A constant problem that conservationists face is funding. Identifying threats to the environment and creating strategies to protect against them, or organising plans to undo damage is often the easy part. Acquiring the funds to hire people and equipment, and get to work is often much harder. NPO’s like Upland River Conservation tend to have well thought out, practical, and effective strategies to protect the environment in some way or another, but constantly battle to fund their projects, enter the Nedbank Green Trust.
The Trust, managed by the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF), provides funding for environmental initiatives, and allows conservationists to put their plans into action. The trust is funded by donations from Nedbank through its green affiliate scheme, where Nedbank makes donations to the fund with every transaction made by green affiliate linked accounts. This doesn’t cost Nedbank account holders a cent, all they need to do is link their accounts to the Nedbank Green Affinity.
Over 30 years, more than 200 projects have been supported, with more than R300 million raised by the Green Affinity Program. These projects range from protecting endangered species to securing clean water and supporting environmental professionals.
Examples of successful initiatives include the founding of the Somkhanda Game Reserve, one of the first community-owned and operated reserves in the country, hosting all members of the Big Five.
Anybody can apply to have their project supported by the fund, and environmentalists and conservationists are encouraged to do so. Should you choose to apply, the process begins here. All the projects aim to make realistic, practical, and measurable progress for a healthier planet, and applications need to meet this standard in order to maximise their chances of being funded.
As the Nedbank Green Trust celebrates its 30-year anniversary, we hope it will continue to help put plans into action.
