Rare is a global nonprofit environmental organization whose mission is to inspire change so people and nature thrive. Headquartered in the United States, Rare has programs and staff in over 10 countries (including in Asia Pacific, Africa, the Pacific Islands, Latin America & the Caribbean, and Germany) working to safeguard biodiversity, ensure livelihoods, gender equity, and food security, and make their communities and countries more climate resilient. Rare has empowered over 10 million individuals, through more than 450 behavior change campaigns, to shift their behaviors and practices to protect the shared planet.[1]
Rare receives 4 out of 4 stars from Charity Navigator.[2]
History
Rare was founded in 1973 by David Hill.[3] Since its founding, Rare has worked with over 1,500 communities in 60+ countries to address urgent natural resource threats such as overfishing, climate change, deforestation, water pollution, and regenerative agriculture.
Rare's history started when Paul Butler arrived on the island nation of St. Lucia and learned the Lucia parrot was in critical danger. Fewer than 100 remained. Working with the Forestry Department, Paul led a social marketing campaign to inspire pride in the bird. He visited schools and churches, recorded radio spots, produced bumper stickers and billboards, and created a parrot mascot named Jacquot. The community embraced the parrot as a national treasure, and its population surged.[4]
The Center for Behavior & the Environment
The Center for Behavior & the Environment (BE.Center) at Rare is the world’s first center dedicated exclusively to behavioral science and design for the environment. It was launched in 2017 to increase the effective use of behavior-centered design principles among environmental practitioners.[5] With a team of behavioral and social scientists, designers, and trainers, the BE.Center connects research and insights from behavioral and social sciences and design thinking[6] to practitioners on the frontlines of our most urgent environmental challenges.
Board and Leadership
Rare CEO: Brett Jenks[7]
Rare President: Caleb McClennen[8]
Rare Board of Trustees Chair: Dorothy Batten, President of the DN Batten Foundation[9]
