NRDC’s stated mission is “to safeguard the Earth” and “create a new way of life for humankind.” That approach might sound a little messianic but NRDC has the zeal to match, calling their work “the central ethical imperative of human society.” Even as their annual revenue now approaches $100 million, NRDC has consistently opposed free-market solutions to environmental stewardship, especially proven methods to sustain international fisheries. Perhaps inspired by their own financial success, NRDC recently unveiled a plan to “lift ourselves out of economic crisis” and “rebuild our economy” – through government regulation of all emissions.
NRDC is a tax-exempt activist group that frequently employs litigation and lobbying to achieve its anti-business political agenda. The NRDC is primarily funded by well-heeled foundations including the Pew Charitable Trusts, MacArthur, Packard and Energy Foundations, and the Marisla Foundation, which previously provided NRDC with a $600,000 grant for a "mercury initiative." The Council’s revenue in 2006 totaled $70,139,209. In 2006 the NRDC paid its founding president, John Adams, $757,464 in combined income.
