How We Work
Negotiating Space for Wildlife
In approaching landscape-level conservation, we identify targets ranging from the number of endangered species in a landscape to the presence of ecosystem services like clean water. How those targets are distributed guides how the landscape is divided into functional zones—with solutions shaped by communities and other stakeholders through collaborative planning.
We develop land-use models and apply geographic information systems (GIS) to help local people make sustainable decisions about how to use the land. This way, communities reap the rewards of nature without overexploiting it, and both people and wildlife have the space they need to thrive.
Restoring Ecosystems & Managing Landscapes
To stop and reverse habitat loss, we work with protected-area authorities to strengthen their management of protected areas by equipping them with advanced tools and practices. And we establish and support the management of community conservancies and community forests. Many of these community conservation areas protect wildlife corridors—natural areas that allow wildlife to travel from one habitat to another—which are crucial for seasonal wildlife movement or adapting to the effects of climate change. Creating these areas involves participatory, inclusive land-use planning towards robust governance, sustainable and prosperous community livelihoods, and intact ecosystems that are more resilient to climate change. These locally-led solutions are key to stabilizing and increasing wildlife populations in the long term.
Climate Change
Africa's vital strategies for confronting climate challenges lie in acknowledging biodiversity as an important part of the solution. By placing nature and conservation values at the core of economic transformation, we can lead the way to a more sustainable future through green economies that decouple economic growth and resource consumption. To get there, new and additional funding must reach local communities who are at the forefront of climate impact.
Failure to protect Africa’s biodiversity will have global consequences for climate, food, health, and freshwater security. AWF’s landscape work informs our engagements with leaders at the national, continental, and global levels, where we promote solutions to climate change and build networks that scale our climate message.
Conservation activities like agroforestry, reforestation, and sustainable land use provide ecosystem benefits that build community resilience to the effects of climate change—alongside other benefits like increased food security, soil health, and poverty alleviation.