International Land Conservation Network Newsletter, September 2021
In this Newsletter:
Land's Crucial Role in Fighting Climate Change: An Interview with ILCN Director Jim Levitt
The First Africa Protected Areas Congress: The Role of Privately Protected Areas and OECMs
Supporting Innovative Conservation Finance Ideas: The Conservation Finance Alliance Incubator
European LIFE Project Publishes Innovative Policy Recommendations
Towards Kunming: Symposium on Non-State Actor Actions for Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Conservation
Upcoming Events
What We're Reading
News from our Partners
Land's Crucial Role in Fighting Climate Change: An Interview with ILCN Director Jim Levitt
In the most recent episode of Land Matters from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, ILCN Director Jim Levitt was interviewed on the role of land conservation and management in addressing 21st century problems. In the face of increasing storms and storm intensity, drought, wildfire, and other community stressors, land, land management and land conservation all serve to enable nature to remain as a buffer for communities- sequestering carbon, reducing heat islands, accommodating stormwater, and maintaining biodiversity.
To listen to this episode of Land Matters, visit the webpage here.
Land Matters is a podcast from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Hosted by Anthony Flint, this podcast explores how better land use can help solve many of our biggest urban challenges, from climate change to infrastructure finance to affordable housing.
The First Africa Protected Areas Congress 7th to 12 March 2022: The Role of Privately Protected Areas and OECMs Kiragu Mwangi, ILCN Regional Representative for Africa
The Africa Protected Areas Congress (APAC) opened the call for proposals to the congress week commencing July 12, 2021.
After several attempts to organise the congress, on April 23, 2021 APAC was finally confirmed for the 7th to 12th March 2022 in Kigali Rwanda. The Government of Rwanda will host this seminal meeting in Africa, co-organised by IUCN’s World Commission for Protected Areas and Africa Wildlife Foundation.
The APAC programme organisers have arranged the congress to accommodate interests of multiple stakeholders in government authorities, indigenous local communities, youth and NGOs and academia involved with land use within and around protected areas in Africa.
The conversations are arranged along three Streams of (i) Protected and Conserved Areas (ii) People and (iii) Biodiversity. Participants will then explore discussion in six cross-cutting issues within these three Streams. These are:
Governance
Conflict
Climate change
Science, Technology and Indigenous knowledge
Sustainable financing
Physical infrastructure
The ILCN is looking forward to supporting the inclusion of private and civic land conservation organizations and initiatives in the Congress programme. As the ILCN regional representative for Africa, I am working with stream leaders at the Congress to provide input and suggestions for the Protected and Conserved Areas and People streams. ILCN participants and contacts who manage landscapes in Africa are invited to contribute.
We look forward to participating in this first Protected Areas Congress in Africa, and to raising awareness about the ILCN among the African private and civic land conservation community. Finally, we hope that this Congress will serve as an opportunity to assess and strengthen a network for private and civic land conservation in Africa.
If you would like to get in touch to discuss ideas on what should be the role of Privately Protected Areas and Other Effectively Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECM) at the Global Congress, please reach out to me at makiragumwangi@outlook.com. To learn more about the programme visit the APAC website at https://apacongress.africa/programme/
The deadline for call for proposals is 30th September 2021.
Supporting Innovative Conservation Finance Ideas: The Conservation Finance Alliance Incubator Chandni Navalkha, Associate Director of Land Protection for ILCN
In December 2019, the Conservation Finance Alliance’s Innovation Working Group launched the CFA Incubator. The Incubator is designed to foster early-stage pilots for creative solutions to conservation finance challenges, in order to demonstrate the economic feasibility of new financial tools and mechanisms to finance land and water conservation. It aims to solve two critical challenges in conservation finance: fulfilling the needs of investors and grantmakers who are seeking a pipeline of investable projects, and providing project proponents with the mentorship and support they need for creative approaches that can attract different types of available capital, whether philanthropic or profit-seeking.
David Meyers, Executive Director of the Conservation Alliance, puts it this way:
The tools that we have for nature conservation go beyond getting donations and buying land…there are all kinds of additional mechanisms that can either reduce land purchase costs or reduce management costs, and we strongly encourage people to use a portfolio approach. This innovation can really have an impact on adding something new to that portfolio, to achieve much greater scale.
As an international network of donors, local governments, NGOs, and conservation finance experts, the Conservation Finance Alliance is uniquely suited to implementing the Incubator, and in 2020-2021, selected the first cohort of five project teams from over 70 applications. While the selected projects received subgrants of $25,000 each to develop their concepts, 10 additional projects received mentorship and support from Alliance staff and board members.
