The natural world is shrinking, and wild animals are fighting to keep their place in an increasingly human-dominated world. But it cannot be ‘them or us’. Societies around the world rely on natural resources, daily, for clean air and water, for growing and harvesting food, to help build homes, and to cook and stay healthy. It’s essential for our own wellbeing, as well as for that of the animals, that we protect and preserve and treasure nature.

Born Free works closely with communities to understand the pressures they face and to find together solutions to these problems. From providing energy-saving stoves to building huge predator-proof livestock corrals, from planting trees on degraded farmland to taking primary healthcare to remote rural villages, our aim is simple: to promote coexistence between people and wildlife. 

Our conservation portfolio focuses on flagship species, predominantly large mammals like lions and elephants. The protection we afford them acts as an ‘umbrella’ for the knock-on preservation of large landscapes and all its biodiversity. At Born Free we run our own conservation programmes in several such priority landscapes in East Africa and southeast Asia, where we address key issues, such as human-wildlife conflict and overuse of natural resources.

Our core work is complemented by an excellent array of partner-led projects, from all around the world, which we support financially and technically and work closely with on conservation best practices and information sharing. In 2019-2021, Born Free supported 13 such projects, focusing on the protection of 11 different species across 12 countries.

“It’s essential for our own wellbeing, as well as for that of the animals, that we protect and preserve and treasure nature.”