The African CSOs Biodiversity Alliance (ACBA) has launched the ACBA Biodiversity Academy (ABA), a new learning platform that will bring together biodiversity practitioners, community leaders, researchers and conservation organisations from across Africa. The Academy aims to promote African-led learning, knowledge sharing and practical solutions to biodiversity loss and climate change.
The Biodiversity Academy has been created as a shared learning space where African voices and experiences take centre stage. It is designed to promote knowledge sharing, practical learning, and innovation in biodiversity conservation.
“Across the continent, there is a wealth of knowledge, innovation, and experience in biodiversity conservation. The Biodiversity Academy seeks to bring these voices together, creating a space where African practitioners can learn from one another and build a shared vision for a sustainable future,” said Yemi Katerere, ACBA Executive Director.
The Academy is rooted in the belief that effective biodiversity conservation must be informed by local realities and community experiences. Through webinars, peer-learning exchanges, case studies, and practical training opportunities, ABA aims to strengthen the capacity of biodiversity practitioners while amplifying African narratives and success stories.
At the centre of the launch is the Environmental Conservation Trust of Uganda (ECOTRUST), one of ACBA’s founding members and a long-standing leader in conservation finance and landscape restoration. For over 27 years, ECOTRUST has become a trusted voice in designing practical conservation models that work for both people and the environment.
ECOTRUST’s “Landscape Restoration as a Business” model encourages communities and stakeholders to treat environmental restoration not only as an environmental duty but also as an economic opportunity. The model promotes investment in tree planting, forest restoration, sustainable farming, and nature-based enterprises that generate income while restoring ecosystems.
Following the official launch of the Academy, ECOTRUST has begun leading a three-part webinar series under ABA. The first webinar, which took place on 12 June, 2026, introduced participants to ECOTRUST’s conservation finance journey and its practical lessons from Uganda.
The opening Webinar was delivered by Pauline Nantongo, Executive Director of ECOTRUST, where she guided participants through the evolution of ECOTRUST’s work, explaining how the organisation developed its conservation finance model and how it has supported communities to benefit from environmental restoration activities.
The webinar focused on how conservation projects can be designed as sustainable investment opportunities. Participants were introduced to the idea of making nature investible by turning a biodiversity or climate challenge into an investment opportunity that creates long-term financial, social and environmental benefits when structured in the right way.
“ECOTRUST treats every participating household as an individual economic unit,” Executive Director of ECOTRUST, Pauline Nantongo noted. “The financial incentives from carbon and biodiversity credits allow families to safely shift their financial planning away from short-term, degrading cycles (like sugarcane or maize) toward long-term, sustainable forestry.”
The ongoing webinar series will continue with more technical sessions, learning how ECOTRUST has successfully worked with local communities to restore degraded landscapes while improving livelihoods through income-generating activities. These will cover topics such as: nature markets, conservation financing tools, and community-owned investment models. The goal is to provide practical knowledge that organisations can apply in their own conservation work.
The series will also share real community experiences where ECOTRUST will present case studies from farmers and local groups in Uganda who have successfully participated in restoration programmes. These stories will show how conservation efforts can directly improve household incomes while protecting natural resources.
As the webinar series unfolds, the ACBA Biodiversity Academy is already positioning itself as a key platform for learning and innovation. With ECOTRUST at the forefront, the initiative is helping to show how African-led knowledge can drive real change in biodiversity conservation and create a more sustainable future for communities and ecosystems across the continent.
