The Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) is a nature conservation charity offering funding, profile, and training to proven grassroots conservation leaders in the Global South. Whitley Awards - our flagship conservation prizes - are won competitively and are worth £40,000 in project funding over one year.
It ran from 12:00 PM, 1 December 2020 to 12:00 PM, 8 December 2020
Registered Charity in England and Wales (1081455)
£100,000
£105,561
Donations
112
Championed by Friends of the Reed Foundation
Multiple locations
"WFN is one of the most cost effective and direct impact charities working to protect the environment."
"The Whitley Fund for Nature is unique. It doesn’t put its own people on the ground but seeks out local leaders who are already succeeding. It puts its money where it really counts, where every penny counts."
This is what the Whitley Awards are all about – recognising effective grassroots leaders and helping them expand their work.
In recent years, our natural world has come under increasing pressure. The planet is facing unprecedented loss of species, accelerating threats from climate change, and large-scale habitat destruction. As these interconnected challenges grow, we face causing irreversible damage to the natural processes that support our existence. The impact of this is devastating, and yet, less than 3% of philanthropic funding goes towards environment-related issues. We believe that this can and must change.
We need to support local leaders who are running effective conservation projects in those countries experiencing the greatest biodiversity loss. In-country nationals have the local knowledge and skills to address key issues. The benefits extend not just to halting and reversing wildlife decline but, working with communities, their projects can also address a range of social issues, such as human poverty, using strategies that encourage economic growth, all while tackling environmental issues.