The following outlines the six approaches used in the 2024-2025 grants programme. To view the up-to-date approaches for our current programme of work, please follow this link.
Conservation Action
Protecting and restoring species, ecosystems, habitats, landscapes or catchments, preventing further environmental degradation and reducing the impact of direct threats through on the ground actions are essential for making real improvements to the natural world.
This approach involves ‘on the ground’ practical conservation work targeting protection and/or restoration of biodiversity, ideally with the involvement of partnerships and collaborations with other organisations, stakeholders or communities.
Research & Monitoring
Research and monitoring are undoubtedly crucial for advancing nature protection, however, in a climate and biodiversity crisis it is necessary for this work to be directed towards applied research with near term observable outcomes.
This approach includes novel research or monitoring of a species, ecosystem, habitat, landscape, or catchment, for the direct purpose of informing species or nature recovery, where the outcomes of the research have practical, real-time measurable impact.
Policy & Advocacy
Influencing environmental policy and advocating for changes in regulation are essential for large scale change in UK nature protection.
This approach is directed at influencing policy decisions, advocacy for change in regulations around environmental issues and encouraging public support for positive and measurable change.
Community Engagement
Communities and people are at the core of nature protection and restoration – engaging and involving people and stakeholders with wildlife is an important and effective strategy to make projects sustainable and enduring.
This approach involves projects that engage local communities in their work, recognises the importance of social tipping points and works to build long lasting partnerships with community groups working with nature.
Training, Skills & Advice
From our discussions with environmental charities and groups, projects that provide training, skills and the provision of advice often have limited funding and resources.
This approach would provide capacity building to help improve the knowledge and execution capability of front-line conservationists and their organisations and stakeholders.
Nature Finance
Long-term sustainability of biodiversity, food systems and communities is only achievable alongside a greener economy. However, smaller projects often struggle to find large scale investment, because their initial funding is insufficient, runs out or is sub-scale.
This approach is aimed at projects that could be scaled and become partnered with larger private investors but require funding to become investable.