Financial Integrity

updated 2021.03

Default to Transparency

As with other matters, we publish all information related to our finances unless there is a compelling reason not to do so. The main reason to publish our financial information is so that our associates may hold us accountable.

Dangers of money

We ask all associates, friends, and supporters of Pax Fauna to join us in keeping vigilant watch for the many nefarious issues that may arise in an organization where money is concerned, including but not limited to:

• Undue influence exerted on our mission by donors, either directly or indirectly by our need to appeal to donors.

• Replacing creativity with money; becoming lazy with how we spend money when a creative solution has greater potential.

• Conflict over how to spend money and an artificial sense of scarcity.

• Becoming overly invested in the separation between individuals receiving money from the movement and those who are not; arrogance on the part of paid fellows.

Information available to Partners

All partners, at all times, shall have complete access to any and all financial information, including the amount and source of all donations and the amount and cause of all expenses. No partner shall be denied full disclosure about any financial matter for any reason, except where such disclosures may violate a law or regulation.

Information available to the public

At a minimum, the following information shall be published on our website annually:

• IRS Form 990 returns.

• An annual report detailing our financial activity in broad terms, including:

  • a breakdown of our expenses for the year into meaningful, clearly defined categories; and

  • a breakdown of income from from small, mid-sized, and large donations, and an exact amount received from each grantor of large donations. (The grantor's identity may be kept anonymous, per the section below.)

  • The identities of research fellows and the amount of their grant, as well as the identity of and amount given to anyone else for customized products or services.

  • Where our money is banked.

When financial information may be kept private to Pax Fauna

Generally speaking, except for the items listed above, financial information may be kept private if there is a compelling reason to do so. Some examples are:

• The identity of a grantor, be they an individual or a foundation, if the grantor provides a credible explanation for why their identity should be kept private. (Where such exceptional circumstances apply, the donation will be published with an accompanying note: “Donor has requested anonymity.”)

• Any financial information related to active or potential legal cases.

• Identities of donors who contribute less than $5000 per year shall be kept private unless the donor requests otherwise.

Donation Integrity

Money is an incredibly potent force in our society. The overwhelming tendency of money is to reinforce the status quo by directing energy into the channels created and stewarded by the financial sector. Money therefor poses a threat to any organization attempting to challenge or disrupt the status quo. At the same time, many organizations have missions which cannot be accomplished without money, and the movement ecosystem could never be complete without them. We must find a way to raise money without succumbing to its dangers.

Of the dangers listed above, the risk of co-optation is the most nefarious. We adopt the following rules in an attempt to mitigate the threat of financial co-optation. (For the purpose of these rules, a grantor is someone contributing over $5000 per year.)

• We will never accept grants from individuals or organizations with any financial or business interest in any animal agriculture, fishing, or vivisection enterprise.

• We will never discontinue, or decline to undertake, any program at the suggestion of a current or potential grantor.

• We will never onboard a particular partner or provide a research grant to a particular grantee at the behest of a current or potential grantor.

• We will never accept more than $5000 in one year from a member of the Mission Circle (Board of Directors), and giving more than that amount in one year shall make someone ineligible to sit on the board for three years.

• As much as circumstance, reason, and law allow, we shall not base decisions about our mission and programs on what we think will satisfy donors and grantors.