EMBARGOED UNTIL GMT 00:01 SEPTEMBER 10TH 2009
How entrepreneurs can save the world’s
most beautiful places
Loans and grants offer financial, social and environmental benefits around World Heritage sites
Washington, D.C. (September 10th, 2009) – An innovative finance program will help to
protect seven of the world’s most precious and endangered natural wonders, the United Nations
Development Programme, United Nations Foundation and Conservation International announced
today.
The $2 million program will offer grants and affordable loans for local entrepreneurs around
World Heritage sites in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The goal is to promote the development
of companies run by community members, while at the same time reducing poverty and
conserving the biological diversity of the following places:
• Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System (Belize), the largest barrier reef in the Northern
Hemisphere and habitat for marine turtles, manatees and crocodiles;
• Morne Trois Pitons National Park (Dominica), where lush-green tropical forest blends
with extraordinary volcanic features, like hot springs and a “boiling lake”;
• Mount Kenya (Kenya), an extinct volcano that supports 12 glaciers, a bamboo forest,
buffaloes, elephants, leopards and giant forest hogs;
• Sian Ka’an (Mexico), which contains 40 different sites of prehispanic cultures and is
famous for its amphibians, reptiles and cats such as the jaguar, puma and ocelot;
• Puerto Princesa National Park (Philippines), home to the world’s longest underground
river. Its tunnels and chambers are home to large populations of birds and bats;
• Kilimanjaro National Park (Tanzania), the highest point in Africa with its snowy peak
looming over the savannah;
• Dry Forests of the South-West (Madagascar), deciduous forests that cover vital
subterranean water sources and are home to lemurs and other species found nowhere else.
(Submitted on Madagascar’s Tentative List for consideration as a future World Heritage
site.)
These World Heritage sites are considered of exceptional value to humanity by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for their unique natural
beauty or scientific importance.
The World Heritage Local Ecological Entrepreneurship Program (WH-LEEP) is a partnership
among the United Nations Foundation, United Nations Development Programme / Global
Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (UNDP / GEF SGP) and Conservation
International’s Verde Ventures investment fund. The participation of Verde Ventures in the WH-
LEEP is enabled in part by funding from Daiwa Securities.
The WH-LEEP is one of the few lines of credit to take a “blended capital” approach, which
means that it provides loans and grants at the same time to help small businesses to develop to a
big enough size that makes them eligible to borrow from commercial banks.
“We are providing these resources to enable community enterprises to grow and prosper, while at
the same time ensure that people are thriving and the environment is healthy,” said Jennifer
Morris, Senior Vice President of Ecosystem Finance at Conservation International.
Erika Harms, Executive Director for Sustainable Development at the United Nations Foundation,
said: “we have worked for years bringing new market opportunities to sustainable community-
based enterprises and have seen them struggle due to their inability to access affordable credit.
WH-LEEP will help fill in this missing piece.”
Examples of eligible businesses include sustainable agriculture, ecotourism services and harvest
of forest products such as oils, nuts and fibers. The funds may be used to implement activities in
a business growth plan, supporting activities such as marketing, product improvement and guide
training and certification. Businesses that perform well may qualify for additional funding and
progressively lower interest rates. Applications are open now for the sites in Belize, Kenya,
Mexico and Tanzania. Businesses in Dominica, Madagascar and Philippines will be able to apply
as of October 2010.
###
Photos available here: [Link]
For more information contact:
Patricia Yakabe Malentaqui, Press Officer, Conservation International
Mobile: (+1) 202 906-0062
Office: (+1) 703 341 2471
Email: [Link]@[Link]
Shawn Parell, Communications Associate, United Nations Foundation
Email: sparell@[Link]
Notes to the Editor:
WH-LEEP: [Link]/global-issues/sustainable-development/wh-leep-
[Link]
UNESCO’s World Heritage List: [Link]
Verde Ventures is an investment fund managed by Conservation International to provide support
for small- and medium-sized businesses that contribute to healthy ecosystems and human well-
being. [Link]/verdeventures
The United Nations Foundation is an advocate for the UN and a platform for connecting
people, ideas, and capital to help the United Nations solve global problems. We build
partnerships, grow constituencies, mobilize resources and advocate policy changes to support the
UN’s work for individual and global progress. The UN Foundation’s work—focused on select
global problems—is decreasing child mortality, improving disaster relief, protecting diverse
cultures and environments, creating a clean energy future, empowering women and girls, and
improving U.S.-UN relations. For more information, visit [Link]