Rewriting the Rules of Conservation: Designing Better Collaborations, Not Just Projects
Hosts: Taita Taveta Wildlife Conservancies Association; Legado; Maliasili
High-performing local organizations are set up for the long-term, yet they struggle to find that matches their vision and commitment. Funding conservation is overly projectized — organized around grants, timelines, and predefined outputs — often at the expense of the trust, alignment, and adaptability that landscapes require to endure. What if, instead of designing better projects, we designed better collaborations?
At this Marmalade session, Taita Taveta Wildlife Conservancies Association (TTWCA), Legado, and Maliasili invite participants to explore a different organizing principle: placing communities firmly in the driving seat while aligning funders, intermediaries, and local actors around their mandate. Grounded in landscape leadership from Taita Taveta, Kenya, we will examine what becomes possible when a locally mandated leader (TTWCA), a partner-strengthening organization (Maliasili), and a Thriving Futures catalyst partner (Legado) coordinate intentionally — unlocking the flexibility to respond to emerging challenges while staying anchored to community priorities.
Designed as a highly participatory experience, the session unfolds in three acts: The Autopsy With uncommon candor, the partners will examine where project-based approaches have historically constrained collaboration and community agency. We will "autopsy" real scenarios where rigid timelines and predefined outputs failed the landscape, and discuss what this means for those investing in long-term outcomes.
The Partnership Pre-Nup
We introduce our "Pre-Nup" framework. This clarifies roles, boundaries, and accountabilities before a crisis hits. We will bring this to life using the Marungu Hills community-led conservancy as a case study, showing how a pre-nup helps partners deploy resources with greater coherence and less duplication.
The Pre-Nup in Practice (The Crisis Simulation)
Participants will receive “Crisis Cards”—such as a wildfire scenario near Voi. We will test two distinct pathways together:
The Conventional Path
How fragmented, project-based structures slow down response and erode trust.
The Aligned Path
How our partnership architecture enables communities and supporters to respond to emerging challenges with agility and shared risk.
Our ambition is simple: that participants leave seeing community-led conservation not as a complementary approach, but as the structural foundation for enduring ecological and social impact — and recognizing the critical role aligned partners and funders play in making it possible.
Speakers
Taita Taveta Wildlife Conservancies Association (TTWCA)
Alfred Mwanake-Chief Executive Officer - A renowned community led conservation leader with experience in natural resource management and community engagement.
Maurine Nduati-Partnership,Engagement and Gender Officer - A seasoned inclusion champion advancing inclusive practices in conservation and natural resources management in community led protection areas.
Agatha Ogada, Regional Director of Partnerships and Programs — an accomplished leader in marine conservation, rights-based natural resource management, and locally led change.
Walter Lenolngenje, Kenya Program Manager — born and raised in Samburu County, with deep experience advancing community-led approaches across northern Kenya and the wider East Africa region.
Jessie Davie: Director of Communications & Strategic Development - a long-time supporter of locally led conservation, working to build organizational strength and help rebalance power by elevating local leadership and influencing more equitable funding practices.
Omagano Shooya: Deputy Director of Portfolio Funding - a Namibian conservation practitioner with expertise in climate change adaptation and natural resource management, grounded in hands-on experience strengthening community institutions and committed to helping local organizations access the funding to lead and sustain impact.
Further reading from Legado and Maliasili.
This venue has a capacity of 40.