CFN Homepage

Latest Articles

Evergreen Articles
A tree in Guatemala, courtesy "RS" on Flickr

Which way will Guatemala and other carbon markets where smallholders dominate grow? (Photo by RS, courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons.) 

Report From an Agroforesty Project Sheds Light on Smallholder Carbon Strategies

A green sanctuary in the heart of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, Finca Chimelb hums with the melody of melodious blackbirds and chatter among local laborers. Spanning 4,751 hectares, the farm consists of rolling hills lined with high-value crops, such as cacao, specialty coffee, and cardamom, paired with rubber trees and other...
The United Nations Water conference, March 2023

The author's view of the UN Water Conference. 

Funding Clean Water for All at the United Nations Water Conference

In many parts of the world, clean water is still an untapped market – but a flow of innovative finance is beginning to change this. Currently, the United Nations estimates that between $182 billion to over $600 billion annually is needed to address the global water crisis. Worldwide, millions of...
Has extractive farming had its day?

The Rise of Regenerative Agriculture: How Food Companies are Catalyzing Regenerative Farming Practices

Food companies have started to incorporate regenerative agriculture into their sustainability strategies and supply chains - it’s an important buzzword today for companies, but how are they defining it? And what are they doing to support farmers in the transition? I spoke with Daily Harvest - the plant-based meal delivery...

Deep in the Weeds: Panel Pursues "Seagriculture" Investment Models

Seaweed—as a food source and beyond—has the potential to be profitable and sustainable, while supporting culturally important cuisines and strengthening the base of the marine food web. Recently, interest in cultivating seaweed, especially in the United States, has grown—but anyone interested in growing seaweed, investing in it, or processing it...
Abyssinian Roller Bird

An Incomplete Guide to Biodiversity Credits, Part One

Traditional biodiversity credits give financial value to investments in projects that offset regional biodiversity losses. A biocredit is a unit of biodiversity value created through interventions to conserve, restore or sustainably manage a local site. It is the unification of positive change (or “uplift”) in biodiversity conditions, approximated by place-based...
Elizabeth Schuster, Environmental Economist, Sustainable Economies Consulting

Elizabeth Schuster, Environmental Economist, Sustainable Economies Consulting

Partners Unite to Share Lessons Around Regenerative Agriculture, Forestry, and Conservation

The Network (CFN) convened partners for their 10th CFN Roundtable, hosted in Durham, NC on November 2-3, 2022. The roundtable brought together nearly 70 practitioners representing nonprofit organizations, foundations, private sector firms, governmental agencies, and universities. The event was organized around nine different panels on a variety of...
Tools for Financing Conservation
Tools on wall

Launching the Conservation Finance Network Toolkit

We are pleased to announce the launch of a new series called the Network Toolkit. This series of articles focuses on individual tools practitioners can use. Our goal is to span the range of comfort levels our readers have – from simple to challenging.
USDA-funded water project in Oklahoma

Conservation Partnerships with Water Utilities

This article by Eve Boyce and Marcy Lyman is part of the Network Toolkit, a resource designed for professionals who want to learn or communicate about the industry. In an increasing number of communities across the country, utilities are working with conservation groups to ensure the ecosystem services...
Larch trees in forest

Ballot Measures

This article by Nathalie Woolworth and Hazel Wong is part of the Network Toolkit, a resource designed for professionals who want to learn or communicate about the industry. Ballot measures, also known as initiatives or propositions, are instruments of direct democracy that allow voters to directly shape public...
Water holding tank

Using State Revolving Funds for Land Conservation

This article by Maria Martinez is part of the Network Toolkit, a resource designed for professionals who want to learn or communicate about the industry. State revolving funds (SRFs) have been used for decades as a source of low-cost financing for a variety of water-infrastructure projects.