Equator Initiative: partnering to scale-up community-based conservation.

• Author: Southey, Sean

The Equator Initiative is a partnership that brings together the United Nations, civil society, businesses, Governments and communities to help develop the capacity and raise the profile of grass-roots efforts to reduce poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. It focuses on the region between 23.5 degrees north and 23.5 degrees south of the Equator, as this zone holds the greatest concentrations of both human poverty and biological wealth.

The Initiative is a partnership of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with the Government of Canada, Conservation International, Fordham University, the German Federal Ministry of Economic Development and Cooperation, the Convention on Biological Diversity, the International Development Research Centre, The World Conservation Union (IUCN), The Nature Conservancy, the Television Trust for the Environment (TVE) and the United Nations Foundation, in collaboration with the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships (UNFIP).

Since 2002, the Initiative has implemented an innovative cross-cutting programme based on four pillars: Equator Prize, a prestigious international award that recognizes and honours outstanding local efforts and community initiatives to effectively reduce poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity; Equator Dialogues, an innovative programme of dialogues, learning exchanges and meetings that celebrate local successes, share experiences and inform policies; Equator Knowledge, a comprehensive research and learning initiative dedicated to synthesizing lessons from local conservation and poverty reduction practices; and Equator Ventures, a unique investment programme focused on blended finance and capacity development for biodiversity enterprises.

The Equator Prize was first awarded in 2002 at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, and has since drawn some 800 nominations from around the world and has received extensive international media coverage. Winners and finalists serve to represent examples of best practice in biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction and to champion local knowledge and community empowerment.

The Chibememe Earth Healing Association (CHIEHA) in Zimbabwe provides a good example of how the Equator Prize participants are often empowered to get involved in policy discussions. A 2004 finalist, CHIEHA has since been an integral partner of the Equator Initiative. The forests of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park serve as inspiration for its wide-ranging efforts, such as reforestation, watershed...