Community leadership is vital to lasting conservation. Are you At #COP17? Join @AWF_Official and the African Regional Directors Platform to explore African approaches to community-led conservation. 27 Oct | 12:00–13:00 GMT+4 FPWC Blue Zone Pavilion, Yerevan @emtambara, @DHalleson, @ElikanaManumbu, @juliemulonga

RT @AWF_Official: Education equips people to turn biodiversity commitments into action. Join @AWF_Official’s Charly Facheux at #COP17 Educ…

Happy #WorldTeachersDay! Meet Patrick Kiminza, a teacher and Wildlife Club Patron at Ngwata Comprehensive School in Makueni County, near Tsavo. He's turning conservation lessons into action. 🧵

A new $49m Smart Green Village in Musanze will provide families with improved housing, infrastructure and basic services, alongside support to build sustainable livelihoods. The first phase is expected to accommodate 547 households. @nsapatric, @AWF_Official Country Coordinator in Rwanda, says residents will be connected to business support, skills training, financing and markets before relocating. AWF is partnering with the @RwandaGov on the broader programme, drawing on more than 40 years of work in the country. Read more from the article in @NewTimesRwanda: newtimes.co.rw/article/39446…

2/4 - Kidepo spans Karamoja and Acholi, with ecological links to Kenya and South Sudan. Elephants, buffalo, giraffes and other wildlife move across protected areas, community lands, farms and corridors.

1/4 What does conservation look like when wildlife moves beyond the park boundary? In Uganda’s Kidepo landscape, it means looking at the connections between protected areas, community lands and livelihoods. Here are four things shaping that work: 🧵

As the countdown to #COP17 begins, 50 young leaders gathered in Kigali for Rwanda’s Pre-COP17 National Youth Consultation. They explored how youth leadership and community action can advance biodiversity conservation. Their message is clear: young people must help shape decisions affecting Africa’s wildlife, wild lands and communities. Participants developed a Rwanda Youth Position Document to share with the Ministry of Environment ahead of #COP17.

2/2 - The plan introduces a vision, ecotourism to grow local income, management closer to the ground, and stronger transboundary programmes with wildlife corridors. Delivery requires the budget to rise from FCFA 6bn to 9bn. Planning funded by @UNEP_Francais through @theGEF .

1/2 - A shared conservation vision begins with shared decisions. @AWF_Official joined MINFOF to sign Campo Ma’an’s 2027–2031 management plan, shaped by 3 years of consultation with Indigenous Peoples, local communities, authorities, the private sector and partners.

2/2 - AWF’s Geospatial Leaders Fellowship builds skills; APAD strengthens peer learning; Conservation GeoHubs with @Esri make evidence accessible to inform development decisions. Read David Williams’ perspective: awf.org/news/mapping-what-ma…

1/2 - Africa’s biodiversity commitments depend on decisions about land, infrastructure and investment. At #CBDCOP17, evidence must shape those choices. AWF’s approach connects geospatial intelligence with African leadership to turn commitments into action.

Our work across Africa offers valuable lessons for how we shape @AWF_Official’s next chapter. It was a pleasure to host AWF’s Board of Trustees in Washington, DC, for our Global Board Meeting. We reflected on our partnerships with African governments and institutions, shared stories and results from the field, and reviewed our financial performance. These conversations connected the daily work of conservation with the choices that will guide AWF’s future. For me, that means understanding where AWF can contribute most: supporting African leadership, strengthening institutions, and connecting conservation with national development priorities. Our program results and the experiences of our partners help us determine where to focus our expertise and resources. Thank you to our trustees for your thoughtful engagement, insights and continued commitment to AWF. I appreciate the experience and care you bring to guiding our work.

