Whitley Fund for Nature

About our NGO partner

Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) is a fundraising and grant-giving nature conservation charity. Established in 1993, it has channeled more than £23 million to more than 220 conservation leaders in 80 countries across the Global South, benefitting wildlife, landscapes, and people.

We offer long term, laddered support to courageous changemakers leading local solutions to the global biodiversity and climate crises; they are acting on the latest science and igniting projects with passion. Through these award winners we support work rooted in communities that creates lasting benefits for wildlife, landscapes and people.

“I set up the Whitley Awards in 1993, with a determination to send funds directly to the local leaders who are best placed to bring about long lasting and effective nature conservation. We seek to cut out the high overheads of conservation charities in the West, and to sidestep the process of parachuting well-meaning outsiders into other countries to ‘solve’ their problems for them. We have found and funded extraordinary leaders, many of whom have become internationally recognised.”

Edward Whitley OBE, Founder