2024-05-14T12:47:12-05:00 2023-12-31 390859910 BAKER TILLY US LLP 225 S 6TH ST 2300 MINNEAPOLIS MN 55402 990 2023-01-01 660970417 REEFS UNKNOWN INC REEF 3407767235 8168 CROWN BAY MARINA 505-448 CHARLOTTE AMALIE VI 00802 VIKTOR BRANDTNERIS PRESIDENT AND TREASURER 3407767235 2024-05-13 1 VIKTOR BRANDTNERIS XXX-XX-XXXX 1 KAREN A GRIES P00078514 6128764500 2024-05-13 2 AAL1 IAL1 2023 2023-04-26 12:10:37Z VIKTOR BRANDTNERIS 8168 CROWN BAY MARINA 505-448 CHARLOTTE AMALIE VI 00802 498370 0 X WWW.REEFSUNKNOWN.ORG X 2021 VI TO PERFORM SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH ON THE MARINE ENVIRONMENTS OF SENSITIVE AND LESSER KNOWN DEEP CORAL REEFS, AND IMPLEMENT OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO INCREASE AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF THESE UNUSUAL MARINE ECOSYSTEMS. 5 5 0 5 0 0 515372 467906 0 0 4302 30464 0 0 519674 498370 1000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9243 21058 10243 21058 509431 477312 523931 1001243 0 0 523931 1001243 X TO PERFORM SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH ON THE MARINE ENVIRONMENTS OF SENSITIVE AND LESSER KNOWN DEEP CORAL REEFS, AND IMPLEMENT OUTREACH AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS TO INCREASE AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF THESE UNUSUAL MARINE ECOSYSTEMS. 0 0 3933 1. VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) EXPLORATION OF DEEP MESOPHOTIC CORAL REEFS.ALTHOUGH THE PUBLIC IS FAMILIAR WITH THE EXISTENCE OF THESE REEFS AS RICH FISHING GROUNDS, FEW HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THEY ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE. USING SCUBA EQUIPMENT AND A SPECIAL VIRTUAL REALITY CAMERA, REEFS UNKNOWN WILL CREATE VR VIDEOS FOR EDUCATIONAL USE TO SHOW THIS REMARKABLE AND UNFAMILIAR ECOSYSTEM TO STUDENTS OF VARIOUS AGES. THE DIVES WILL BE CONDUCTED PRIMARILY BY FOUNDERS VIKTOR BRANDTNERIS AND SARAH HEIDMANN. MR. BRANDTNERIS IS A TECHNICAL DIVE OFFICER IN THE RESEARCH DIVE PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS (UVI). MS. HEIDMANN IS A RESEARCH ANALYST AT UVI. THEY WILL LIKELY COLLABORATE WITH OTHER NON-PROFITS IN CREATING AND SHARING EDUCATIONAL CURRICULUM. THIS RESEARCH PROJECT WILL TOGETHER ACCOUNT FOR APPROXIMATELY 30% OF THE PRINCIPALS' TOTAL TIME AND THE ORGANIZATION WILL ALLOCATE APPROXIMATELY 25% OF ITS ASSETS FOR THIS PROJECT. REEFS UNKNOWN PLANS TO FUND THIS ACTIVITY BY PRIVATE DONATIONS. THE VR EXPLORATION WILL FURTHER THE EXEMPT PURPOSES BY DIRECTLY ADVANCING KNOWLEDGE OF LESS EXPLORED DEEP REEFS THAT ARE UNFAMILIAR TO MOST OF THE PUBLIC. REEFS UNKNOWN ANTICIPATES OBTAINING FUNDING FOR THE VR EXPLORATION PROJECT THROUGH PRIVATE DONATIONS. THE VR EXPLORATION DIRECTLY FURTHERS THE ORGANIZATION'S EXEMPT PURPOSE OF RESEARCHING DEEP CORAL REEFS AND EDUCATING THE PUBLIC REGARDING THESE LARGELY UNKNOWN SYSTEMS. 2. USVI DEEP LETTUCE CORAL REEF STUDYREEFS UNKNOWN ALSO WILL RESEARCH DEEP LETTUCE CORAL REEFS, WHICH ARE FOUND BY THE DROP OFFS IN THE VIRGIN ISLANDS AT DEPTHS BETWEEN 190 TO 240 FEET. THESE VERY DEEP REEFS ARE GREATLY THREATENED BY CLIMATE CHANGE AND HUMAN IMPACTS. THIS ACTIVITY WILL INVOLVE DIVING THESE REEFS TO GAIN A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE CORALS AND THEN USING THE EXPLORATIONAL DIVES TO PRODUCE MEDIA USED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES, THUS INCREASING AWARENESS OF THIS VULNERABLE ECOSYSTEM. THE DEEP LETTUCE CORAL REEF STUDY WILL UTILIZE APPROXIMATELY 25% OF THE ORGANIZATION'S RESOURCES, AND ABOUT 50% OF THE PRINCIPALS' TIME. MR. BRANDTNERIS AND MS. HEIDMANN WILL CONDUCT THE DIVES BUT WILL COLLABORATE WITH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND WITH MEDIA OUTLETS TO SHARE THEIR PRODUCTIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY AND BEYOND. THIS PROJECT WILL BE FINANCED BY PRIVATE DONATIONS. THE USVI DEEP LETTUCE CORAL REEF STUDY WILL ADVANCE SCHOLARSHIP AND EDUCATE THE COMMUNITY ABOUT A VARIETY OF CORAL REEFS THAT ARE HIGHLY THREATENED. 