Conservation Strategy Fund’s global training team launched its first in-person course in the US since 2019 last November 8th & 9th. Over the two-day course, participants explored the root causes of environmental and conservation problems, earning a background in ecological economics to speak the language of finance with decision-makers around the world. 

The training welcomed 20 participants at Conservation International Headquarters in Arlington, VA. Course topics included systems thinking, ecological economics, nature’s values, ecosystem service valuation, cost-benefit analysis, financing conservation, and economic storytelling for behavioral change. 

Conservation Strategy Fund (CSF) instructors and staff provided live lectures, case studies, interactive exercises, and games on conservation economics and finance theory, methods, and tools. 

Participants envisioned implementing the courses’ tools in their conservation work right away, sharing with our training team:

“I plan to go deeper in SEEA (System of Environmental Economic Accounting) and apply recommendations to our current program in the Caribbean.” 

“I will dive back into the projects and try to adjust on the approach methods to the community.”

“[I have gained a] much better understanding of natural capital and ecosystems, CBA, valuation, financing options for nature and the application of systems theory. I now feel more confident to engage others in these topics and to apply them to my work portfolio.” 

Throughout the training, our 5 instructors from CSF, Conservation Finance Alliance, and the US Geological Service provided comprehensive lectures, engaged in meaningful discussions with participants, and facilitated group exercises. In their evaluations, 100% of our participants ranked the overall value of our instructors 5 out of 5. 

Twenty new conservationists from around the world are now part of CSF’s growing alumni community of over 5,000 changemakers transforming the relationship between development and conservation. 

Interested in our courses? Learn more about our global training program, including upcoming trainings at numbersfornature.org.