1. Rapid Review of Conservation Trust Funds IUCN World Conservation Congress Barcelona, October 7, 2008 Melissa Moye Director, Conservation Finance, WWF melissa.moye@wwfus.org

2. Conservation Trust Fund (CTF) Anchor to a sustainable financing strategy Long-term financing (at least 10 to 15 years) for biodiversity conservation and related purposes Legally independent, and governed by a board of directors that includes members from civil society Not a silver bullet for covering all recurrent operating costs: one financing source among others

3. Conservation Trust Funds in the World Capital Raised An estimated $810 million Worldwide (74% in LAC, 10% in Asia, 9% in Africa, and 7% in Europe). Number of CTFs ~ 55

4. CTFs Serve as “Umbrella Funds” Manage separate fund accounts for different purposes

5. CTFs Have Diversified Sources of Funding The total amount contributed by donors to CTFs probably exceeds $1.2 billion CTFs can serve as an effective means for mobilizing large amounts of additional funding for biodiversity conservation from international donors, national governments and the private sector

6. Almost all CTF Boards have a non-government majority Boards with a non-government majority are usually more transparent, participatory and efficient CTFs Act as Public Private Partnerships

7. Not Enough CTFs are Addressing Impacts on Biodiversity Most CTFs are good at monitoring and evaluating project completion indicators, but not equally good at monitoring the biodiversity impacts of their grants Learning from experience needs to be more systematic and RedLAC is facilitating such learning

8. Financial Management Rate of return on investments of CTFs similar to US university endowments: average of 10%/year from 2002-2006 (Conservation Trust Investment Survey) Administrative costs range from 5% to 65%, but 15% is average, and is often the limit set by donors

9. Why should we invest in CTFs?

10. Support national PA systems Strengthen the capacity of national government PA agencies and local conservation NGOs Enhance donor coordination Introducing higher standards and accountability More predictable & multi-year commitments Delegation of authority for performance meeting targets and standards Increase transparency CTFs support the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness

11. CTFs Have Potential New Roles Act as a financial intermediary between buyers and sellers of ecosystem services (PES) Provide small grants management services Manage biodiversity offset funding

12. For more copies, send an email to: conservationfinance@wwfus.org Download at: www.redlac.orgconservationfinance@wwfus.orgwww.redlac.org