The Endangered Ecosystems Fund is an endowment fund held at Vancouver Foundation. Initially established in March of 2003 with charitable donations from staff at Environment Canada’s Pacific Wildlife Research Centre in Delta, British Columbia, the intent is to encourage and facilitate charitable donations in support of nature conservation.
The Fund is currently in a building phase and plans to begin granting in 2010. Since its establishment, many concerned donors from outside of the original donor group have contributed to its growth.
The fund’s creation was inspired by research indicating that 90% of Canadians express concern over the state of the environment, and 56% feel that environmental quality is declining, yet fewer than 3.5% of British Columbians make charitable donations to environmental organizations. Thus, the fund is an attempt to bridge the gap between concern for the environment and support for conservation-focused charities.