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Terra BIRDS
FLAGSTAFF, AZ · EIN 454318103 · Form 990 · FY2022 · NTEE O50 · Youth Development · Small ($100K-$1M) · www.terrabirds.org
revenue
$355K
expenses
$297K
net assets
$155K
employees
3
volunteers
145
program ratio
81%
mission · from form 990

Educating and empowering youth through gardening to help prepare them as the stewards of a sustainable future for humanity.

profile · synthesized from sources

Terra BIRDS provides youth gardening programs and job training in Flagstaff, Arizona, and surrounding Northern Arizona communities. They engage K-12 students in school garden programs focused on sustainability, stewardship, and growing food, while also offering employment opportunities to at-risk youth in garden education and urban habitat restoration.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2022

what they reported doing

Program narrative the organization filed with the IRS. Ordered by program spending.

  1. #1 primary $47K
    GREEN JOBS program provided short-term, green collar employment, vocational and life skills development and on-the-job training for at-risk youth. In 2022 Terra BIRDS provided temporary jobs, mentorship and networking support to 59 youth interns between the ages of 15 and 21 years old. Terra BIRDS partnered with the following entities to provide job training and in-the-field experiences: County Juvenile Detention Center, Ponderosa High School, City of Flagstaff Community Gardens and the City of Flagstaff. Terra BIRDS invests in practical work and life skills development for young people, while simultaneously making improvements towards more sustainable community infrastructure.
  2. #2 $21K
    COMMUNITY GARDENS provide Flagstaffs urban gardners with a place to grow, harvest and learn together. Community gardens are an excellent place to meet the needs of Flagstaff residents in a multitude of ways. 132 community gardeners at 3 community gardens participated in 2022 and grew hundreds of pounds of food for their families, friends and community. K-12 students and college students came together to plant crops and do general garden maintenance. Other organizations, businesses and individuals also volunteered to assist with the gardens.`
named programs · 3 · from sources

what they call their work

BIRDS@Work Program
An internship program offering job training and employment opportunities to local at-risk youth in sustainability and garden education, focusing on growing food, restoring urban habitats, and rewilding green spaces.
School Garden Program
Provides gardening education on school grounds for K-12 students in Flagstaff Unified School District, Coconino County Accommodation School District, Grand Canyon School District, and Page Unified School District, emphasizing sustainability, stewardship, and community wellness.
Space Salad
A three-part comic book series developed by Terra BIRDS Illustrator Robert Chambers, blending hydroponic growing principles with STEM skills in a sci-fi narrative, embedding lessons on classroom hydroponic grow towers.
activities · 7 groups

