Thanks to all of you who responded to our request for information about your group. Thought you might be interested in the results of the survey.

As of July 1, 1999, after nine grant rounds, NEGEF had awarded 215 grants to 174 different groups in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. NEGEF's Advisory Committee wanted to get a better picture of these groups, how they started, how they have evolved, and what NEGEF can do to assist them. To answer these questions we decided to ask our grantees directly. Our summer intern, Ruth O'Meara Costello, mailed a two-page "NEGEF Grantee Profile" survey to the contacts for each of the 174 groups. After her follow-up phone calls, we received 93 responses (53%) which represent 122 of the 215 grants (57%). Of the remaining 81 groups who did not respond, only 13 groups (7% of the total) have "dropped out of sight", i.e., have not sent a final grant report, attended one of our Retreats, or communicated with us in some way since they received their grant.

The profile of our grantee groups is as follows:

• The large majority of the groups are still active (90/93), and have experienced success around their initial reasons for forming. A common thread in the ways that they have changed since their beginnings tended to be a movement from a single local issue to a broader focus on the overall environmental health of the community.
• Our grantee groups range in age from less than one year to over 30 years. The largest number of them (almost 50%) formed around a specific local or regional issue, with the rest of the groups forming around a more general concern (nuclear energy, population growth, etc.), as a town commission or community organization working on various town issues, or groups arising as a project of a larger organization.
• The groups who responded had a variety of explanations for their effectiveness, citing vision, fundraising successes, dedication and diversity of its members, effective leadership, help from other environmental organizations, and vital importance of their issue. Conversely, their effectiveness was often hindered by the lack of the previous factors, including the lack of funds, time, volunteers, cooperative local and state officials, positive media coverage, effective leadership, and clear organizational structure. Many also cited the need for at least a part-time staff person who could keep things going when the volunteers were overwhelmed with other work and family commitments.
• More of our grantees are incorporated than ad hoc, with 50 having their 501(c)(3) status and 33 still ad hoc. The remaining 10 were either governmental (conservation commissions, etc.) or had incorporated but had not bothered to apply for the 501(c)(3) status. The ad hoc groups had chosen to remain loosely organized because of lack of time to tackle the paper work, satisfaction with their relationship with their fiscal sponsor, or desire to stay somewhat "informal" for the time being.
• 60% of NEGEF grantees are all-volunteer organizations. An additional 38% have some paid staff, but less than one full time person.
• The large majority of respondents reported success with their group's mission. Many of them have widened their focus beyond their initial project which they have continued to monitor.
• Most of our grantees felt that they had "grown" since their inception, becoming more knowledgeable about environmental issues and learning how to get their message out to the community more effectively, often resulting in improved relations with town or state officials and boards. A number of them had broadened their areas of concern and taken on new projects in the community. Some reported that as their groups had grown and become more involved with other issues, their organizational development had evolved and board members had learned more about how to work together.

Overall, the responses to the Survey were very positive. Everyone we talked to on the phone was very appreciative of the help that NEGEF had given them, both financially and psychologically. They were glad to be able to connect with other groups who were "fighting the same battles" or struggling with the same issues in another part of the state or somewhere else in New England.