Environmental Conservation

Strategies for Impact

Nonprofits are engaged in a range of efforts for environmental conservation. All of this work is important and could benefit from greater donor support. While many conservation donors enthusiastically support the “big greens” such as Nature Conservancy, Ocean Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Society and World Wildlife Fund, we discuss several areas where donors might focus their funding and spotlight several organizations within each that represent other kinds of nonprofits that donors might consider supporting.   

• Fund advocacy. Advocacy to change the conditions that threaten wildlife and ecosystems is an area that could use more philanthropic support. Research, education, policy advocacy, and grassroots movement-building all help to facilitate systems-level change. Nonprofits engaging in advocacy related to conservation include the Environmental Defense Fund, which takes a markets and incentives approach, including “cap and trade” policies; the Rainforest Action Network, which conducts research and organizes campaigns to stop deforestation; the nonprofit conservation news outlet Mongabay.org; and NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led organization working to advance Indigenous solutions to sustainability.  
• Back front-line groups. Grassroots groups are often on the front lines of environmental destruction, with a first-hand view of the problem and the community knowledge and relationships to implement real solutions. Donors can make a difference here by proactively backing front-line groups doing critical work in communities directly impacted by land or habitat destruction. Intermediaries such as Global Greengrants and the Windward Fund help donors give to such groups.  
• Move resources to Indigenous-led organizations. When it comes to conservation, there are numerous reasons to fund Indigenous-led organizations both in the United States and globally. Primary among them is the moral imperative to support Indigenous sovereignty over traditional lands. There is also the fact that Indigenous people are often the best stewards of their traditional lands. Yet these communities receive a sliver of all philanthropic giving within the environmental and conservation field. Intermediaries can help move donations to Indigenous-led organizations, such as the Nusantara Fund, which backs Indigenous groups protecting forests in Indonesia, and the Community Land Rights and Conservation Finance Initiative, an international funding mechanism. Funders who own land might consider participating in landback efforts, returning lands to Indigenous people.
• Support regenerative agriculture. Around the globe, agricultural practices have decimated natural habitats and spread pollution throughout ecosystems beyond. There has been a recent surge in funder interest in regenerative and sustainable agriculture, even as it remains a relatively small area of funding. The rapid growth of the recently launched support group Funders for Regenerative Agriculture is one indicator of its potential. 

Insights and Advice 

In considering which impact strategies to support, donors should take into account their personal interests and outlook to find the best fit. Keep an eye out for emerging opportunities to give with maximum impact. Here, we offer a few insights and suggestions:

• Don’t go it alone. Funder affinity groups and intermediaries can do a huge amount of the leg work of identifying opportunities in the field, and getting involved with one of these groups is a great way for donors to save time and give more effectively. Organizations to know about include the funder affinity groups Environmental Grantmakers Association and Biodiversity Funders Group, and the intermediaries ClimateWorks Foundation, the Resources Legacy Fund, and the Windward Fund. 
• Look beyond the usual suspects. The majority of philanthropic funding for conservation goes to a few “Big Green” organizations that are well-known to donors and invest heavily in marketing. While these groups are effective and worth supporting, keep in mind that they already have large annual budgets and that you may have a greater impact by investing in under-resourced approaches and organizations.  
• Align your investments with your philanthropic values. In addition to your giving, there are opportunities to engage in impact investing for conservation. For instance, the Nature Conservancy is bringing together philanthropists to invest in “Blue Bonds” to support ocean conservation. You might also look at the Global Fund for Coral Reefs or the World Wildlife Fund’s impact investing initiative.   

For Donors Getting Started

Donors who are new to this space should take the time to learn about the landscape.

A good place to start is by reading IP’s State of American Philanthropy brief on Conservation, Pollution Mitigation, and Agriculture as well as our briefs on Climate Change and Clean Energy and Animals and Wildlife. In addition, peruse recent articles that IP has published about what’s happening in this area of philanthropy. Some of the funding intermediaries mentioned above also offer reports and articles to help donors understand the giving landscape. Another helpful resource is the InDeep Initiative (Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity in Environmental Philanthropy). 

To find more local and national nonprofits working in this area that are well-respected, Charity Navigator is a reputable place to search for worthy organizations around the country.

But the best way to get started giving for conservation is to make some initial gifts, learn from the groups you’re supporting, and connect early with a funding intermediary that can help you learn more about this giving area and increase your giving in a thoughtful way.

Have suggestions for improving this brief? Please email us at editor@insidephilanthropy.com.