what they do

  • Garden-Based Education Programs 9 activities
    • Educational Comic Book Development
      Developed a three-part comic book series, "Space Salad," which blends hydroponic growing principles with STEM skills and embeds lessons on the care of classroom hydroponic grow towers.
    • Educational Comic Book Series Development
      Developed a three-part comic book series, "Space Salad," which blends hydroponic growing principles with STEM skills and embeds lessons on the care of classroom hydroponic grow towers.
    • Hydroponic Tower Installation and Curriculum Development
      Installs hydroponic towers in classrooms in 33 schools in Flagstaff, Page, and Grand Canyon to enable year-round indoor gardening. This is supported by a three-part comic book series, "Space Salad," which blends hydroponic growing principles with STEM skills and embeds lessons on the care of classroom hydroponic grow towers.
    • Hydroponic Tower Installation and Education
      Installs hydroponic towers in classrooms in 33 schools in Flagstaff, Page, and Grand Canyon to enable year-round indoor gardening and develops educational materials, such as a comic book series, to teach hydroponic growing principles and STEM skills.
    • Hydroponic classroom gardening program
      Installs and supports hydroponic grow towers in classrooms across 33 schools in Flagstaff, Page, and Grand Canyon, enabling year-round indoor gardening and integrating STEM education through the "Space Salad" comic series.
    • K-12 School Garden Education Programs
      Implements environmental stewardship, urban habitat restoration, and food production programs in K-12 schools across Flagstaff Unified School District, Coconino County Accommodation School District, Grand Canyon School District, and Page Unified School District. This includes culturally relevant lessons, hands-on gardening classes, and maintenance of school gardens. In one year, programming was offered to 14 schools, serving 1,719 students through 303 hours of garden education across 175 school and 67 individual class visits.
    • K-12 School Garden Education Programs
      Implements environmental stewardship, urban habitat restoration, and food production programs in K-12 schools across Flagstaff Unified School District, Coconino County Accommodation School District, Grand Canyon School District, and Page Unified School District. This includes culturally relevant lessons, hands-on gardening classes, and maintenance of school gardens. In one year, programming was offered to 14 schools, serving 1,719 students through 303 hours of garden education across 175 school and 67 individual class visits.
    • School-based environmental and garden education programs
      Implements garden education, environmental stewardship, urban habitat restoration, and food production programs for K-12 students across multiple school districts in Northern Arizona, including Flagstaff, Grand Canyon, and Page; served 1,719 students with 303 hours of instruction and 175 school visits during the reporting period.
    • School-based garden education and programming
      Implements garden programs in K-12 schools across Northern Arizona, including curriculum delivery, school garden maintenance, and hands-on classes such as the Greenhouse Class at Ponderosa High School. Programs include daily journaling, coursework, and virtual participation options during school closures.
  • Desert & Native Plant Garden Management 5 activities
    • Community volunteer engagement in garden programs
      Hosts volunteer workdays at school and community gardens in Flagstaff during the growing season, supporting garden maintenance and community involvement in environmental projects.
    • Land Stewardship and Habitat Restoration
      Stewards over 13 acres of land in Flagstaff, including transforming an empty patch of dirt around the Ponderosa High Greenhouse into a diverse habitat with plants, birds, and other organisms, and adding structures for community use. This work engages 300 to 500 people, leading to personal growth and transformation for participants.
    • Land Stewardship and Habitat Restoration
      Stewards over 13 acres of land in Flagstaff, including transforming areas around Ponderosa High Greenhouse into diverse habitats with plants and structures for community use, engaging hundreds of people in the process.
    • School and community garden maintenance and volunteer engagement
      Operates school garden maintenance programs supported by volunteers and hosts seasonal volunteer workdays at school and community gardens in Flagstaff; transformed the area around the Ponderosa High Greenhouse into a biodiverse habitat and community space, engaging 300–500 participants.
    • Stewardship of land and environmental programs in Flagstaff
      Stewards over 13 acres of land in Flagstaff, implementing environmental stewardship, urban habitat restoration, and food production initiatives. These efforts include transforming underutilized spaces into biodiverse habitats, such as the project around the Ponderosa High Greenhouse.
  • Youth Nature & Tech Education Resources 4 activities
    • Educational Blog and Online Learning Resources
      Operates an educational blog, "Terra BIRDS Lessons Blog," intended for students of all ages globally, sharing information and ideas for learning, including daily journal work and a chat function for participation in the Greenhouse Class.
    • Educational Blog and Online Learning Resources
      Operates an educational blog, the "Lessons Blog," intended for students of all ages globally, sharing information and ideas for learning, including daily journal work and a chat function for participation in the Greenhouse Class.
    • Global educational outreach via online platforms
      Operates an educational blog and online resources intended for students of all ages globally, sharing curriculum materials, gardening lessons, and interactive tools for remote learning.
    • Online educational outreach and blog
      Operates an educational blog—Terra BIRDS Lessons Blog—for students of all ages globally, sharing curriculum resources, ideas for learning, and interactive features such as chat participation in the Greenhouse Class.
  • Indigenous Seed Sovereignty & Rematriation 4 activities
    • Fiscal Sponsorship
      Provided fiscal sponsorship to Ita Hopi Lavayi from 2018 to 2019 and resumed fiscal sponsorship near the end of 2025.
    • Fiscal Sponsorship for Community Organizations
      Provided fiscal sponsorship to Ita Hopi Lavayi from 2018 to 2019 and resumed fiscal sponsorship near the end of 2025.
    • Fiscal sponsorship for Indigenous-led initiatives
      Provides fiscal sponsorship to Indigenous-led projects, including Ita Hopi Lavayi, from 2018–2019 and resuming near the end of 2025, supporting community-based food and cultural systems.
    • Fiscal sponsorship for community initiatives
      Provides fiscal sponsorship to community-based projects, including Ita Hopi Lavayi, from 2018–2019 and resuming near the end of 2025.
  • Green Job Training for Youth 4 activities
    • Youth Job Training and Employment
      Provides environmentally sustainable job training and employment opportunities to at-risk youth in Northern Arizona through the BIRDS@Work program, focusing on sustainability, garden education, urban habitat restoration, and green space rewilding. In one year, 30 youth interns worked 1,246 hours and were paid over $23,000.
    • Youth Job Training and Employment
      Provides environmentally sustainable job training and employment opportunities to at-risk youth in Northern Arizona through the BIRDS@Work program, focusing on sustainability, garden education, urban habitat restoration, and green space rewilding. In one year, 30 youth interns worked 1,246 hours and were paid over $23,000.
    • Youth job training and employment through BIRDS@Work Program
      Provides paid job training and employment opportunities to at-risk youth through the BIRDS@Work Program, focusing on sustainability, garden education, urban habitat restoration, and green space rewilding; 30 youth participated across spring, summer, and fall sessions, earning $23,194.22 for 1,246 total hours of work.
    • Youth job training and engagement programs
      Provides environmentally sustainable jobs and job training to local at-risk youth through garden-based programming, engaging 300 to 500 people in hands-on land work that supports personal growth and development.
  • Online Learning Platform Delivery 1 activity
    • Remote and hybrid educational programming during school closures
      Provided remote learning support during the pandemic, including coursework, video messages, and journaling activities for high school Greenhouse Classes, and maintained engagement through the Lessons Blog and chat functionality.
  • Uncategorized 5 activities
    • Culturally relevant education for Native and non-Native students
      Offers culturally relevant lessons and programming through School Gardens and BIRDS@Work, including partnerships that deliver Hopi gardening, seed saving, harvesting, food processing, and cooking classes.
    • Culturally relevant education for Native and non-Native students
      Offers culturally relevant lessons and connections for Native and non-Native students through school garden programs and partnerships, including Hopi gardening, seed saving, harvesting, food processing, and cooking classes in collaboration with community partners.
    • Hopi Gardening and Cultural Education
      Conducts Hopi gardening, seed saving, harvesting, food processing, and cooking classes in partnership with Terra BIRDS, providing culturally relevant lessons and connections for Native and non-Native students.
    • Hopi Gardening and Cultural Education
      Conducts Hopi gardening, seed saving, harvesting, food processing, and cooking classes in partnership with Terra BIRDS, providing culturally relevant lessons and connections for Native and non-Native students.
    • Stewardship of 13 acres of land in Flagstaff
      Manages and maintains 13 acres of land in Flagstaff for environmental and educational purposes.
financials · form 990 · fy2022
revenue
Total revenue$355K
Contributions & grants$141K40%
Program service revenue$214K60%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$297K
Program expenses81%
Admin / overhead15%
Fundraising4%
Salaries & benefits$134K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$155K
Cash$117K
Investments$0
Liabilities$434
Net assets$155K
Liquid reserves4.7 mo
3 years on record · 2020–2022 · YoY revenue +48.3%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2022

