Giving a voice to the people on the front line of conservation

Conservation of the natural world has long been practised by those who live closest to it. Local communities and organisations hold indispensable knowledge of the landscapes, species and unique characteristics of their environment, making conservation initiatives near impossible without their input. Fauna & Flora International (FFI) has worked in partnership with local conservation organisations worldwide for over a century. In the last year alone, we contributed to the conservation of almost 49 million hectares of land, 282 protected habitat sites in 45 countries and the establishment of 25 environment and conservation laws – all achieved by working with and through local partners.

FFI’s Our One Home campaign calls on governments worldwide to commit $500 billion towards the protection and restoration of the natural world, with that amount increasing every year. It is vital that these funds are directed towards the local organisations who work closest to nature, who know best where and how to deploy resources, and who can implement real change.

Too often, local voices are ignored or marginalised in top-level decision making. Now, those voices are more important than ever. As part of the Our One Home campaign, our partners on the front line of conservation joined our call for the protection of nature to become a global priority.

FFI and the Centre Forestier de N’Zérékoré (CFZ) began conservation efforts in 2009 in the Ziama Massif, a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve. Ziama harbours the last remaining populations of forest elephants in Guinea, as well as other threatened species such as pygmy hippopotamus and western chimpanzee. We are focusing on conserving what remains of the Upper Guinean Forest and are working to provide a vital habitat corridor for wildlife to move between Guinea and neighbouring Liberia. Read more on the vital work happening in Guinea in our case study. 

Brazil’s Atlantic Forest supports incredibly rich and unique biodiversity – 450 different tree species have been recorded in a single hectare and the forest is home to many animals and plants found nowhere else on the planet. Through the Global Trees Campaign, our local partner Sociedade Chauá is working to ensure that the most threatened species are planted back out into the forests. Hear more from Pablo in our case study.

FFI has been working with CoopeSoLiDar, a local NGO in Costa Rica, since 2013, to protect the marine environment and ensure local community involvement in the creation of new protected areas. Working with the local fishing community of Cabuya, a new Marine Protected Area was established in 2013, informed by the community’s traditional knowledge of the area’s local marine biodiversity and traditional, low impact fishing methods. Read more from Vivienne in our case study.

We have been championing wildlife conservation in Kenya since our foundation in 1903. Exactly a century later, we opened an office in Nairobi and established a formal country programme, and for a number of years we have been working with national and local partners to support communities on the Kenyan and Tanzanian coast to sustainably manage their marine and coastal resources. Learn more in our East Africa case study.

FFI and the Myanmar Biodiversity & Nature Conservation Association have worked to support local conservation in Myanmar since 2008. The Tanintharyi region in southern Myanmar is home to indigenous communities who have a deep, long-held relationship with their ancestral lands. A key part of our work in Tanintharyi involves the expansion of community forest management and building local capacity in monitoring wildlife and local threats to species. Read more about our work in Myanmar in our case study.