Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is a joint biodiversity conservation initiative of l'Agence Française de Développement, Conservation International, European Union, Global Environment Facility, Government of Japan, and World Bank. CEPF also receives funding from several regional donors, including the MAVA Foundation, Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, and The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust. The fund’s headquarters are hosted at Conservation International in Arlington, Virginia, United States. CEPF works to protect ecosystems and the species within them by awarding grants to local and international civil society organizations working in biodiversity hotspots around the world. Grant recipients include nonprofit organizations, indigenous peoples groups and small businesses, among others. Since its inception, CEPF has funded conservation projects in 25 biodiversity hotspots across 98 countries and territories. The fund has committed a total of USD 244 million to more than 2,300 civil society organizations.
History
CEPF was developed by Conservation International's founding CEO Peter Seligmann and former president of the World Bank James Wolfensohn. The fund was founded in 2000 and began awarding grants in 2001. In addition to Conservation International and the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility was a founding partner. Four additional donors later joined: L'Agence Française de Développement, the European Union, the Government of Japan and the MacArthur Foundation. The MacArthur Foundation ended its funding to CEPF in 2018.
Approach to Conservation
The CEPF Donor Council determines the biodiversity hotspots in which CEPF invests. Only hotspots that primarily include countries with developing or transitional economies are considered. For each investment, CEPF prepares an extensive “ecosystem profile” to inform its conservation strategy in the respective hotspot. This document is developed in consultation with experts and local stakeholders and provides an overview of the political, socio-economic and environmental situation in the region. The ecosystem profile also identifies priority Key Biodiversity Areas and corridors, which become the specific places where CEPF awards grants. CEPF awards two types of grants: small and large. The average size of small grants is about USD 15,000. The average size of large grants is about USD 150,000. For each of its investments, CEPF establishes a regional implementation team located at an organization either within or close to the biodiversity hotspot. The regional implementation team is chosen through a competitive grant process and assists with awarding CEPF grants within the hotspot and developing the capacity of local organizations.
