CONSERVATIONS ORGANISATIONS

That are Making a Difference >

Conservation Groups

The conservation organisations below are a just handful of the many that are doing great work in Africa, but we believe these are some of the really important ones worth supporting.

AFRICAN PARKS

African Parks is a non-profit conservation organisation that takes on the complete responsibility for the rehabilitation and long-term management of national parks in partnership with governments and local communities. They currently manage 17 national parks and protected areas in eleven countries covering 13.3 million hectares: Angola, Benin, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The organisation was founded in 2000 in response to the dramatic decline of protected areas due to poor management and lack of funding. African Parks utilises a clear business approach to conserving Africa’s wildlife and remaining wild areas, securing vast landscapes and carrying out the necessary activities needed to protect the parks and their wildlife. African Parks maintains a strong focus on economic development and poverty alleviation of surrounding communities to ensure that each park is ecologically, socially, and financially sustainable in the long-term.

The geographic spread of protected areas and representation of different ecoregions, makes this the most ecologically diverse portfolio of parks under one management across Africa. Their goal is to manage 20 parks by 2020, protecting more than 10 million hectares. Read more on their website

PANTHERA

Panthera is the only organization in the world that is devoted exclusively to the conservation of the world’s 40 wild cat species and their ecosystems.

Utilizing the expertise of the world’s premier cat biologists, Panthera develops and implements global strategies for the most imperiled large cats: tigers, lions, jaguars, snow leopards, cheetahs, pumas, and leopards.

Representing the most comprehensive effort of its kind, Panthera partners with local and international NGOs, scientific institutions, local communities, governments around the globe, and citizens who want to help ensure a future for wild cats.

Panthera’s grants program, the Small Cat Action Fund (SCAF), additionally supports conservation and research initiatives on many of the smaller wild cat species around the globe. Read more on their website.

WILDERNESS SAFARIS

The Wilderness Wildlife Trust, an independent non-profit entity associated with the Wilderness Safaris Group, supports a wide variety of projects across Africa. The projects and researchers that it supports address the needs of existing wildlife populations, seek solutions to save endangered species and provide education and training for local people and their communities.

The Trust focuses its work in three key areas:

Research and Conservation – including species studies, monitoring of populations and understanding human-animal conflicts.
Community Empowerment and Education – such as community upliftment and the Children in the Wilderness programme.
Anti-poaching and Management – including aerial surveys, anti-poaching units and increasing capacity for researchers in general.

The goal of the Trust is to make a difference to Africa, her wildlife and her people. Read more on their website

BIG LIFE FOUNDATION

Protecting over 1.6 million acres of wilderness in the Amboseli-Tsavo-Kilimanjaro ecosystem of East Africa, Big Life partners with local communities to protect nature for the benefit of all.

Since its inception, Big Life has expanded to employ hundreds of local Maasai rangers—with more than 30 permanent outposts and tent-based field units, 13 Land Cruiser patrol vehicles, 3 tracker dogs, and 2 planes for aerial surveillance.

Co-founded in September 2010 by photographer Nick Brandt, conservationist Richard Bonham, and entrepreneur Tom Hill, Big Life was the first organization in East Africa to establish coordinated cross-border anti-poaching operations.