BRIDGE
Conservation with the private sector
What is the BRIDGE Project?
The BRIDGE Project is an initiative that promotes strategic partnerships between environmental funds in Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa and the private sector through innovative financial mechanisms that contribute towards the 2030 global biodiversity conservation goals.
The initiative is implemented by Forever Costa Rica for the benefit of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Environmental Funds (RedLAC) and the Consortium of African Funds for the Environment (CAFÉ).
Conservation with the Private Sector
The BRIDGE Project unites Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and the private sector for international conservation goals
Main components:
This fund’s purpose is to provide technical and financial support to member Conservation Trust Funds from RedLAC and CAFÉ to study, replicate, and scale up innovative financial mechanisms that engage the private sector in biodiversity conservation.
Through an external Selection Committee, 10 Conservation Trust Funds were selected to receive between €50,000 and €150,000 to implement the following financial mechanisms.
This is the list of selected innovative financial mechanisms.
Mentoring is a powerful process of exchanging knowledge, guidance and growth, beneficial to both the Mentor and Mentee.
In the Mentorship Program, the Mentor corresponds to a Conservation Trust Fund that wishes to share their experiences, practical knowledge, and trajectory in a specific topic related to working with the private sector with one or more Mentees. The Mentee wishes to strengthen their organizational capabilities through lessons, experiences, and expertise offered by the Mentor, in a practical, tailored, and first-hand manner.
Each pair/group received a grant of 20,000 euros to cover their virtual and face-to-face activities.
This is the list of selected mentorship experiences
The Working Groups Program aims to strengthen CTFs’ capacity by creating spaces to exchange knowledge, share information, improve communication, and generate specialized expertise on how to better collaborate with the private sector in conservation initiatives.
The BRIDGE Project supports 8 working groups on topics related to private sector engagement for the participation of RedLAC and CAFÉ members:
RedLAC members’ working groups:
Fundraising and financial sustainability
Monitoring and evaluation/impact assessment
Communication with the private sector
CAFÉ members’ working groups:
Fundraising and financial sustainability
Funding mechanisms around nature-based solutions
Monitoring and evaluation/impact assessment
For both RedLAC & CAFÉ members:
Knowledge exchange and CTF operations
Executive Directors’ Learning Circle
Access this infographic to better understand the Working Groups Program
Continuous exchange promotes faster implementation of institutional solutions for CTFs. The BRODGE Project will develop a web-based communication and knowledge platform to leverage the networks and CTFs’ capacities by strengthening their training means, sharing knowledge, fostering collective learning and cross-exchange, enhancing connection and networking, and promoting mutual collaboration.
The project represents an investment of €4.830.000 from various sources: the French Global Environment Facility (FFEM) whit €2.227.500, Mava Foundation whit €357.500, and in-kind contributions and leveraged funds from RedLAC and CAFÉ member Environmental Funds (€2,245,000).
BRIDGE will run from 2022 to 2026.
SELF-ASSESSMENT TOOLKIT
The “Self-Assessment Toolkit for Conservation Trust Funds” allows these organizations to periodically assess their performance to increase their impact on global biodiversity conservation efforts.
Impact House of Grant Thornton Netherlands generated the updated version of the toolkit under the leadership of the Conservation Finance Alliance and the BRIDGE Project.
BRIDGE Project
