TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 CONSERVATION & INITIATIVES 5 FUNDRAISING 29 PUBLIC POLICY 45 FINANCIALS 49 HONOR ROLL OF DONORS 52 LEADERSHIP 93 1 2 Executive Summary t takes a dedicated team to conserve, restore and manage The Farm Bill includes the conservation community’s top habitat to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow priorities of re-coupling conservation compliance to crop and forever. That’s why Ducks Unlimited volunteers band insurance and a Sodsaver program in Iowa, Minnesota, Mon- Itogether for waterfowl each year. tana, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. This will Fiscal Year 2014 (FY14) was successful for Team DU help protect some of the nation’s most important waterfowl thanks to our volunteers—all of them proud members of breeding and migration habitats. Other provisions in the our 2,610 chapters—who dedicated themselves to raising Farm Bill also encourage the conservation of our remaining money for the ducks at more than 4,300 events in FY14. This wetlands and grasslands, which help keep our waters clean, was DU’s fourth straight year of fundraising growth and our prevent soil erosion and provide vital habitat for waterfowl best fundraising year since 2002. Our volunteers raised $53.9 and other wildlife. million through events across the United States, a 4.5 percent In FY14, DU supporters continued to back legislation to increase over last fiscal year. increase the price of the federal duck stamp from $15 to $25. Event attendance also grew for the third straight year. DU In the 23 years since the last price increase, the value of land volunteers worked harder than ever to bring 509,100 attend- has tripled and the stamp’s conservation impact has greatly ees to our FY14 events, an increase of 12.2 percent over the diminished. Once again, sportsmen and women are leading previous year. The total number of volunteers grew 10.7 per- the charge to fund conservation that benefits all our citizens. cent to 53,400. In July, a target of more than $34 million for the North In FY14, new commitments from our Major Sponsors American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) was in- totaled $26.6 million, new cash totaled $22.2 million and cluded in a bill by the House Appropriations Subcommittee new gift planning commitments came in at $21.5 million. Do on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies. While this you see a trend here? DU’s growth and continued success are funding is level with FY14 it demonstrates a renewed com- made possible by our dedicated volunteers at all levels of the mitment to this vital program, which delivers on-the-ground organization. The strength of our fundraising system relies conservation for waterfowl, other wildlife and our citizens. on the power of the volunteer, and the fact that like-minded Since 1990, more than 5,000 partners have completed over individuals so willingly give of their time and talents bodes 2,400 NAWCA projects, contributing to the conservation of well for the future. 27.5 million acres of waterfowl breeding, migration and win- We have been fortunate to meet one-on-one with our tering habitat. Reflecting their commitment, partners have volunteers at events across the country. It doesn’t take long to contributed $2.7 billion in nonfederal matching funds for the realize that these folks are the backbone of our organization nearly $1.3 billion made available through federal grants. With and the reason Ducks Unlimited is a leader in wetlands and appropriate funding for this program, the public will benefit waterfowl conservation. It is truly a privilege to work along- forever from healthy waterfowl populations, increased hunting side such dedicated, selfless and honorable people who stand opportunities and all the other benefits that wetlands provide. up for what they believe in. Our work is as important now as it was 77 years ago. We In FY14, Team DU conducted conservation work on more should be proud of what we have accomplished, but as any of than 209,000 acres, bringing our cumulative total to over 13.3 our dedicated volunteers will tell you, our job is never done. million acres conserved in North America since 1937. FY14 Thank you for your continued commitment to our shared also saw significant progress on several legislative issues that mission. are vital to our conservation mission, thanks in large part to active, vocal DU volunteers. The 2014 Farm Bill, which was approved in February, includes proactive and commonsense conservation programs that will help deter wetland losses, provide incentives for habitat conservation and keep farmers George H. Dunklin Jr. H. Dale Hall and ranchers—our conservation partners—on their land. President Chief Executive Officer 3 ALASKA INITIATIVE- BORN TO FLY BOREAL FOREST INITIATIVE LIVING WINGS AND PRESERVE LAKES WETLANDS OUR PRAIRIES INITIATIVE INITIATIVE INITIATIVE GREAT PEAKS TO COMPLETING LAKES PRAIRIES THE CYCLE INITIATIVE INITIATIVE INITIATIVE HEARTLAND BIG RIVERS