The IUCN National Committee of the Netherlands (IUCN NL) has the unique grants program called the “Purchase of Nature” (SPN) which enables local NGOs to take direct action and save nature. Funding is provided for the purchase and protection of threatened wildlife habitats and vulnerable ecosystems.
By providing funds SPN enables local NGOs to put a hold to this and create natural reserves. This direct intervention is an exceptionally valuable approach, as it places ownership and management responsibility in the hands of capable local conservation organizations.
The SPN programme works only with carefully selected local conservation NGOs, with a proven capacity in management of natural resources. These NGOs will eventually own and manage the purchased areas. The SPN programme DOES NOT own any lands, it only provides the funds for the purchase. Buying land and placing the management, and/or ownership, in the hands of an NGO can be a delicate and sometimes complicated matter. For people living around the purchased area, access rights can change, as well as the right to use the resources available in the area. Therefore besides having a proven capacity in natural resource management, NGOs must also have the capacity to cooperate with local stakeholders, and know how to manage the area in a participatory manner.
The funds are eligible for local conservation NGOs working in Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Pacific.
In 2001 IUCN NL started a new funding facility, the Small Grants Programme for the Purchase of Nature (SPN). Financially supported by the Dutch Postcode Lottery (NPL), the programme aims to contribute to conservation of biodiversity by supporting the (strategic) purchase of threatened natural areas. Strategic purchase can mean securing a corridor between two protected areas in order to safeguard migration routes and the exchange of genetic material. It may also mean securing an area to form a buffer against encroaching agricultural or tourism developments. The general objective of a proposed project must follow the main goal of SPN as stated above.
The deadline to submit pre-proposals is 1 May 2012. For more information, visit this link.
