Functional community governance structures are in place. Land tenure is secured. Resource conflicts are declining. Communities are experiencing measurable improvements in livelihoods and access to services. These are the foundations without which nothing else holds.
Conservation and livelihoods become visibly mutually reinforcing. Communities actively protect landscapes because doing so serves their interests. Governance bodies operate with greater autonomy, using data to guide their own decisions. Funding relationships diversify, reducing vulnerability to any single donor.
We measure success by what no longer requires our presence: professionally governed, financially resilient community organisations capable of attracting and stewarding investment on their own terms; conservation models replicable at scale; and partnerships built on shared strategy rather than dependency.
