As we are all aware, wild nature is declining rapidly and the Earth's life support systems are under increasing stress. As nature erodes and the response of human systems is inadequate or destructive, it can seem that the only rational response is despair. However, if you zoom in from the big picture, a mosaic appears. Amongst the stories of loss, you find inspiring stories of regeneration and positive change. Stories in which nature is actually making a difference in people's lives and where people value and nurture their natural environment.
At Conservation Optimism we believe that these stories are the key to securing our planet's future. We need to learn from them, replicate them, and thereby build a world in which nature and people can coexist. Our mission is to help tell and amplify these stories of conservation optimism. Conservation Optimism is a spirit and an ethos that many organizations are embracing as we all move forward to build a more effective, more inclusive and more active future for conservation. To this end, we are working to build robust reciprocal relationships with organizations—collectively called the Conservation Network of Optimists Worldwide, or ConservationNOW.
Our members are working to inspire, motivate, equip, support and empower conservationists around the world, and they have joined this network so that collectively we can all be more effective at sharing our successes, broadening our reach and maximizing our impact. We currently have 60 member organizations. To amplify their voices, we publish their stories on our website and share their blogs with our enthusiastic Twitter community. By joining the network, organizations pledge to be optimistic but realistic. Acknowledging failures and exposing challenges is crucial to moving forward and learning from our mistakes. Our community is global, inclusive and uplifting. It aims to provide support for conservationists who are struggling with burnout and the general negativity that comes with working in the challenging world of conservation, and tools and resources to empower people from every walk of life to take action for conservation.
If you are interested in joining this community you can submit your application at conservationoptimism.org/join-conservationnow.
