Do you have a clear plan for your biodiversity legacy?
64% of Americans say that having a will is important — but 68% don’t have a will in place.
October 21st - 27th is National Estate Planning Awareness Week, and this year, we’re reminding our
community that no matter your age or how wealthy you are, you should have a plan in place. With our partner, FreeWill, you can create your plans for free in just 20 minutes online, and protect those you love.
Your iNaturalist account is its own digital legacy to secure. Each member of the iNaturalist community makes unique contributions to our global understanding of biodiversity by adding observations and/or identifications. This week is a great time to create a clear plan for your iNaturalist account and your other assets.
There are two key areas to consider:
1. Securing your iNaturalist account for maximum impact
Your iNaturalist account should be treated as a digital asset in your will and any other estate planning documents. You should describe your wishes for your iNaturalist account, and most importantly, who should be the person to fulfill them. Clarity is important so that your iNaturalist account is set up for maximum long-term impact and isn’t deleted by a well-intentioned person.
In FreeWill, in the section called “gifts” you enter your iNaturalist account as a “property” (the type is “digital”). We recommend you designate loved ones as the primary and contingent beneficiaries for your iNaturalist account. You can unambiguously describe it with these details:
Website: https://www.inaturalist.org
Username: [your username]
User id: [your numeric user id] - (you can find this in the URL of your profile)
Associated email address: [email address]
[Include any guidance, which may include changing some settings for maximum long-term impact]
Outside the United States, you’ll need to consult other resources to make sure that your wishes are legally binding.
2. Supporting loved ones and causes you care about
It’s essential to consider your loved ones in the process of estate planning, including your pets. Many people also take the opportunity to designate charitable gifts to causes that are important to them. We encourage you to consider how gifts from your estate can support biodiversity.
FreeWill makes it easy to designate iNaturalist or any other US nonprofit organization as a primary or contingent beneficiary of your estate. You can choose to either notify the organization about your gift intentions or not.
Nothing you create on FreeWill is binding until it’s signed, so you can take a look even if you’re just curious.
We hope that you will explore these free resources this week to ensure that your legacy for biodiversity is secured for the future.
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Please also recommend that people change licenses or clarify their licenses in their will planning. Some people may want a more open license after they are gone. They can also appoint an executor to do that work.
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