public charity with regularly filed Form 990 returns and publicly reported financials demonstrating multi‑million dollar annual revenue and multi‑million dollar net assets.

Established public profile and membership base: the organization maintains an active website, regular media and blog presence, state legislative testimony, and reports a national membership and donor base supporting its advocacy and education work.

Recipient of competitive public funding recommendation (LCCMR) and partner in state grant processes and legislative briefing activities demonstrating recognition by Minnesota public funders and policy bodies.

Is this your organization?

Claim this page to keep it current — add your logo, publish campaigns, and reach the donors and advisors discovering you on Mahalo.

Claim this page