2018-08-15T12:21:58-07:00 2017-09-30 SCHALL & ASHENFARB CPAS 307 5th Ave 15th Floor NEW YORK NY 100166517 990 2016-10-01 432095418 World Science Foundation WORL 2123481400 475 Riverside Drive New York NY 10115 Tracy Day CEO/Secretary 2018-08-15 true Michael Schall P02024184 2122682800 2016 2022-09-23 18:48:47Z Tracy Day 475 Riverside Drive 950 New York NY 10115 5091848 false false X www.worldsciencefestival.com X 2006 DE To cultivate a general public informed by science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future. 6 3 204 220 0 12487235 4340339 545161 518789 886 1197 16091 11138 13049373 4871463 0 0 3153330 2774499 0 256091 2796238 2951117 5949568 5725616 7099805 -854153 10111018 9132455 335276 210866 9775742 8921589 To cultivate a general public informed by science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future.The World Science Festival brings together great minds in science and the arts to produce live and digital content that presents the wonders of science and the drama of scientific discovery to a broad general audience. The festivals flagship live event, launched in 2008, is an annual weeklong celebration and exploration of science. Through gripping debates, original theatrical works, interactive explorations, musical performances, intimate salons, and major outdoor experiences, the festival takes science out of the laboratory and into the streets, parks, and museums, libraries, and performing arts venues of New York City. World Science U is the Foundations online education arm where students and lifelong learners can dive more deeply through artfully produced digital education content presented by world-renowned scientists. false false 4892502 518789 The festival creates novel, creative, and artfully produced programs and interdisciplinary events. From compelling presentations of cutting-edge scientific research and captivating hands-on demonstrations for kids, to works in theatre, film and the arts inspired by science, the festival dramatically raises the profile of science. Festival programs are taped, edited and made available year-round on the Festival's website, together with complementary content, dramatically expanding the reach and impact of the festival and building a growing archive of educational science programming. World Science U provides a unique educational experience for students, with world-renowned professors leading the way, accompanied by state-of-the-art production. The diverse course offerings let students spend minutes, hours, days, or months on a subject. 4892502 true true false false false false false false false false true false false false false true true false false false true false false false true false false false false true false false false false false false false false true true true false false false false false false false false false false true 77 0 true 204 true false false false false false false true true false 0 false false false false false false false false false false X 6 3 true false false false false false false true false false false true true true true true true true true false NY X Jennifer Jackson 2123481400 475 Riverside Drive 950 New York NY 10015 Brian Greene Chairman 15.00 0.00 X X 0 0 0 Judith Cox President&Treas 40.00 0.00 X X 70105 0 21284 Tracy Day CEO/Secretary 40.00 0.00 X X 215000 0 0 Alan Alda Director 1.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Gillian Small Director 1.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Ann Ziff Director 1.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Debra Nir GM Live Events 40.00 0.00 X 115668 0 9470 Deborah Mayer Sr Mgr, Production 40.00 0.00 X 116080 0 8142 516853 38896 3 false true false Kent Gordis Productions Inc 164 20th Street Ste 3E Brooklyn NY 11232 Photography 196665 Eleventh Dimension Media 410 Riverside Drive Apt 142 New York NY 10025 Consulting Services 135000 ToDo Productions 1115 Broadway 10th FL New York NY 10010 Production Mgmt 292928 Bernhard Link Theatrical LLC 815 Fairview Avenue Unit 11 Fairview NJ 07022 Production Mgmt 244167 4 635888 19660 3684791 4340339 Program Income 900099 291900 291900 Ticket Sales 900099 226889 226889 518789 1197 1197 0 0 0 0 220385 635888 220385 0 0 0 Miscellaneous 900099 11138 11138 11138 4871463 518789 12335 X 0 0 0 0 321284 193014 42635 85635 0 2066269 1716364 276630 73275 3392 2725 448 219 184318 156650 20800 6868 199236 160050 26344 12842 0 33192 33192 26000 26000 0 0 0 1178202 1125977 46196 6029 244793 244793 48966 27295 13149 8522 45759 42537 2166 1056 0 171904 138093 22730 11081 129984 84173 45630 181 0 40096 40096 0 0 138572 111317 18323 8932 21028 16893 2780 1355 Program & Production Supplies 872621 872621 0 5725616 4892502 577023 256091 3272092 3692041 0 6076145 4571127 82837 202311 0 0 0 0 30170 7939 1276783 640840 626680 635943 0 0 0 0 23094 23094 10111018 9132455 335276 210866 335276 210866 X 3100730 3431689 6675012 5489900 9775742 8921589 10111018 9132455 -854153 X false true X false false X 5452238 5788820 5864449 12494161 4340339 33940007 0 0 5452238 5788820 5864449 12494161 4340339 33940007 26206656 7733351 7381 5705 4625 1957 1197 20865 0 14877 2527 91 18675 11138 47308 34008180 1137280 0.22740 0.21450 X Current Year Facts and Circumstances: The Foundation qualifies as a public charity under the "facts and circumstances test, based on the facts set forth below:The Foundation's public support is in excess of the required 10%. For the past five years of operation (on a rolling 5-year basis), the Foundation's public support was 23.1% (see schedule A, part II, c). The following factors also weigh in favor of public charity status under this analysis.Fundraising program has resulted in multiple public sources of support: The Foundation has maintained a continuous and bona fide fundraising program to attract funds from the public since its founding. In its first year of operations, the Foundation's founders and officers solicited funds from a few donors who were likely to provide seed funding for the Organization. However, since 2007, the Foundation has employed a full-time development staff, with an average of three employees per year dedicated to soliciting support from individuals, foundations, corporations and government grants. From time to time, the Foundation contracted