Each of the five projects were selected for their creativity, ambition, and potential impact. Whether developing a first-of-its-kind financial mechanism for a global commodity, designing an investment mechanism to allow businesses to finance coastal erosion, using technology to establish community reef and forest banks, building biodiversity lending Instruments, or generating revenue from standing forests in new ways, each project focused on making a business plan and conducting feasibility studies. Team members looked deep into the financial returns and opportunities the concepts offered. And they were supported along the way with mentorship from CFA, including instruction on business strategy, financial statements, how to make investor presentations, and financial modeling.
Across sectors, the CFA is playing a critical role for the land conservation community by fostering conservation finance ventures that can generate a financial return and a broader set of ideas that lead to policy, regulatory, or non-profit finance solutions. Later this year, CFA will launch a new call for proposals to bring together a second cohort of leaders who are using their imaginations to close the funding gap for conservation. Stay tuned!
European LIFE Project Publishes Innovative Policy Recommendations Anne-Sophie Mulier, European Landowners Network
The European LIFE project ‘Land Is For Ever’ published a booklet on its innovative policy recommendations addressed to the European Commission, all with a focus on enhancing private land conservation and supporting individual landowners in their biodiversity approach.
The 3-year European project combined European-wide surveys, workshops, interviews, webinars and research, to put insights and ideas of individual landowners and stakeholders into concrete policy, ultimately strengthening private land conservation in Europe. The initial outcome and lessons learned of the project were used by The European Landowners’ Organization and The Nature Conservancy to advise on the new European Biodiversity and forestry strategies. Where relevant, lessons learned were also taken on board by local landowner organisations when advising these European Strategies within their Member State.
Through a growing synergy with Eurosite - the European Land Conservation Network (ELCN) during this project, the two European networks of conservation organizations and Landowner associations found a common basis to share resources and bundle forces. As a continuation of this successful work, the previously in this newsletter introduced ENPLC (European Networks for Private Land Conservation) project and joint network will launch December 2021 with a long-term perspective.
Download the booklet which summarises the projects main findings here.
Read the full report of the projects main findings here.
Towards Kunming: Symposium on Non-State Actor Actions for Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Conservation Shenmin Liu, ILCN Regional Representative for Asia
To contribute to the upcoming COP15 and global biodiversity goals, China's civil society organizations, enterprises, youth, the public, and other stakeholders have launched a wide range of actions. Thus, Global Environmental Institute (GEI, an NGO based in Beijing, China) held a Symposium on Non-State Actor Actions for Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Conservation July 25th to 26th 2021.
James N. Levitt, director of International Land Conservation Network at Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, delivered a keynote speech titled “The International Role of Civic Sector Land Trust and Conservancies in Conserving Biodiversity and Addressing Climate Change.” The theme of this Symposium is Fostering a Community of Life Together for Mankind and Nature: Non-State Actor Actions for Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Conservation. It brought together representatives from relevant ministries and commissions, the Secretariat of the CBD, the Office of the Executive Committee for the CBD COP15, Chinese Academy of Science and universities, members of the Civil Society Alliance for Biodiversity Conservation, and other stakeholders, as well as experts, academics, and youth representatives from Africa, Southeast Asia, America, and South America. More than 10,000 people in China watched the event’s livestream online. Panelists discussed non-state actors’ participation mechanisms in biodiversity governance, actions and voluntary commitments, in an effort to build a common understanding among stakeholders and to promote whole-of-society approaches.
View Jim's portion of the segment here(starts at 1:30:00).
Upcoming Events
Global Congress Announcement
The ILCN and ELCN are pleased to announce that virtual registration for the 2021 Global Congress of the International Land Conservation Network and the Final Conference of the LIFE project Development of a European Land Conservation Network (LIFE ELCN) is now open. Scheduled for December 8th through 10th of this year, this Congress will bring together an international community of private and civic land conservation practitioners to advance their work and build capacity by sharing expertise in conservation finance, law and policy, organization and governance, land stewardship, large landscape conservation, and conservation technology.
As nations around the world work towards ambitious targets to protect and restore biodiverse, climate-resilient ecosystems, private and civic land conservation is becoming increasingly significant at every scale- from micro reservas in Valencia, Spain to protected areas spanning tens of millions of hectares in Canada’s Far North. Targets such as protecting 30% of lands by 2030 can only be reached by taking a collaborative and inclusive approach that leverages and builds on the capacity of a range of land stewards - landowners, communities, and civic organizations, among others - to undertake voluntary, durable, and effective land conservation action.
Inspired by the beautiful Catalonian landscape, and using the digital tools available to bring together an ever growing community still facing the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we invite you to join us in continuing to learn from and support one another in advancing the private and civic land conservation movement.
ILCN International Breakfast: Featuring 2020-2021 Kingsbury Browne Fellow Fernando Lloveras
Join the International Land Conservation Network on Monday, October 4th from 8am-9am ET (US & Canada) for our annual breakfast at the Land Trust Alliance Rally.
