1%T’s members donate one percent of their annual sales to fund sustainability related projects in the Tetons region. During June, members directed their donations to finalist proposals they favored. Out of eight finalists, seven received full-funding. These donations were augmented by contributions from individuals and non-member businesses.

“2011 marks 1% for the Tetons’s fifth year of awarding grants,” noted Schechter. “Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of our members, during our first five years 1% has granted $556,745 to 44 remarkable projects. “Put simply, in five short years, the business owners who belong to 1% for the Tetons have donated over half a million dollars to make the Tetons a more sustainable place.

Please take a moment to download and read our 1% Grants Overview document. (PDF download, 1.2MB)

Between now and July 1, 1% for the Tetons is accepting non-member donations (i.e. donations from individuals and non-member businesses) to help fund its eight Grant Finalist projects.  Any Finalist which receives non-member donations totaling >=50% of the amount it has requested from 1%T will automatically receive full funding of its project from 1%T.

For example, if a Finalist is seeking $5,000 from 1%T, and non-members donate >=$2,500, 1%T guarantees that project will receive its full $5,000.

1% for the Tetons does not partially fund projects, and as in past years, all Finalists are candidates for full funding.  However, nothing has been guaranteed.  What’s different this year is that any Finalist which crosses the 50% non-member donation threshold is guaranteed funding, the first guarantee 1% has ever been able to make.

Click here to download a PDF of the press release for more information about our new “Grant Guarantee” program. There will also be information about the program in my column in tomorrow’s Jackson Hole News&Guide, as well as the full-page ads we are running in the next three editions of the News&Guide: tomorrow, June 22, and June 29.

All member allocations and non-member donations are due by Friday, July 1.

As always, thanks for your interest in 1% for the Tetons.

1%T is a project of the Jackson, WY-based Charture Institute. Jonathan Schechter, Charture’s Executive Director, said: “1% for the Tetons believes
‘Conservation is the Economy’ – thoughtful conservation provides the foundation of a healthy economy, both today and in the future. To support this belief, 1% for the Tetons awards high-leverage grants to forward-looking projects helping sustain the Tetons region’s natural resources for future generations.”

To give prospective applicants a sense of the types of projects 1%T funds, copies of every grant application 1%T has ever funded are available for download from the 1%T website (1PercentTetons.org).

Schechter continued: ‘During our first four years, 1% for the Tetons has awarded $485,000 through 37 grants. These grants have fallen into five ‘Flagship Areas’ central to the long-term sustainability of the Tetons area’s natural resources: Eco-Friendly Communities, Education, River Systems, Trails, and Wildlife.

“In 2011, 1% for the Tetons will direct at least half of our grant money to the three of these Flagship Areas: Eco-Friendly Communities; River Systems; and Trails. We are focusing on these because these are the areas in which 1% for the Tetons can have the greatest effect in the shortest period of time.”

The bulk of funding for 1%T’s grants comes from its member businesses, which donate one percent of their annual sales to 1%T. Members have the option of directing all or part of their donations toward specific proposals received from grant applicants. Schechter noted: “1% for the Tetons seeks to maximize the effectiveness of members’ donations by being innovative in its approach to grantmaking, specifically by awarding what we call ‘high-leverage grants.’ Such grants are hallmarked by three types of leverage: financial, organizational, and outcome.

• ‘Financial leverage’ means the project receives significant cash and/or in-kind resources beyond the funding provided by 1%T.
• ‘Organizational leverage’ means the project draws on resources – intellectual, human, and financial – from multiple organizations with an interest in the same issue.
• ‘Outcome leverage’ means the project catalyzes a great idea – addressing a small problem before it becomes large, or helping a nascent-but-promising opportunity reach its potential.’”

Grants will be awarded in the first half of July.

For more information, go to 1%T’s website: 1PercentTetons.org, visit our Grants Frequently Asked Questions page, or call Jonathan Schechter at (307) 733-8687.

Sunday, June 6

4 p.m. ’til dusk

Q Roadhouse

Food — Drink — Music

6 p.m. Announcement of 2010 Grant Recipients

Please RSVP via PaperPost

Please contact Annie Jack at annie.jack@ymail.com or 307-203-2454 with any questions.

We hope to see you there!

In 2010 we are proposing to significantly expand the scope of the project. By increasing our educational outreach and previously successful non-lead ammunition give-away program, we will create a substantial movement towards a receptive switch away from traditional toxic lead ammunition by hunters. We will continue to track the eagles with the use of satellite transmitters to show that those being exposed to lead in Jackson Hole disperse throughout the continent, making this issue of national concern.  The clear link between lead ammunition and lead poisoning in wildlife has been established, the resolution is understood but implementing policy change and gaining majority support remain the challenge.

Project Description and Background:

A ballistic gel shot of a lead bullet shows multiple fragments.

Craighead Beringia South studies, based from our Kelly, Wyoming, wildlife research institute, have linked spent lead rifle ammunition to unnaturally high lead exposure in bald eagles, grizzly bears, golden eagles, and ravens in the “pristine” Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Based on our research, we know that both eagles and ravens feeding on gutpiles in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem during the hunting season have annual home ranges that extend all the way from southern California to Canada, creating a need for a nation-wide, tangible solution. Several avenues of action exist to accomplish this.

Copper and metal-gilding ammunition are commonly available, viable alternatives present throughout the world. Mandating non-lead ammunition nationwide would significantly curtail lead ammunition use, but such action would also be a cause of animosity between hunters, conservation groups, and government agencies. The other option is a voluntary effort encouraged by substantial education about health effects to both wildlife and humans with the intent of growing hunter support over a period of time to mitigate the use of lead ammunition. Craighead Beringia South proposes a combination of the two approaches to create an action-oriented solution that will result in relatively quick change with little opposition.

A ballistic gel shot of a copper bullet shows no fragments.

An easy solution exists to lead ammunition that exhibits better performance than its poisoning counterpart. While legislation against the use of lead-based ammunition may appear to be the best solution, the compliance with laws that hunters are opposed to will not be sufficient to curtail the impacts of this ecological poison. We are implementing a voluntary lead-reduction program based in hunter education before legislation is introduced to gather further support from the participating community and ensure a long-term, successful solution. The collection of more data on the positive effects to wildlife of switching to alternative ammunition will bring additional awareness and support of the program as well as public acceptance moving towards legislative action.

To achieve our long-term goal of removing lead rifle ammunition as a source of lead toxicity throughout the nation, the implementation of regulation must happen at a local level first with sufficient support from the hunting community as well as the regulatory organizations. By building this cooperation in a large enough manor we can effectively remove the threat of lead poisoning of our wildlife, wildlands, and homes.  Though the concept of providing ammunition to hunters to help wildlife seems paradoxical, our limited efforts in 2009 began to show the promise of this technique by reducing lead toxicity in scavenging birds by a fourth.  Given these very promising results, we remain confident that increasing our education, outreach, and monitoring efforts will be a significant step towards the ultimate goal of eliminating lead rifle ammunition from large game hunting.