CALIFORNIA HERITAGE INITIATIVE WETLANDS DUCKS IN AND HABITAT INITIATIVE THE DESERT INITIATIVE INITIATIVE AMERICA’S RIVER SOUTHEAST WETLANDS INITIATIVE INITIATIVE SOUTHERN PRAIRIES AND PLAYAS INITIATIVE GULF COAST INITIATIVE Priority Landscapes 4 Conservation and Initiatives orth America’s ducks and geese are a continental tiatives intended to generate philanthropic investment for resource. Their survival depends on healthy and waterfowl conservation, aligning donor interest with DU’s adequate breeding, migration and wintering conservation priorities. Nhabitats throughout North America. As a result, Ducks The end of FY14 marked a little more than two years Unlimited works in each of these habitat regions to help since the initiative planning, creation and marketing pro- ensure that the life-cycle needs of waterfowl are met. cess began. We’ve come a long way in two years but the Because the landscapes most important to waterfowl do not need to conserve waterfowl habitat remains more compel- necessarily align with where most waterfowl supporters live, ling and urgent than ever. Habitat work continues daily it is crucial that DU volunteers and staff continue to band across North America. It’s what we do. together for waterfowl in all 50 states, Canada and Mexico. The following pages are filled with DU successes, In 2012, DU volunteers and staff began searching for a challenges and opportunities, as well as the personal stories way to better connect conservation with fundraising and of several volunteers and donors who continue to help us focus our resources on North America’s highest-priority fulfill our vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl landscapes. The solution was 16 regional ini- waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever. ©Dean Pearson 5 North America’s Boreal Forest BOREAL FOREST: THE NORTHERN BIRD NURSERY t 1.6 billion acres, North America’s Boreal Forest more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases, North is the world’s largest biome (major ecological America’s Boreal Forest also plays an important role in community), replete with unspoiled marshes, helping to regulate our planet’s climate. Alakes, bogs, wetlands, streams and rivers. Some 26 species Through the Boreal Forest Initiative, Ducks Unlim- of waterfowl nest and migrate through the Boreal Forest, ited and our partners, a consortium of progressive First and on average 35 percent of North America’s waterfowl Nations, industries, conservation organizations, and gov- breed on this landscape. Boreal habitat is especially ernments in partnership with The Pew Charitable Trusts, important for scaup, ring-necked ducks, buffleheads, are committed to pursuing a 50/50 mix of protection green-winged teal, and American wigeon as well as for and sustainable development so that waterfowl and other a third of the continent’s mallards and northern pintails. wildlife will not be forced to survive on small fragments Other species of fish and wildlife also depend on the Boreal of remaining habitat. By applying leading environmental Forest, including many migratory songbirds. In fact, an practices to responsible development efforts in the Bore- estimated 3 billion to 5 billion birds fly south from the al, these stakeholders will address the needs of a growing region each fall, making it the magnificent Northern Bird world population while ensuring that natural resources Nursery. As the world’s largest reservoir of surface water remain plentiful in this vital region forever. and most extensive terrestrial carbon sink, absorbing ©Gary Kramer 6 ©Jim Thompson IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THREE TO FIVE BILLION BIRDS FLY SOUTH FROM THE REGION EACH FALL, MAKING IT THE MAGNIFICENT NORTHERN BIRD NURSERY. SAVING A LAST GREAT PLACE Jim Konkel – Scarborough, Maine Jim Konkel has been a philanthropic and volunteer leader of Ducks Unlimited for more than 30 years. His lifelong commitment to waterfowl and wetlands conservation began in Ohio, where he helped start DU’s Findlay Sponsor committee. Since then, Jim has served in numerous volunteer capacities across the organization. He is currently an at-large member of DU’s board of directors and chairman of the National Shooting Committee. Jim and his wife, Sue, are Diamond Legacy Sponsors and recently pledged $1 million to DU’s Boreal Forest Initiative and $250,000 to the Preserve Our Prairies Initiative. They are also members of the President’s Council, of which Jim is the charter member. Their support for DU’s highest-priority landscapes across the continent is well known throughout the organization. Jim says his love for waterfowl was a gift from his grandfather, James C Donnell II, an avid duck hunter and DU Life Sponsor. “I thought the world of my grandfather,” Jim says. “He ran a successful oil company and was one of those larger- than-life people you couldn’t help but admire. When I was starting college in Utah, he took me on my first duck hunt at the Bear River Club on the Great Salt Lake.