The Pegasus Foundation 1999 Annual Report
Introduction
Several major initiatives of the Pegasus Foundation reached important milestones in 1999, most notably the growth of the Cape Cod Stranding Network to address marine mammal strandings, the launch of a mobile veterinary van to provide spay/neuter services for stray animals on the Navajo Nation, and the strengthening of a burgeoning network of land trusts to protect valuable ecosystems and wildlife habitat throughout Florida.
The foundation continued its work in many areas while further developing its partnerships as it remains committed to animal protection, environmental preservation and public education. Pegasus distributed a total of $177,000 in grants, and staff efforts leveraged an additional $750,000 from partner organizations.
Foundation staff began addressing globalization issues as they impact animals and the environment by participating in briefings held during the November meeting of the World Trade Organization in Seattle. Pegasus also launched its Web site, which can be found at: www.pegasusfoundation.org
This report outlines the foundation's work in three major areas: wildlife protection, companion animal and equine programs, and land conservation and preservation.
Major Initiatives
Wildlife Protection
Manatees - Florida
After serving as catalyst for the concept in 1998, the Pegasus Foundation, in partnership
with the Save the Manatee Club, coordinated the preparation for a major manatee lawsuit
involving 19 environmental groups against federal and state agencies for failing to fully
protect manatees under the Endangered Species Act. In addition to a legal strategy, this
initiative also includes media, legislative, and grassroots campaigns to raise awareness
about manatees' threatened extinction. A powerful coalition has evolved from this project,
and the suit launched in January 2000 has precedent setting potential for all endangered
species.
Along with the legal initiative, Pegasus also developed and
strengthened the partnership with the Save the Manatee Club through membership on its
board of directors and financial support. The foundation continued building awareness
about manatee protection with members of Congress. Previous efforts in this arena led
Senator Bob Graham of Florida to push for passage of an appropriations bill that included
$250,000 for manatee marine legal enforcement.
Buffalo - Montana
The Pegasus Foundation continued its support of the Buffalo Field Campaign (formerly
called Buffalo Nations) in its ongoing work to preserve Yellowstone National Park's bison
herd. Bison leaving the park's borders are killed by government workers under a state
policy enforced by the Montana Department of Livestock, which claims the bison spread
disease to cattle. Buffalo Field Campaign volunteers patrol the land outside the park
every day throughout the year and attempt to move the buffalo that have strayed beyond its
borders back within the park where they are protected. Volunteers video documentation of
buffalo movement and Department of Livestock response led to greater media coverage and
provided valuable material to use in public hearings on the issue.
The foundation also contributed funds to the Greater
Yellowstone Coalition, which was instrumental in securing $13 million in federal
appropriations to purchase 7,700 acres of land bordering Yellowstone National Park. The
coalition is now working to ensure that buffalo will be able to roam freely on this land
without threat of being captured and killed.
Marine Mammals - Cape Cod, Massachusetts
One of the Pegasus Foundation's largest grants went to the Cape Cod Stranding Network
(CCSN), which incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1999 to assist marine mammals
that become stranded on the beaches of Cape Cod. CCSN also conducts scientific studies of
mammals that do not survive in order to learn more about the reasons for stranding. The
network hired three staff, opened an office and trained a network of volunteers to assist
stranded marine mammals. As a result of its increased capacity, CCSN was able to respond
to 215 reported strandings.
The Pegasus Foundation provided both funds and in-kind
support to the Cape Cod Stranding Network, as did a variety of other organizations,
including the Humane Society of the United States, the International Fund for Animal
Welfare, the International Wildlife Coalition, the Center for Coastal Studies, the New
England Aquarium and the National Marine Life Center.
Cape Wildlife Center - Cape Cod, Massachusetts
The Cape Wildlife Center (formerly called the Wildlife Rehabilitation Training Center),
owned and operated by the Humane Society of the United States, provides veterinary care to
injured and orphaned wildlife, training in wildlife medicine to college students and
others, and education on wildlife protection to the public. Since it began in 1995, the
center has provided training to more than 50 students, some of whom have gone on to
veterinary school to pursue careers in wildlife veterinary medicine. With Pegasus support,
the center has now expanded its training mission to sponsor several students each year
from Central and South America and the Caribbean, where such training opportunities do not
yet exist.
Companion Animals and Equine Programs
Companion Animals - Navajo Nation
After many years of program and partnership development, the Pegasus Foundation was proud
to participate in the June 1999 launch of a mobile veterinary surgical van that provides
spay and neuter services to dogs and cats living on the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Nation
encompasses 26,000 square miles in the southwestern United States, and is home to 210,000
Navajo people and countless stray dogs and cats. Because many members of the Navajo Nation
are living on fixed incomes, these dogs and cats receive little or no veterinary care,
including vaccinations and sterilization. The numbers of strays roaming on the roads and
in the communities has escalated to such a high level that they have become a public
health and safety concern.
The Pegasus Foundation has been working with the Arizona
Humane Society and the Spay-Neuter Assistance Program to develop solutions to the stray
animal problem. The launch of the mobile van now allows veterinary services to be provided
at various locations throughout the Nation. Veterinarians have donated their time, and
corporate partners have donated airfare, hotel rooms and other expenses associated with
the operation. In the six months following the launch of the van, 1,068 animals were
spayed or neutered and over 1,600 vaccinations were administered.
