How we work
Wetlands International is the only global NGO dedicated to the protection, restoration and sustainable use of the world’s wetlands. A unique network of offices that originated locally and joined forces in 1996 to ensure worldwide impact and influence, we currently have 18 national, regional and global offices from Argentina to Japan – but have delivered conservation impact in over 100 countries.
Our decades of successful implementation, thought leadership, and policy advocacy have been based on science and enriched by traditional and local knowledge. We have co-created innovative solutions and best practices that we have road-tested in many different settings, geographies and cultures. These range from integrating nature into coastal engineering in Indonesia to wildfire management with Indigenous communities in the Pantanal, from promoting wet agriculture in peatlands to enhancing peace and security in the Inner Niger Delta.
Throughout our history we have worked in alliances across sectors, connecting communities, civil society organisations, companies, investors, and countries in the understanding that different perspectives are needed to co-create solutions that can reach scale and persist over time.
Our inspiring 30-year track record means we are uniquely positioned to lead wetland action worldwide and, together with partners large and small from communities to companies and local to global levels, reverse the loss and degradation of the world’s wetlands.
Everything we do, from science to policy and on-the-ground practice, aims to trigger transformative change for wetlands to benefit people, nature and climate. While we continue to deliver significant impact with partners in specific wetlands, our primary added value is not as an implementing agency but as a driver of systemic change at national, landscape and global levels.
Our approach seeks to inspire and enable the actual stewards of the world’s wetlands – from communities and cities to companies and countries – to scale up action to protect, restore and sustainably use the wetlands they are responsible for and so deliver transformative, global change. To do this, we will focus on four interconnected impact pathways:
Demonstrating Impact
Building on our 30-year track record, we will demonstrate impact through our site and landscape level interventions. Working with multiple partners in diverse geographies, we will have a significant direct impact, resulting in scalable best practices, innovative co-created solutions, and holistic landscape approaches. By becoming the Voice of Wetlands, we will ensure our solutions reach the widest possible audience. Find out more about how we Demonstrate Impact.
Leading Through Knowledge
Wetlands International will lead through knowledge, showcasing our successes in wetlands around the world to inspire others, while providing cutting edge mapping tools and technical guidance to guide action to where it is most needed and effective. Find out more about how we Lead Through Knowledge.
Creating a Movement
Wetlands International will create a movement, representing the voice of wetlands, building broader coalitions and alliances, and spreading the need and solutions for transformative wetland action across the globe. Find out more about how we are Creating a Movement to trigger transformational change in wetlands worldwide.
Leveraging Systemic Change
Wetlands International will leverage systemic change by ensuring governments adopt and implement new policies, businesses pursue sustainable practices, and financial institutions redirect their funding from harmful investments to wetland-positive ones. Find out more about how we Leverage Systemic Change in wetlands worldwide.
Landscape approach
At Wetlands International, we believe that conserving and restoring wetlands must go hand in hand with sustainably managing the broader landscape around them, encompassing the wider catchment and all the communities that depend on the landscape. That’s why we embrace a Holistic Landscape Approach, guided by the 4 Returns Framework (natural, social, financial and inspirational returns), which helps us and our partners design restoration efforts that benefit nature, people, and economies. Through our Wetlands 4 Resilience programme, we are now translating this overall approach into action across diverse landscapes.
Under our new strategy, we are deepening our commitment to 12 flagship landscapes across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America (see map below), combining site level action in wetlands with collective efforts to transform government, business and investment policies and practices to drive systemic change. These landscapes provide diverse and irreplaceable values for people, are important for climate mitigation and/or adaptation, and play a crucial role in sustaining biodiversity. They are also part of ecological corridors, flyways used by migratory waterbirds and swimways for migratory fish.
Our Focus Areas
Our work across the globe focuses on Rivers and Lakes, Peatlands, and Deltas and Coasts:
