The Climate Initiative
"The level of service has been superb…"
The Climate Initiative is a grassroots climate movement built on the premises of hands-on education and action. Working against the ticking clock of climate change from its base on the rockbound coast of Maine in Kennebunkport, the organization gives youth the keys to become leaders in climate action by focusing on how global warming affects species, oceans, weather, and equity, and how humans can harness energy and reduce their footprint to help the Earth. The Initiative fosters learning labs in schools, community mapping workshops, town halls with politicians, field study classes in the Gulf of Maine, and high school, college and adult ambassadorships. The goal is to educate, empower and activate 10 million youth by 2025 to become agents of nonpartisan climate solutions and slow the rise of global temperatures.
“As a new nonprofit, we were trying to figure out the best practices for fiscal controls and financial policies and procedures,” recalls Executive Director Jono Anzalone. Because the organization was so small, hiring a part-time or full-time in-house staff person was prohibitively expensive and still would have necessitated finding a CPA to handle the 990s and year-end audits. After looking at several turnkey solutions – which either didn’t specialize in nonprofit finances or were small boutique firms which didn’t offer the breadth and depth of Your Part-Time Controller – the organization chose YPTC.
“We like having a dedicated account manager, Lisa DiBella, who has access to her expert peers who work with other nonprofits across the country. Having something like 200 associates to call on is a great resource. We’ve never asked a question in which we didn’t get an immediate answer or Lisa saying she’d ask a colleague and get right back to us,” he says. “We are HUGE Lisa and YPTC fans!”
Anzalone adds, “It’s been fun, whether it’s something as basic as touching base every week or that she drove up to participate in our COVID-safe in-person retreat. Putting a face with a name has built a relationship.
“The level of service has been superb. We’re really encouraged that it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. YPTC really understands where we are as a startup nonprofit and recognizes that we’ll grow and that they’ll be there for us through the different phases of our organizational history.”