Companion Animals - Great Abaco Island, the Bahamas
The Pegasus Foundation continued to focus efforts on the issue of stray animals
in the Abaco Islands. In partnership with the Humane Society International, the
Spay-Neuter Incentive Program (SNIP) and Abaco Animals Require Friends (the local animal
organization), Pegasus developed an aggressive strategic plan for 2000 to make a dramatic
impact on the stray dog problem on Great Abaco Island. The plan includes participation
from the local community as well as support from part-time residents, and it takes a
proactive and concentrated approach by holding spay/neuter clinics every two to three
months throughout the year. Developed by a part-time Abaco resident, SNIP encourages wider
participation in some of the more challenging local communities by offering a financial
incentive for bringing in stray animals to the clinics. First offered this past year, the
SNIP pilot clinic met with great success and could prove to be a useful model in other
island nations.
Companion Animals - French Polynesia
After a tourist witnessed animal abuse and neglect while vacationing in French
Polynesia, the Pegasus Foundation contacted the World Society for the Protection for
Animals (WSPA) to investigate the situation. Working with local animal welfare
organizations, WSPA conducted a study of stray animal problems and related cultural and
economic issues. Efforts will continue in 2000 to address some of the concerns raised by
the WSPA study.
Equine Rescue - New England
The Pegasus Foundation participated in several horse rescues in 1999. Neglected
horses and ponies at a riding stable on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, were moved to an equine
rescue organization, where they are receiving appropriate care. Pegasus also joined a
coalition of animal welfare organizations in Vermont to fight to override provisions of a
man's will that called for his healthy animals to be destroyed upon his death. When courts
determined that the deceased owner's intent was that the horses and mule never be
neglected, the foundation was able to successfully place the animals in new homes.
Land Conservation and Preservation
Land Trust Development - Florida
Pegasus spearheaded the second annual Florida Land Trust Conference held in Tampa
last May. Tripling the numbers from last year's conference with 165 participants, the
event included prominent speakers such as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Administrator Carol Browner and was attended by a broad spectrum of participants ranging
from land trust members and landowners to natural resource professionals and community
planners. The conference resulted in the development of the Florida Land Trust Network, a
forum through which locally-based land trusts can exchange ideas and information.
Recognizing the need for increased funding and service support for Florida's land trusts, the Pegasus Foundation joined with representatives from other southeastern states to secure and distribute $100,000 in EPA funds awarded to the Land Trust Alliance for southeastern land trusts. The funding was designated for statewide trainings, capacity building and innovative project grants for individual land trusts. Of the $37,500 dedicated to individual land trust grants, Florida land trusts received $9,700.
The Martin County Regional Land Trust (MCRLT), initiated by
Pegasus in 1997, expanded its board and hired its first executive director. MCRLT has
taken a lead role in acquiring conservation, recreation, and scenic easements on privately
owned land that is considered instrumental to the $25 million Florida National Scenic
Trail plan. Through lectures, radio shows and publications, MCRLT has been actively
educating the public and state and county officials about land preservation, tax
incentives, and land trusts. As a result, the land trust has been invited to take a
leadership role and serve as a technical advisor for a variety of community and state
initiatives. In addition to Pegasus support, MCRLT was awarded funds from other
grantmakers in 1999.
Centennial Valley - Montana
The foundation provided funding to the National Audubon Society's Wildlife Refuge
Campaign to expand protected lands for wildlife in the Centennial Valley of southeastern
Montana. This 40-mile-long valley is a vast wetlands area that is home to a multitude of
bird species. A portion of the valley is already part of the Red Rock Lakes Wildlife
Refuge, but much of the remaining land is privately owned. Pegasus funds were primarily
used to hire an organizer who worked with landowners in obtaining conservation easements
on 18,000 acres. Pegasus support also helped the Audubon Society obtain a $1 million
congressional appropriation to purchase the Centennial Valley conservation easements from
landowners.
Cape Cod - Massachusetts
The Pegasus Foundation provided support to a variety of Cape Cod-based land
preservation organizations, including the Orleans Conservation Trust and the Association
for the Preservation of Cape Cod, Inc. The foundation also was involved in developing a
community forum held in June to discuss strategies to further support the land acquisition
and preservation provided under the 1999 Cape Cod Land Bank law. Pegasus plans to continue
its efforts to preserve undeveloped land in this area well known both as a vacation
destination and for its role in European-American history.
1999
Complete List of Grantees
Memberships
Plans for 2000 Contact Information Peter A. Bender, Executive Director 1000 Main Street Cynthia Frisch, Florida Representative Anne Ostberg, Communications Director March 8, 2000
The Pegasus Foundation
27 Merrimack Street
Concord, New Hampshire 03301
Phone: 603-225-3918
Fax: 603-225-4624
pbender@pegasusfoundation.org
P.O. Box 79
West Barnstable, MA 02668
Phone: 508-375-6355
Fax: 603-297-4830
The Pegasus Foundation
167 Third Avenue North
Naples, Florida 34102
Phone: 941-403-7979
Fax: 941-436-1023
cfrisch@pegasusfoundation.org
The Pegasus Foundation
27 Merrimack Street
Concord, NH 03301
Phone: 603-225-3918
Fax: 603-297-5095
aostberg@pegasusfoundation.org
The Pegasus Foundation
c/o Peabody & Arnold
Counselors at Law
50 Rowes Wharf
Boston, Massachusetts 02110
www.pegasusfoundation.org