In-person
Previous Event
Putting people at the centre of biodiversity conservation is crucial not only for effectiveness, but also for equity.
Conservation interventions can bring about socio-economic costs for local communities, so it is vital to develop strategies that help people to live alongside wildlife and improve their wellbeing, whilst also enabling their active involvement in conservation efforts and local stewardship.
The Rio Earth Summit in 1992 was a pivotal moment for putting people at the centre of biodiversity conservation. Since then, NGOs have aimed to deliver conservation projects with local benefits to nearby communities. Recognising the diversity among communities, there is no one-size-fits-all approach, which can lead to challenges with design and implementation. It is therefore important to share project successes and challenges so that others who are seeking to fund, or design and implement, inclusive and resilient conservation approaches can learn important lessons.
This event will highlight some key impacts from ZSL’s UK Aid Match Project in the face of adversity, overcoming challenges including COVID-19, rises to the cost of living, and climate change. It will discuss what has worked well and why, so that we can design more effective and efficient interventions. Other UK Aid Match grant holders who have implemented similar projects will also present successes and challenges and identify opportunities for future-proofing project implementation in the future. Join us to gain valuable insights into creating equitable conservation strategies that benefit both people and wildlife.
UK Aid Match projects are made possible through the generous donations of the UK public, where every £1 raised is matched by the UK government up to £2 million. Find out more about UK Aid Match.
ZSL’s UK Aid Match project
This 3-year project entitled Stewardship and Rural Development for poor and marginalised frontier communities living alongside protected areas and high conservation value species focussed on four communities in Kenya and Nepal, where local people face daily threats from human-wildlife conflict, including livestock predation, crop raiding, and human injury and death. The project sought to increase community members’ resilience to this conflict, by increasing their financial security and livelihood opportunities, as well as facilitating improved people-park relationships.
Speakers
- Nelly Musyoka, Community Liaison Officer, ZSL Kenya
- Mahesh Basnet, Senior Programme Officer, ZSL Nepal
- Dan Bucknell, Chief Operating Officer, Tusk Trust
- Richard Granville, Programme Funding Manager, Ripple Effect
- Mae Tortajada-Suils, Design and Impact Advisor, WWF-UK
- Lena Jeha, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist, ZSL
This event was chaired by Olivia Wilson-Holt, Human Wildlife Coexistence Projects Manager, ZSL.
Download the agenda and speaker biographies
The ZSL Library will be open later than usual to allow attendees of this event to visit before the event begins. Find more information on visiting the ZSL library.
Attending this event
- This Science and Conservation Event is free to attend but registration is required so we can monitor event numbers.
- The event will feature talks from the speakers, followed by a Q&A discussion panel. It will run from 6:00pm - 7:30pm, and doors will open at 5:30pm.
- Seats are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Venue: Huxley Lecture Theatre at the Meeting Rooms of the Zoological Society of London, Regents Park, NW1 4RY. See map (number 2 on the Key).
- Travel: Nearest underground: Camden Town Station; Nearest bus: no. 274.
- Recording disclaimer: The presentations and Q&A session will be filmed during this event, and the recording published on our Science and Conservation YouTube channel afterwards. Please be aware that by attending this event you consent to be filmed or your voice to be recorded during the Q&A session, which will be included in the published video.
Further Information
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