with professional fundraisers to seek corporate sponsorships and hired independent grant-writers. The Foundation solicits in-kind product and service support from media companies, advertising services and marketing companies who can enhance promotion for the festival. Through all of these efforts, the Foundation has received financial, media and in-kind support from a diverse group of individuals, corporations, foundations and government entities. Since 2008, the Foundation has submitted multiple grant applications to 43 foundations and government sources, including the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the NYC Cultural Innovation Fund. While not all of these grant applications were accepted, the Foundation has received significant and regular support from foundations such as the Simons Foundation, the John Templeton Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Bill and Ann Ziff Foundation,the Kavli Foundation, the Bezos Family Foundation, as well as from the Norwegian Consulate and the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. The Foundation has also received State and City Funding from the New York City Cultural Development Fund, the New York State Department of Education and the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority. Since 2008, the Foundation has actively solicited corporate sponsors for its activities, reaching out to 425 corporations. As a result of this outreach, the Foundation has received financial support from corporations such as Credit Suisse, IBM, America's Navy, Con Edison, Knopf, Time Warner Cable, Google, Cognizant, IFF, and Northrop Grumman. Although not counted towards public support, the Foundation has consistently been able to reduce its advertising expenditures through contributions of in-kind media support (valued at $145,716 in 2017). From over 8 different news and media organizations and publications, including community-based news outlets WABC, WNYC as well as nationally distributed publications, such as Scientific American, and Popular Science.The Foundation also actively seeks individual donors by hosting cultivation events and by holding an annual GALA fundraiser. Since 2007, the Foundation has sent 4,800 invitations to 35 events that range in size from 20 to 200 guests. In addition, the Foundation has also hosted its annual gala benefit since 2009. Ticket prices to the gala include a portion allocable towards a charitable contribution. From 2009 through 2017, the Foundation sent 20,541 invitations and funding requests in connection with the annual gala. 4,433 people had attended the gala, and others contributed but did not attend. The aggregate value of individual contributions from the gala has continued to grow.The Foundation has also sought smaller donations from members of the general public who are interested in attending the World Science Festival and/or visit the website. From 2009 through 2014, the Foundation solicited donations on its website through Network for Good. Currently, the Foundation solicits website donations via Salesforce. From 2010-2017, the Foundation has attracted $47,609 in public support through these platforms.Beginning in 2012, the Foundation also provided an opportunity for ticket buyers to make a donation to the festival as part of their ticket purchase. This effort raised $61,877 through 2017 and will be continued in 2018.Composition of the Board: The Foundation's board of directors represents the worlds of education, the arts, media, non-profit management and philanthropy. Each director brings a range of expertise and varying perspectives to the organization. All directors have been exceedingly generous with their time and expertise, but the Foundation does not rely solely on its board for material financial support. Tracy Day, one of the co-founders, brings her experience as an executive producer in television journalism to all of the festival's programming. Brian Greene, also a co-founder, is a physicist, mathematician and professor at Columbia university. Because of the educational nature of the Foundation's mission and activities, the Foundation has recruited additional board members from a variety of institutions of higher learning. The presidents of Columbia University and New York University have served on the Foundation's board of directors from 2006-2012 and 2008-2009, respectively. Gillian Small, University Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs of Fairleigh Dickinson University and an accomplished scientist and educator, joined the board in January 2012. Alan Alda, an acclaimed actor, writer and director, brings a wealth of expertise and connections from the arts to the festival and has appeared at numerous festival events as a moderator and actor. He has been a member of the board of directors since 2007. Judith Cox has a background in non-profit management and international projects, and has been on the board since 2006. Ann Ziff, a member of the board since 2010, also has significant expertise in non-profit management and fundraising from her service on several non-profit boards; while Ms. Ziff and her family provide significant financial support to the Foundation, they are not the Foundation's largest donors. Broad Public Participation in Programs: The Foundation's educational programming targets a worldwide audience of adults and children. Most programming is designed for non-scientists. Attendance at the World Science Festival in New York City (the Foundation's annual live event spanning five days) has grown from 120,000 in 2008 to over 320,000 in 2016 to an audience of 628,000 in 2017 due to a large public event in Times Square. In an effort to reach a broader public, the Foundation has been streaming some of its festival programs via the internet since 2011. During the 2012 festival, the Foundation streamed nine live programs to 42,500 viewers. During the 2013 festival, eleven live programs were streamed to over 76,000 viewers; in 2014, twelve live programs were streamed to over 64,000 viewers; and in 2015, ten live programs were streamed to over 107,000 viewers. In 2016, twelve programs were streamed live to 77,000 viewers in over 4,000 cities from 167 countries across six continents. In 2017, 13 programs were streamed to 110,000 