Whitley Fund For Nature
Global South — 84 countries · 51.51°N · 0.13°W
Backing grassroots conservation leaders across the global south with funding, profile and a lifelong support network.
About Whitley Fund For Nature
Whitley Fund for Nature is a UK charity that finds, funds and champions outstanding grassroots conservation leaders working across the Global South.
Biodiversity is being lost at a pace the planet cannot absorb, and many of the people best placed to turn that around are local conservationists who lack the funding and recognition to scale their work. Whitley Fund for Nature exists to back exactly those individuals, putting resources directly into the hands of leaders rooted in the places they are trying to protect.
Founded in 1993, the charity deliberately keeps its model lean. It does not deploy its own field teams. Instead, through the annual Whitley Awards, it identifies proven conservationists and gives them grant funding, training, profile and a network of fellow winners to draw on. Continuation funding helps the most effective projects grow over time, so good ideas are not left to stall for want of support.
The results are tangible. Whitley reports having channelled around 26 million pounds to over 230 conservation leaders in 84 countries, supporting science-led work that benefits both nature and people. Its winners protect species from lions to amphibians and guitarfish, and the charity counts Sir David Attenborough among its long-standing trustees.
Giving to Whitley means investing in local expertise where it counts most. It helps committed conservationists secure long-term funding, raise their profile and expand evidence-based solutions that safeguard wildlife and the communities living alongside it.
Whitley Awards
Flagship prizes that recognise and fund proven local conservationists working at the frontline in their own countries.
Continuation Funding
Follow-on grants that let past winners scale projects that are already delivering results on the ground.
Winners Hub
A lasting network connecting alumni so they can share expertise, collaborate and learn from one another.
Profile and amplification
Raising the visibility of winners through media and events to draw further support to their work.



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