The Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) offers the Whitley Awards to outstanding biodiversity conservation leaders in developing countries around the world. The program is open to applicants from grassroots conservation NGOs incorporated in developing countries that are rich in biodiversity. The Whitley Fund invites applications for projects that conserve wetlands and freshwater; coastal and marine ecosystems; and terrestrial biodiversity.
Eligibility:
- The strategic focus of the Whitley Awards is national conservation leadership in countries that are not defined as a High Income Economy by the World Bank. Whitley Awards focus on individuals working in locations where international funds are hardest to raise, most needed, and will make the largest conservation impact. Exceptions to this criterion include Equatorial Guinea and certain island nations in the Caribbean. If you have any questions about eligible countries.
- Nationals with local support: Whitley Awards winners are nationals of the countries where their conservation activities are focused (ie they were born there or have lived there a long time and have achieved national status) or are local to the region in which they work. This is because they have found these people often have the understanding necessary to bring about long-term change and build capacity locally. Recent expatriates from developed, high-income economy countries are not eligible for Whitley Awards.
- Grassroots conservationists: Whitley Awards seek applicants from grassroots conservationists working for NGOs incorporated in developing countries, rather than in-country staff from NGOs headquartered in developed countries who have access to a greater variety of funds
- Good communicators: All applicants must be able to communicate in English, and be capable of compiling a written report to describe and quantify the success of their work with appropriate academic references.
The Whitley Award is given to an individual. Joint applications and nominations for someone else are not eligible. Government employees are not eligible. However, they are aware that gray areas exist where conservationists will often be affiliated with government institutions in order to operate.
Grant size: £40,000 GBP
Deadline: October 31st, 2022