The foundation was formed to increase the activities of the St. Petersburg Society of Natural Scientists (SPSNS) in northwestern Russia and to aid joint projects in the Baltic Sea region between SPSNS and international organizations, such as the World Wildlife Fund. The foundation worked with staff from the Russian Academy of Science to devise a strategic plan for protecting wetlands in southern Karelia, and performed field studies of coastal species in the Gulf of Finland for the Russian Federation's State Committee on Ecology.