Give to the Max for the Boundary Waters

Your Wilderness. Your Voice.

In a chaotic world, we need the Boundary Waters, we need these quiet waters and pristine lakes more than ever. 

For almost 50 years, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness has been the leading voice in protecting Minnesota’s treasured wilderness. With thousands of supporters, we beat back foreign mining corporations that threatened to pollute some of the cleanest water on earth. But these multi-national corporations have not given up. 

Their lobbyists seek to roll back protections, their lawyers invent loopholes.

Your support is crucial to stopping them

We’ve beaten back these corrupt mining giants before, and we can do it again. This Give to the Max Day, each dollar will be doubled through our $175,000 matching gift. 

Take advantage of this huge opportunity. Speak up for the wilderness—your gift will be matched dollar for dollar. Double your impact! Your voice will be louder than ever when you give. 

Give now and protect the pristine waters and unspoiled wilderness you love.

The Threat

As you read this, Twin Metals, the Chilean-owned mining conglomerate we recently beat back through a series of historic victories, is looking to begin a new mining project at the edge of the Boundary Waters.

With plans to drill on the South Kawishiwi River, which flows directly into the Boundary Waters, they are seeking to open a toxic copper-sulfide mine that would pollute some of the cleanest water in the country, and ruin the Boundary Waters.

With the emerging threat, we need your help more than ever. 

We’ve proven that when people join together, we can beat back billion-dollar mining conglomerates.

Together, we stripped Twin Metals of its illegal mineral leases and successfully lobbied the Forest Service to implement a 20-year mining on federal land surrounding the Boundary Waters. 

But there is a saying in the conservation world: “Victories are temporary, defeats are permanent.”

The mining industry, with its vast resources and political connections has not given up.

Just last month, a subsidiary of the Chilean-owned mining company, Twin Metals, is preparing to begin exploratory mining at the edge of the Boundary Waters.

And two Swiss and Canadian corporations have formed a joint venture to create a Boundary-Water-Lake Superior mega-mine that would straddle two watersheds and, by dumping acid mine drainage into two iconic bodies of water, pollute more then 10% of the world’s freshwater.

We know that with your support, we can stop this.

To ensure lasting protection, we need your help to pass meaningful legislation, like the Prove It Frist Bill — a commonsense piece of legislation that says before a copper-sulfide mine can be permitted in Minnesota, there must be proof that at least one sulfide mine has operated for ten years and has been closed for ten years without causing pollution.

How your donation will help

Having fought to protect the Boundary Waters for almost fifty years, we know how crucial it is to get people involved.
Here’s how your support will protect our clean water for years to come:

• With your perseverance, we will build a grassroots and political coalition to pass the Prove It First bill.
• With your commitment, we will strengthen our legal team and resources to push back against attacks from multibillion dollar mining conglomerates intent on breaking down clean water protections.
• With your passion, we will continue to reach out to diverse groups — hunters and vegans, rural snowmobilers and urban professionals, and everyone else — to build a community invested in the long-term protection of the Boundary Waters.
• We’re in this for the long term. We have science on our side. We have the vast majority of Minnesotans on our side. We have clean water on our side.
• We have you on our side.

What is Give to the Max?

Give to the Max is Minnesota’s annual giving holiday that connects generous donors like you with nonprofits and schools working to make Minnesota a better place.

Their online GiveMN.org website helps charitable organizations like the Friends to raise money, and gives our donors useful tools where they can start their own fundraisers and track our progress on Give to the Max Day (GTMD).

Plus, we have a generous matching gift of $175,000 in place, so your gift will go even further!

How does Give to the Max work?

Starting with the Early Giving period on November 1, you can take part in Give to the Max by donating to Friends of the Boundary Waters.

Give to the Max also helps by boosting the generosity of randomly selected gifts made using GiveMN.org with $100,000+ in Golden Tickets and Power Hours throughout the event.

Make a greater impact – Start a Fundraiser!

Do you want to help make a greater impact for Friends of the Boundary Waters? Start a Fundraiser. The online fundraising tools on GiveMN.org can help you share your story and raise money for Friends of the Boundary Waters in just a few minutes time. Plus, it helps your friends and family learn more about our work!

What is our Give to the Max Goal?

This year, we have a goal of achieving $175,000 in donations, which will be doubled from generous matching gifts.

Having protected the Boundary Waters for almost 50 years, we know that our strength comes from people. The more people join this community of Boundary Waters explorers and supporters, the better chance we’ll have to defend these precious waters for future generations.

Start a fundraiser, tell a friend and help us grow a community of Boundary Waters champions!