3. EASTERN PACIFIC REEF MONITORINGREEFS IN THE EASTERN PACIFIC ARE SHALLOWER THAN THE CARIBBEAN MESOPHOTIC REEFS, YET, DUE TO THE HIGH LEVELS OF ACIDITY AND LARGE TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS IN THESE WATERS, THEIR STUDY CAN YIELD IMPORTANT INSIGHT INTO THE FUTURE OF OTHER CORAL REEFS GIVEN THE GLOBAL WARMING AND INCREASED ACIDITY IN OUR OCEANS. MR. BRANDTNERIS HAS BEEN STUDYING THESE REEFS WITH COLLEAGUE DR. TYLER SMITH FOR TEN YEARS AND ANTICIPATES OBTAINING FUNDING FROM PRIVATE DONATIONS TO CARRY OUT TWO FIELD EXPEDITIONS, ONE TO THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS AND ONE TO PACIFIC PANAMA. THE COST OF THESE EXPEDITIONS WILL AMOUNT TO APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF OVERALL EXPENSES. THE EASTERN PACIFIC REEF MONITORING WILL LIKELY AMOUNT TO 40% PERCENT OF MR. BRANDTNERIS' TIME. THIS ACTIVITY DIRECTLY FURTHERS REEFS UNKNOWN'S EXEMPT PURPOSES BY INCREASING SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE OF ALL CORAL REEFS. 3933 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 X SARAH HEIDMANN 3407767235 8168 CROWN BAY MARINA 505-448 CHARLOTTE AMALIE VI 00802 X VIKTOR BRANDTNERIS PRESIDENT & TREASURER 8.00 X X 0 0 0 SARAH HEIDMANN VP & SECRETARY 8.00 X X 0 0 0 ANDREW HEMMERT DIRECTOR 0.10 X 0 0 0 KRISTIN RASMUSSEN DIRECTOR 0.10 X 0 0 0 SARA DENT DIRECTOR 0.10 X 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 467906 467906 30464 30464 498370 0 0 30464 7866 3933 3933 7594 7594 656 656 4942 4942 21058 3933 17125 0 518679 987030 16183 1970 5252 14213 523931 1001243 0 0 X 523931 1001243 523931 1001243 523931 1001243 477312 0 X 0 0 0 X 14500 515372 467906 997778 14500 515372 467906 997778 433396 564382 4302 30464 34766 1032544 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 16183 1970 14213 14213 FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 11B THE FORM 990 WAS PREPARED BY THE OUTSIDE ACCOUNTANTS. THE ORGANIZATION WILL PROVIDE A COPY OF THE FORM 990 TO ALL BOARD MEMBERS FOR APPROVAL, PRIOR TO FILING. FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 12C BOARD MEMBERS AND OFFICERS MUST REPORT ANY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ANNUALLY. ADDITIONALLY, THE CORPORATION HAS A CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY THAT REQUIRES THAT EACH DIRECTOR BE SENSITIVE TO ANY POSSIBLE CONFLICT OF INTEREST HE OR SHE MAY HAVE IN A DECISION TO BE MADE BY THE BOARD AND THAT EACH DIRECTOR RECOGNIZE SUCH INTEREST PRIOR TO THE DISCUSSION OR PRESENTATION OF SUCH MATTER BEFORE THE BOARD. WHEN A DIRECTOR HAS AN INTEREST IN A TRANSACTION BEING CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD, THE DIRECTOR SHOULD DISCLOSE THE CONFLICT BEFORE THE BOARD TAKES ACTION ON THE MATTER. UPON DISCLOSURE BY THE DIRECTOR, THE BOARD SHOULD PROVIDE A DISINTERESTED REVIEW OF THE MATTER. FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION C, LINE 19 THE ORGANIZATION MAKES ITS GOVERNING DOCUMENTS AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC UPON REQUEST.