It was great to be featured by @BenGoldsmith on Rewilding the World for a conversation about Africa’s conservation future and the leadership needed to shape it. We discussed why conservation priorities and decisions must be led by Africans, with governments, communities and institutions at the centre. Africa’s natural wealth is fundamental to the continent’s future, yet it is too often discussed separately from development, investment and economic planning. Recognising nature as an asset means asking how its value can support livelihoods and opportunity while safeguarding the ecosystems on which people and economies depend. That conversation feels especially timely as world leaders convene in New York for the United Nations General Assembly #UNGA. Decisions on development, climate and the global economy cannot be separated from the future of nature. Africa’s experience and leadership must help shape those discussions, including how global commitments translate into locally grounded action and lasting value for people across the continent. Thank you, Ben, for making space for this important exchange. Tune in to hear the full conversation or through your preferred podcast platform: lnkd.in/eQH64aTA

1/6 - Black or white? Neither. On #WorldRhinoDay, join us in this thread 🧵 as we explore what really sets Africa’s two rhino species apart.

In my latest op-ed for Kenya's @BD_Africa Newspaper, I reflect on what Africa’s successful push for a more accurate map of the world can teach us about the next stage of our influence. The map’s correction matters because it reflects a shift in authorship: African states coordinated, put forward a proposal and carried it through the @UN. But visibility is only a starting point. The harder work is applying that same focus to decisions with greater consequences—from reform of the UN Security Council to shaping the G20 agenda and the financial rules that affect how our economies and natural assets are valued. This includes recognising that Africa’s forests, rangelands and river basins are sovereign assets, and that the communities and countries safeguarding them bring expertise that belongs at the decision-making table. Africa has made the case. Now we need the coordination, proposals and sustained engagement to turn representation into influence. Catch the full conversation here: businessdailyafrica.com/bd/o…

It is great to be in Washington, DC, spending valuable time with my colleagues and, by extension, connecting with our partners and friends of the @AWF_Official. These conversations are an important reminder that advancing conservation in Africa requires strong relationships across continents—relationships that ensure African priorities, perspectives and leadership remain central to global discussions on biodiversity, climate and sustainable development. I am especially encouraged by the commitment of our partners and friends who continue to stand with AWF as we work to build a future in which Africa’s people and wildlife thrive together. Meaningful conservation progress is achieved when we bring together African leadership, local knowledge, sound policy and sustained investment around a shared vision. A special acknowledgment to our exceptional Washington, DC team for the important work they are doing to strengthen these connections and advance AWF’s mission. Thank you for the warm welcome, the thoughtful engagements and your continued dedication to Africa’s conservation agenda.

Africa’s conservation ambition must go beyond protecting biodiversity. We must build the institutions, markets and investment systems that allow Africans — particularly communities living alongside wildlife — to capture more of the value our natural assets generate. In my latest op-ed published in the @NewTimesRwanda, I reflect on what #KwitaIzina teaches us about that opportunity: moving from conservation as protection to natural capital as a foundation for African prosperity. Africa must own, invest in and build its biodiversity economy on its own terms. Read the oped here - newtimes.co.rw/article/38562…

As Rwanda prepares for #KwitaIzina, the spotlight turns to the mountain gorilla. But conservation success must go beyond species recovery. It means landscapes where people, wildlife, and economies thrive together — through locally led conservation, sustainable livelihoods, and long-term investment. Read how Rwanda is helping shape this next chapter: awf.org/news/beyond-gorilla-… @nsapatric

As Rwanda prepares to mark the 21st edition of Kwita Izina, I am reminded that this celebration has always represented something much bigger than naming mountain gorillas. It is a reflection of what becomes possible when conservation is embraced as part of a country’s development story. Having had the privilege of participating in @Kwitaizina as a namer, I have seen how Rwanda has built a model where protecting wildlife goes hand in hand with investing in the people and communities who live alongside it. The mountain gorillas we celebrate are part of a much bigger story of livelihoods, leadership, culture and shared responsibility for nature. This week, as the world returns to Rwanda for #KwitaIzina2026, we celebrate the new gorilla families while also recognizing the communities, conservationists and partners whose commitment continues to make their future possible. This is what conservation must ultimately deliver: a future where Africa’s people and wildlife thrive together.