Lasting conservation is owned by the people who live closest to forests, wetlands and water. Here is how we think about protecting what is healthy and restoring what has been lost.
Ask who protects a forest and many people will say the government, or the rangers. Ask who notices first when a stream runs dry, a favourite tree is cut or a wetland begins to shrink, and the answer is always the same: the people who live beside it.
That simple fact is the foundation of how we work. Conservation that is imposed from outside tends to last only as long as the outsiders are watching. Conservation that is owned by a community can last for generations.
Protect what is still healthy
The cheapest and most effective form of conservation is keeping healthy ecosystems healthy. A natural forest that is protected costs far less than one that has to be replanted. A wetland left alone keeps filtering water without anyone paying for it. So our first priority is supporting communities to protect the forests, wetlands and indigenous plant species that are still intact.
Restore what has been damaged
Where damage has already happened, restoration works best when it uses native species suited to local soil and rainfall, and when the people who will live with the result have helped to plan it. Planting trees is the start, not the end. Seedlings have to be protected through their first dry seasons, and the reasons they were lost in the first place have to be addressed, or the same pressures will undo the work.
A tree planted is a promise. A tree protected is a result.
Count what you are protecting
We also believe in research and monitoring. Writing down which species are present, how a wetland is changing or how many seedlings survived gives communities evidence. That evidence shows whether restoration is working, helps to attract support, and gives local leaders something solid to take to decision-makers.
Make room for everyone
Young people, women and elders each hold different knowledge about the land and have different stakes in its future. Restoration that includes all of them is stronger, because it draws on more than one point of view and because more people feel it belongs to them.
Communities United for Environmental and Biodiversity Conservation exists to make that kind of locally led conservation possible. If your community is already doing this work, or wants to start, we would be glad to walk alongside you.