viewers in over 8,000 cities from 192 countries.Over time, the Foundation has dedicated increased resources to presenting video content from the festival, as well as original educational material, on its website, www.worldsciencefestival.com, and has created newsletters that it sends to its community of followers to keep them informed of World Science Foundations programmingIn FY 2016, the festivals website was visited by more than 520,000 users, generating 1.3 million-page views. Our YouTube channel generated 10 million views, and the watch time exceeded 139 million minutes. More than 65,000 people opted in to join the Foundations digital mailing list and received newsletters, festival programming alerts and early ticket purchasing opportunities. In FY 2017, the website was visited by over 330,000 users, generating over 900,000-page views. The festivals YouTube views grew to 10.5 million, generating 163 million minutes of watch time. Our subscriber list grew to 67,000. Broadcast, online and print impressions from major news outlets reached 3.6 billion. Through a vigorous program of social media outreach and regular communications to our followers, the festival has established over 343K fans on Facebook (a 12.6% increase from previous year), and built a strong presence on Instagram and other social media outlets.The Foundation also relies on large numbers of volunteers during the festival. For the 2017 festival, over 220 volunteers donated their time to ensure a successful event. Prior Year Facts and Circumstances: The Foundation qualifies as a public charity under the "facts and circumstances test, based on the fa RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 536911 182049 354862 300500 185425 115075 439372 273366 166006 635943 X 5282392 410929 410929 4871463 4871463 6136545 410929 410929 5725616 5725616 Part X : FIN48 Footnote The Foundation does not believe its financial statements include any material, uncertain tax positions. Tax filings for periods ending September 30, 2014 and later are subject to examination by applicable taxing authorities. East Asia and the Pacific 0 0 Collaboration Agreement Educational Programming 0 false false false false false false false Gala 856273 635888 220385 86411 101855 16828 15291 856273 635888 220385 86411 101855 16828 15291 220385 X X X false false false false false false false false false false Tracy Day CEO/Secretary 215000 215000 Brian Greene Chairman 90000 Consulting false Schedule L, Part V Supplemental Information In September 2016, the Foundation entered into an agreement with an entity (the "Company") that is owned by the Foundation's co-founders, who currently serve as the Foundation's CEO, Tracy Day, and Board Chair, Brian Greene. The agreement provides for compensation to the Company for the Board Chair's ongoing and substantial consulting, advisory and creative services to the Foundation. These services are outside the scope of his duties as Board Chair. The term of the agreement commenced as of the effective date of January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2019. Form 990, Part VI, Line 2: Description of Business or Family Relationship of Officers, Directors, Et Tracy Day (CEO) and Brian Greene (Chairman) are married. Form 990, Part VI, Line 11b: Form 990 Review Process Management reviewed a draft of the form 990 and provided edits to the tax preparer. After this process was performed, the form 990 was sent to the full board of directors prior to being filed with the IRS. Form 990, Part VI, Line 12c: Explanation of Monitoring and Enforcement of Conflicts The Foundation's Outside General Counsel distributes the conflict of interest policy and conflict of interest Questionnaire to each officer, director and key employee on an annual basis, and follows up with each individual to ensure that the questionnaire has been completed. Each officer, director and key employee is asked to certify annually that he/she has reviewed the Foundation's conflict of interest policy and has disclosed any potential or actual conflicts on the questionnaire. The Outside General Counsel reviews the responses to the questionnaire to determine if there is anything disclosed that should be brought to the attention of the Board. The questionnaires are maintained with the books and records of the Foundation. In addition to filling out the questionnaire, pursuant to the Foundation's policy, each officer, director and key employee is required to alert the other members of the Board if a transaction or fact arises that could be covered by the Foundation's policy after the individual has completed his or hear annual questionnaire. If the Outside General Counsel identifies any transaction that might present a conflict of interest, actual or perceived, she would confer with the President and Chair to discuss how it should be disclosed to the rest of the Board. Form 990, Part VI, Line 15a: Compensation Review & Approval Process - CEO, Top Management A compensation review is done at the time an increase or new hire compensation package is proposed for the CEO or top management. A review of comparable salaries based on a recognized study, information from 990s of other organizations and a review of the performance of the CEO or top management is performed to determine if the proposed salary falls within comparable salary ranges. After a deliberation of this matter, a new proposed salary and benefit package is voted on. The minutes of the board of directors reflect the nature of this process. Form 990, Part VI, Line 15b: Compensation Review and Approval Process for Officers and Key Employees A compensation review is done at the time an increase or new hire compensation package is proposed for officers or key employees. A review of comparable salaries based on a recognized study, information from 990s of other organizations and a review of the performance of the officer or key employee is performed to determine if the proposed salary falls within comparable salary ranges. After a deliberation of this matter, a new proposed salary and benefit package is voted on. The minutes of the board of directors reflect the nature of this process. Form 990, Part VI, Line 19: Other Organization Documents Publicly Available Documents are available upon request.