SUCCESSFULLY GETTING FUNDS AND GRANTS FOR CONSERVATION
“They will die if I don’t get any funds in the next few weeks,” he told me.
Passion isn’t enough in conservation. So what do you do if you are all that stands between the loss of a species from this world and you urgently need funds?
I work on a critically endangered and an endangered bird species. One species is the last in its genus, the very last Didunculus, the little dodo or Manumea.
They live in a declining forest in Samoa where access to funds is not easy. This is the story of what fighting for these species has taught me. Hopefully, the Manumea story can help you save a species or forest too.
How to access funds to save endangered and declining species:
Step 1. Communication
It seems obvious but most conservationists forget this part. It isn’t enough to do research and implement action on the ground. You need to communicate with the local people and thus build support. You also need to communicate to the world and your donors.
Some of my biggest conservation support has approached me. Indeed you might be able to achieve much of your project without funds. To learn more read here. But you need to get your story out there to get this reaction.
Websites: Reaching the world
One key aspect is a good website- This will build trust for your project and show what you are doing in the field and who you are connected too. Also, donors like to see their logos out there. It is proof to the people who give them money that they are achieving things. Here is an example of our one :http://www.samoanbirds.org
Then you have to increase your websites google ability. I will go over how to this on a different blog.
Get a story out in newspapers and radio. Ring them up with a short hook ready.
Get a story online- My favorite online medium is Mongabay. It hits the right demographic with lots of donors reading the stories and has a really high general hit rate. BUT you need to find a special angle.
Photos-
Invest time in taking some good pictures and films which tell the story. With funders like National geographic photos can mean the difference between getting a grant or not and whether you are funded again.
Think about what emotions you want to give people. Capture the effort and the field work not only the species.
Step two: Get the NGO, community and governments backing
Will a bigger organisation support your work? Do you need to form a small local NGO to access funds? How does your work tie in with the strategic plans for the species? Make sure you put these things in place before you start your project and clarify roles and expectations.
Step three: Looking for the money
Online grants are a great place to start. But many governments also have funds. These don’t need to be the country you work in. Embassies often have small amounts of funds they can often direct to local issues. Private companies might also be interested in linking up with your project and NGO.
Grants online
There are some big lists of these on different websites
Eg.
Read the requirements of the grant carefully and fill out the form. It is a bit of a lottery so you need to apply for a few. Don’t get disheartened. Ask someone with experience to look over your grant application. Experienced mentors are great. They teach you keywords and angles as well as practical skills, like how to write a good budget.
To select the right angle consider:
- Who is the donor? Who is reviewing the grant? Then write for this audience. If your donor is a group of rich business people who want conservation output on the ground, then they will not be interested in a purely scientific output. Write to the audience.
Approaching private companies for funds or outreach?
Ponder these questions before you talk to them.
Why would they be interested in funding or helping your project?
· Can you help advertise their name?
· Can you improve their green image?
· Does their product link with your one?
A great example, of the latter, is Fiji water who are sponsoring a conservation area where their clean water is coming from. This ensures that they have their name tied to a great project which will make people associate their brand with green jungles and clean unpolluted water. A win-win for both parties and importantly long term funding can be achieved.
Crowd-source funding
It is the newest fundraising mechanism. Before you do it, do your homework. What is the crowd-sourcing company getting out of it? A cut of the profits? 5%? It might still be worth it.
It was for the Manumea project. But we could have been much more successful. I now know you need a good number of people connected to you through social media and a media campaign planned to make this funding system really work. And it can be really time-consuming. However, it taps an unsourced pool and if you can get your story in the news it can be really effective. In New Zealand, 3 million was recently raised to buy a conservation beach with this technique.
However, be warned it is time-consuming and will require a good youtube 3-minute gripping movie to be successful. Make sure you have people talking in your video and a snappy start.
Step 4: Once you have funds :
Communication with your donors
Get a 6 monthly newsletter out to your donors and another people who are interested. Send personal emails so they know you are thinking of them. Send articles, which have their name published. This shows you are communicating their good name and will increase your chances of getting further funds.
Hope this was useful in some way. If it was and you want more let me know. Or add in your experience so we can all learn together.
