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Environment Programme

Safeguarding our future by restoring our connection to nature

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Tenure, transparency, and tech: protecting small-scale fisheries worldwide

    When coastal communities are given space to manage their waters, fish stocks recover, habitats regenerate, and local food supplies become more secure. From protecting nearshore zones to pushing back against destructive practices like bottom trawling, 

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Bridging the gaps: The network connecting local conservation efforts across Africa 

    Alinea supports local conservation organisations across Southern Africa by connecting them to funding opportunities and a network of peers. 

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Working with communities and the land in Zimbabwe

    Oak grantees in Southern Africa are using regenerative agriculture for the benefit of both people and wildlife. 

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Training the next generation of conservation leaders

    The Effective Conservation Cooperative aims to increase the number of team leaders working in conservation who have the skills to manage the social, political and historical complexities associated with contemporary conservation practices. 

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Gorongosa: a beacon of hope in one of Africa’s last wild places

    The Gorongosa Restoration Project has revitalised Mozambique’s national park, creating a thriving landscape where both communities and wildlife flourish. 

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    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Celebrating 21 years of leadership in ocean conservation

    This summer, we said goodbye to Andrew Sharpless, who retired from Oceana after a long career. Oak has supported Oceana since 2001 

Overview

Our strategy places people at the heart of our grant-making to safeguard our future and restore our connection to nature. The Environment Programme has three sub-programmes: Marine food systems and livelihoods, Nature and people, and Regenerative landscapes. We take a systems change approach by aiming to address the sources of the challenges we face as a society to improve the health and strength of communities and our natural environment. This approach allows us to see inter-connections and envision solutions across sectors to achieve multiple social and biodiversity benefits. 

For more information, read the document about our people-centred approach.


What we fund

Creating a thriving and sustainable future for our oceans and the communities that depend on them

We support efforts that protect the food security of coastal and Indigenous communities while ensuring the health of marine ecosystems. This includes enhancing the governance of small-scale fisheries, building resilience to climate change, empowering communities, conserving fish stocks and habitats, and increasing transparency and labour rights in fisheries. We support efforts in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, especially if there is a regional or global impact.

Promoting the coexistence and wellbeing of people and the rich biodiversity where they live

We support efforts that promote a “living landscapes” approach that safeguards biodiversity while considering the livelihoods and wellbeing of people and communities. We also support efforts that protect wildlife from illegal trade and ensure its safe and sustainable future. We support initiatives in Southern Africa, Southeast Asia, and Europe.

Envisioning a world in which degraded landscapes and ecosystems are restored for the benefit of both people and wildlife

We support efforts that focus on: regenerative agriculture (i.e., promoting a farming system that’s good for people and good for nature); and rewilding (i.e., restoring land and biodiverse spaces that have been modified by human activities). We focus on buffer zones outside protected land and areas that include communal lands in Southern Africa.


Read our grantee stories

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Tenure, transparency, and tech: protecting small-scale fisheries worldwide

    When coastal communities are given space to manage their waters, fish stocks recover, habitats regenerate, and local food supplies become more secure. From protecting nearshore zones to pushing back a…

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Bridging the gaps: The network connecting local conservation efforts across Africa 

    Alinea supports local conservation organisations across Southern Africa by connecting them to funding opportunities and a network of peers….

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Working with communities and the land in Zimbabwe

    Oak grantees in Southern Africa are using regenerative agriculture for the benefit of both people and wildlife….

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Training the next generation of conservation leaders

    The Effective Conservation Cooperative aims to increase the number of team leaders working in conservation who have the skills to manage the social, political and historical complexities associated wi…

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Gorongosa: a beacon of hope in one of Africa’s last wild places

    The Gorongosa Restoration Project has revitalised Mozambique’s national park, creating a thriving landscape where both communities and wildlife flourish….

  •  
     
    Environment Programme / Partner story

    Celebrating 21 years of leadership in ocean conservation

    This summer, we said goodbye to Andrew Sharpless, who retired from Oceana after a long career. Oak has supported Oceana since 2001…

Would you like to read more stories like this? Please visit our “Stories” page.


World Resource Institute is working to understand the reasons for crop losses in the two Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, such as tomato, onion, and soybean. The organisation turns this research into concrete solutions across the food supply chain to help reduce food waste. This work ensures higher income, improves local food security, and helps lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Novice and veteran conservationists – working for African Parks, Australian Wildlife Conservancy, Frankfurt Zoological Society, and Rewilding Argentina – gathered from around the world to take part in a training initiative facilitated by Nuestros Espacios Protegidos (NEP), a Spain-based campaign to spread awareness about the importance of protected areas, and the Frankfurt Zoological Society. This ten-day course covered nuanced and practical principles of managing effective biodiversity conservation projects.

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