August 2026
The Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP) has announced the winners of the 2026 Future Conservationist Awards. These annual awards build the next generation of conservation leaders while they embark on vital work protecting some of the world’s most threatened and least understood plants and animals.
One awarded project in India is focusing on the conservation of the Critically Endangered hump-backed mahseer © Agin George Kurian
This year, thanks to the generous support of the Hempel Foundation, March Conservation Fund and the Rufford Foundation, CLP is providing 13 Future Conservationist Awards worth a total of 194,088 USD.
After much deliberation, CLP’s Awards Selection Panel has chosen 13 priority projects taking place in 12 countries (six projects in Asia, four in Africa and three in Latin America and the Caribbean). Each project is led by a dedicated team of at least three early-career, locally embedded conservationists.
Over the next year, these emerging conservation leaders will focus on securing the long-term protection of a wide range of species, mainly through a combination of: 1) ecological research to uncover new information vital for future conservation efforts; 2) the creation of new policies and management plans; and 3) the establishment of community-based conservation.
The species targeted for conservation are all categorised on the IUCN Red List as Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN), Vulnerable (VU) or Data Deficient (DD). This includes, for example, mangrove horseshoe crab (DD) in Bangladesh; Tradouw conebush (CR) in South Africa; Nguru warty frog (CR) in Tanzania; yellow-tailed woolly monkey (CR) in Peru; hump-backed mahseer (CR) in India; Javan shadowdamsel (EN) in Indonesia; and great hornbill (VU) in Bhutan.
One of CLP’s 2026 Future Conservationist Awards is supporting a great hornbill conservation project in Bhutan © Wangchuk Blon
CLP is dedicated to translating the awards we offer into long-term conservation impact that endures far beyond our initial support. As such, we not only provide 15,000 USD in project funding to enable vital biodiversity actions, but we also continuously support the professional development of the emerging and visionary conservationists doing the work on the ground.
Through this year’s CLP Future Conservationist Awards, we are supporting 54 early-career conservation leaders (29 women, 25 men) who will gain continuous and exclusive training, funding and mentorship opportunities through our global Alumni Network. Such targeted early-career support boosts the professional development of emerging leaders, helping them to grow the confidence, networks and skills they need to tackle urgent conservation challenges.
Sarah Mshanga, leader of the warty frog conservation project in Tanzania © Lilian Temba
CLP Future Conservationist Awards also support locally embedded conservationists who have a rich understanding of the factors influencing conservation in their country and territories, such as local cultures, livelihoods, and government policies, to ensure that the conservation solutions they implement will benefit both people and nature – and so be effective and long-lasting.
The award-winning project in Peru is implementing a community-based environmental mentoring process that strengthens local leadership and supports community-led decision-making for yellow-tailed woolly monkey conservation © Deysi Ricapa
Each award also provides specialised training for one nominated team member at CLP’s 10-day Conservation Management & Leadership workshop (taking place in Tanzania in October 2026). Described as “transformative” and “life-changing” by previous participants, this workshop covers a range of topics not usually offered in formal education, such as Conservation Leadership, Project Planning, Behaviour Change, Communications and Fundraising, helping these emerging leaders develop essential skills to execute their projects while exchanging ideas and initiating collaborations with other conservationists.
Participants from CLP’s 2025 Conservation Management & Leadership workshop in Bali, Indonesia © Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP)
Find out more about this year’s winning projects below.
Projects in Asia:
- Bhutan’s first GPS-AI study empowering communities to protect great hornbills
- Conserving the Endangered Kashmir grey langur in the Western Himalayas, Pakistan
- On the wing, on the brink: Assessment of breeding raptors in Assam, India
- Safeguarding the Endangered damselfly Coeliccia lieftincki in Nusakambangan Island, Indonesia
- Saving the hump-backed mahseer through community participation in Kerala, India
- Extinction risk and conservation of horseshoe crabs in coastal Bangladesh
Projects in Africa:
- Assessing population status and habitat threats of the Endangered Kikambala nothobranch in Kenya
- Ecological fire and propagation research to secure the Critically Endangered Tradouw conebush Leucadendron tradouwens
- Promoting the conservation of Vulnerable yellow-casqued hornbill populations in Nigeria
- Safeguarding Critically Endangered warty frogs in Mkingu Nature Reserve, Tanzania
Projects in Latin America & the Caribbean:
- Building local leadership to secure an isolated population of yellow-tailed woolly monkey in Peru
- Community-based biodiversity monitoring of seagrass meadows in Baja California, Mexico
- The Digital Forest: Mapping corridors, building futures for Jamaica’s endangered species
Come and join us
If you are interested in supporting our work building the next generation of conservation leaders, such as through our Future Conservationist Awards, write to us at clp@birdlife.org or contribute to our mission directly.
We thank the March Conservation Fund, the Hempel Foundation, the Rufford Foundation and Arcadia for generously supporting the CLP Future Conservationist Awards 2026.