This virtual Meet and Greet will feature remarks from 2020-2021 Kingsbury Browne Fernando Lloveras, and will share an update on the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy’s forthcoming report on land trusts and conservancies around the world as climate change solution providers.
Learn how land trusts can become agents of economic, ecological, and social change, and get to know how land trusts and conservancies are leading the way in tackling the joint climate and biodiversity crises, from the forests of China to the migratory pathways of Africa. Join us to learn and be inspired by initiatives that are addressing the most important challenges of conservation in the 21st century.
2021 Land Trust Alliance Rally – Celebrating Cleveland
Rally is the annual gathering of inspired and passionate land conservation practitioners from around the world who are dedicated to conserving cherished places in our communities. The Land Trust Alliance is proud to host its 34th Rally online. The virtual Rally 2021 offers over 60 educational sessions focused on land conservation topics, virtual networking events like Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Trivia, exhibits, plenary sessions and an awards presentation celebrating conservation leadership. Register here for Rally 2021
The Salazar Center for North American Conservation 2021 International Symposium on Conservation Impact
On September 28 and 29, the Salazar Center for North American Conservation will host the 2021 International Symposium. This will serve as the first major public convening focused on next steps for the Biden administration’s America the Beautiful initiative. Top-level officials from the U.S. Departments of Interior and Agriculture, as well as the White House Council on Environmental Quality, will explore how to conserve 30% of America’s lands and waters by 2030.
The two-day event will also feature researchers, practitioners, and political leaders from Canada, Mexico, and Indigenous territories, who—along with their U.S. counterparts- will explore the state of progress toward similar large landscape conservation goals at the continental scale, and highlight lessons learned from other national-level efforts, such as Canada’s Pathway to Target One. A variety of keynote presentations, panels and networking events will focus on transboundary partnerships, the role of Indigenous nations, and best practices to achieve large landscape goals in the face of climate change in North America. Together, we will look at science and data, policies, and case studies to better understand the benefits that transboundary work can deliver for biodiversity, climate, and human resilience.
PLC2022: Recover, Restore, Redouble is planned to be an in person and hybrid event, retaining the current program, activities, and initiatives. It is scheduled to run 16-18 March 2022 at Doltone House Darling Island, and will incorporate concurrent sessions that share practice, knowledge and science, and plenaries presenting current knowledge and cross-cutting themes of national and international importance and local relevance. Subscribe here to stay up to date.
UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP15) will take place in Kunming, China October 11 - 15, 2021 and April 25 - May 8, 2022.
On 18 August 2021, the Secretariat announced that UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP15) will take place in two parts. The first part will take place in a mixed format (on-site and virtual), from October 11 to 15, 2021. The second part will be in-person meeting in Kunming, China, from April 25 to May 8, 2022. The first part of the conference includes the opening ceremony, leaders' speeches, high-level meetings, general meetings, the release of key documents such as the "Kunming Declaration", and supporting activities and exhibitions such as the Ecological Civilization Forum. The second part of the conference will be held in-person in 2022 to facilitate extensive and in-depth consultations and discussions among all parties to reach a broad consensus on an ambitious and pragmatic post-2020 global biodiversity framework.
Learn How Lens, a Remote Sensing Tool from Upstream Tech, Can Help You Take Your Conservation Work to the Next Level
Monitoring conserved properties is an ongoing challenges for land conservation organizations large and small, the world over. Upstream Tech is pioneering innovations to help your organization use remote sensing technologies and environmental data to track, monitor and oversee progress on specific parcels or areas. Learn more about how this may be relevant to your work and organization through Upstream Tech’s Fall Webinar Series on their flagship product, Lens, which is used by land trusts, project developers, and conservation organizations to monitor and gain insights on millions of acres.
On 13 July the first LIFE Call for Proposals opened under the new LIFE programme 2021-2027, which comprises four sub-programmes: nature & biodiversity, circular economy and quality of life, climate change mitigation and adaptation and the clean energy transition.
Nature conservation and protection of biodiversity feature high in the new LIFE programme with support to the traditional bottom up projects that made the success of LIFE through its 30 years of existence. Also larger strategic projects are foreseen to mainstream nature in many other policy sectors and mobilise significant additional funds from public or private sources. Last, but not least, LIFE will support the continuation of the BEST programme aimed at biodiversity protection in the EU Outermost Regions and Overseas Countries and Territories (the little LIFE flag will soon appear in areas as far as the Pacific or the Caribbean).
Private land conservation continues to have a distinct role in the LIFE narrative thereby acknowledging the potential contribution this approach may have in the fight to protect nature and landscapes around us. Visit the webpage here.
2022 Conservation Leadership Programme Team Awards
Do you know of any early-career conservationists who need funding to support their work conserving the natural world?
The Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP) is now accepting applications for our 2022 Team Awards. Future Conservationist Awards are worth up to $15,000 each and support projects in low- and middle-income countries and some high-income islands in the Caribbean and Pacific. Funding will enable early-career conservationists to conduct scientific research, encourage and promote pro-conservation attitudes and deliver tangible results to better conserve and manage the natural world. Each project must have at least three members and all team members must have less than five years of paid conservation experience. Projects can last 3-12 months and must focus on a threatened species. In addition to project funding, CLP will invite one member of each award-winning team to their international training course where they will gain a range of conservation management and leadership skills as well as build their professional network.
The application deadline is 10 October, 2021.
For more information, including the eligibility criteria and detailed application guidelines, please visit the website. Applications must be submitted via the online platform (potential applicants will need to register to be able to complete the application form). Please contact clp@birdlife.org with any questions.
IUCN Privately Protected Areas Specialist Group Launch Open Call for PPA Case Studies
Use this form to submit your case study, or considering submitting a case study to PANORAMA
What We're Reading Protecting the Places We Love: Conservation Strategies for Entrusted Lands and Parks Bold conservation goals require strategic action. In Protecting the Places We Love: Conservation Strategies for Entrusted Lands and Parks, conservationist and geospatial designer Breece Robertson applies her conservation experience, real-world examples, and myriad resources to deliver a vision for success and clear guidance for conservation groups large and small to achieve their goals. The goals of these strategies are familiar: support species, habitats, and natural resources and healthy, livable communities that are climate resilient and socially cohesive, all without high costs. Robertson's tools, many of them free, feel quickly accessible, effective, and adaptable to a new or existing conservation strategy. Readers finish this book feeling confident about integrating existing practices with geospatial data and modern applications. With the smart analysis and targeted action explained in Protecting the Places We Love, readers will better identify places needing protection and better understand how to leverage partnerships, inspire, educate, and engage communities and donors, and produce better results. See the vision and learn to:
create maps that tell compelling stories to stakeholders and the public
analyze park system equity and access and show the economic benefits
map, model, and analyze land characteristics to enhance biodiversity, connectivity, and climate resilience
use maps and data to gain insights for fundraising, program initiatives, policy, advocacy, finances, and marketing.
Protecting the Places We Love is perfect for citizens, and for conservation advocates and professionals at small to medium-sized land trusts, conservation organizations, and park agencies. Examples from land protection organizations all over the globe provide field-tested approaches to improve strategic effectiveness. Robertson provides a vision, strategies, and resources that can take your conservation efforts to the next level. Read more here
Kingsbury Browne Working Paper on “The Evolution of a Land Trust: Placing Social Transformation at the Center of the Conservation Effort” 2021 Kingsbury Browne Fellow and Para la Naturaleza Executive Director Fernando Lloveras eloquently shares the the remarkable journey of a land trust, Para la Naturaleza in Puerto Rico, and its courageous staff and supporters, who have worked over the past two decades to transform Para la Naturaleza from a traditional land trust into an agent of ecological, economic, and social change. Read the working paper here.
Highlights from the ILCN
We are excited to share stories from ILCN members. If you have a successful conservation initiative, story, event, or webinar to share, then please contact us at ILCN@lincolninst.edu.
The mission of the International Land Conservation Network is to connect organizations and people around the world that are accelerating voluntary private and civic sector action that protects and stewards land and water resources.
Learn more at landconservationnetwork.org.
The Africa Protected Areas Congress (APAC) opened the 
The European LIFE project ‘Land Is For Ever’ published a booklet on its innovative policy recommendations addressed to the European Commission, all with a focus on enhancing private land conservation and supporting individual landowners in their biodiversity approach.
Join the International Land Conservation Network on Monday, October 4th from 8am-9am ET (US & Canada) for our annual breakfast at the Land Trust Alliance Rally.
In response to the continuing restrictions across the nation, the 
On 13 July the first 
Bold conservation goals require strategic action. In Protecting the Places We Love: Conservation Strategies for Entrusted Lands and Parks, conservationist and geospatial designer Breece Robertson applies her conservation experience, real-world examples, and myriad resources to deliver a vision for success and clear guidance for conservation groups large and small to achieve their goals. The goals of these strategies are familiar: support species, habitats, and natural resources and healthy, livable communities that are climate resilient and socially cohesive, all without high costs. Robertson's tools, many of them free, feel quickly accessible, effective, and adaptable to a new or existing conservation strategy. Readers finish this book feeling confident about integrating existing practices with geospatial data and modern applications. With the smart analysis and targeted action explained in Protecting the Places We Love, readers will better identify places needing protection and better understand how to leverage partnerships, inspire, educate, and engage communities and donors, and produce better results. See the vision and learn to: 
