Part II of Conservation Divided: How big donors and corporations shape conservation goals

| May 5, 2016 | Leave a Comment

Item Link: Access the Resource

Date of Publication: May 3, 2016

Year of Publication: 2016

Publisher: Mongabay.com

Author(s): Jeremy Hance

“Is big money from foundations, governments, and corporations making conservation groups more timid and less effective defenders of wildlife? Part 2 of Conservation, Divided: Mongabay’s four-part series investigating how the field of conservation has changed over the last 30 years.”

Conservation groups — big and small — can’t survive without money. Whether it is a major grant from a sympathetic foundation, or funding from a government, or big money from one of the world’s largest corporations — or money in an envelope from a supporter, like myself all those years ago. But how far should they go for donations? How much should they bend? And how much influence do donations buy — especially the really big ones?

 

This brings up one of the key questions in the debate: can environmentalists and conservationists achieve more by partnering with big corporations or by being a thorn in their side? Should they use the carrot or the stick? Or maybe both: from time to time different conservation groups join together. One feeds the industry a carrot, while the other beats it over the head with a stick.

 

Of course, conservation groups — big and small — can’t survive without money. And the little money from one kid’s allowance wouldn’t pay for even a single day of work for one employee. Conservation groups need foundations and governments. They may even need corporations. But they also need real independence and space to take a stand. Money can solve a lot of things, but not if trust and independence is the pric


Read the full article here. Conservation, Divided is an in-depth four-part series investigating how the field of conservation has changed over the last 30 years — and the challenges it faces moving into an uncertain future. Hance completed the series over the course of eight months. Stories will run weekly through May 17. Part I: Has Big Conservation Gone Astray can be accessed via the MAHB Library here.

The views and opinions expressed through the MAHB Website are those of the contributing authors and do not necessarily reflect an official position of the MAHB. The MAHB aims to share a range of perspectives and welcomes the discussions that they prompt.