who runs it

board members · 4
  • ELIZABETH TAYLOR — TREASURER
  • JAMES ALLEN — DIRECTOR
  • JOHN TAYLOR — PRESIDENT
  • TED MARTINEZ — SECRETARY
relationships · 20

who they work with

  • Arizona Ethnobotanical Research Association Network — Coordinated fiscal sponsorship transitions for Ita Hopi Lavayi alongside Terra BIRDS.
  • Carbon Copy Journal Partner — Ted Martinez, a board member, is a Managing Editor at Carbon Copy Journal.
  • City of Flagstaff Partner — Natalie Jacobs, a board member, consults for the Flagstaff Sustainability Office to help identify funding opportunities to implement climate goals and policies.
  • Coconino County Accommodation School District (CCASD) Partner — Provides gardening education on school grounds for K-12 students.
  • Coconino County Education Service Agency (CCESA) Partner — Partnered to install hydroponic towers in classrooms for year-round growing.
  • Coconino County Juvenile Detention Center Transition School (JDCTS) Partner — Youth participants in the BIRDS@Work program are primarily from this school.
  • Flagstaff Foodlink Partner — Elizabeth Taylor, a board member, is an emeritus board member of Flagstaff Foodlink.
  • Flagstaff Unified School District (FUSD) Partner — Provides gardening education on school grounds for K-12 students.
  • Flagstaff schools Partner — Collaborates with schools in Flagstaff to maintain and support school garden programs.
  • Grand Canyon School District Partner — Provides gardening education on school grounds for K-12 students.
  • Ita Hopi Lavayi Partner — Collaborates to provide culturally relevant lessons and programming in School Gardens and BIRDS@Work programs.
  • Liz Partner — Board member of Terra BIRDS who shared reflections on resilience during the pandemic
  • Northern Arizona University Partner — Ted Martinez, a board member, is a Teaching Professor in NAU’s Honors College and Academic Director of NAU’s Grand Canyon Semester.
  • Page Unified School District Partner — Provides gardening education on school grounds for K-12 students.
  • Ponderosa High School Partner — Collaborates on a greenhouse class and provides educational support to its students.
  • Ponderosa High School Partner — Collaborates with Ponderosa High School to provide coursework and educational support to students.
  • Ponderosa High School (PHS) Partner — Youth participants in the BIRDS@Work program are primarily from this school.
  • Prince EA Partner — Collaborates on educational content about pandemic preparedness and personal resilience
  • Shoshin Partner — References Shoshin (Beginner’s Mind) as a foundational concept for its educational approach.
  • Trust for Public Lands Partner — Lindsay Withers, a board member, works as a cartographer at Trust for Public Land.