New Funding Announced for Biodiversity Conservation in Indo-Burma
In February 2026, the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) will launch a new US$10 million, five-year investment in the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot, with a focus on selected conservation corridors in Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, with IUCN serving as the regional implementation team.
The first call for proposals will be announced on 2 February, with a closing date of 16 March. The call will be open to applications from local organisations in the hotspot for projects that address Strategic Directions 3 and 6 and Investment Priority 9.1 from the newly updated Indo-Burma Ecosystem Profile.
Another call will be launched in the second half of 2026, covering Strategic Directions 1 and 2 and Investment Priorities 9.2, 9.3 and 9.4; this call will be open to local and international organisations.
Calls for proposals will be announced on the CEPF's website and social media (LinkedIn, Facebook), as well as the social media for the IUCN Asia Regional Office (LinkedIn, Facebook), which is CEPF's regional implementation team (RIT) in Indo-Burma.
One of the most biologically important regions of the planet, Indo-Burma has been the recipient of US$37.5 million in funding for biodiversity conservation from CEPF since July 2008. The new investment in the hotspot seeks to build on progress made by CEPF grantees and to address growing threats to the biodiversity and ecosystems that millions of people in the region rely on for food, water, shelter and resilience in the face of the impacts from climate change.
To date, 429 grants have been awarded to nongovernmental organisations, community-based groups, academic institutions and other civil society organizations in Indo-Burma. With that support, CEPF grantees have:
- Strengthened the management of biodiversity within more than 3 million hectares of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) by promoting community-managed forests, fisheries and conservation areas and developing co-management mechanisms for protected areas.
- Established long-term conservation programmes for 35 globally threatened species, slowing and, in some cases, reversing declines in core populations.
- Delivered tangible well-being benefits to more than 250 local communities, including improved land tenure, food security and access to ecosystem services such as water, fish and fuel wood.
An Updated Conservation Strategy
Each time CEPF invests in a biodiversity hotspot, it conducts a participatory analysis of the biodiversity and socioeconomic conditions in the hotspot that results in an ecosystem profile. Produced by, and in consultation with, local stakeholders, profiles serve as regional conservation strategies.
In preparation for the new investment, the Indo-Burma Ecosystem Profile was updated through a consultative process coordinated by WWF between March and October 2025. More than 350 stakeholders were consulted during the process, through input from subject matter experts and country-level consultation workshops coordinated by WWF offices in each of the hotspot countries. Draft findings were presented and refined at the final assessment workshop in Bangkok in July 2025, organized by IUCN.
The updating process also benefited from the guidance of an advisory committee comprised of experts with experience in designing, implementing and funding conservation projects and programmes in the hotspot.
Much has changed in the five years since the Indo-Burma Ecosystem Profile was last updated, including the capacity of civil society; the political space in which it operates; the severity of threats to biodiversity and the social, economic and political drivers of those threats; and patterns of conservation investment by donors. These changes are reflected in the updated investment strategy, which also takes into account CEPF grantees’ experience implementing projects, during which many lessons were learned and good practices developed.
Stakeholders involved in the profile updating process urged CEPF not to make fundamental changes to the investment strategy because the strategies supported by CEPF are working but need longer than five years to deliver lasting impacts. Nevertheless, some changes were made to the list of priority species to reflect major changes to the IUCN Red List between 2020 and 2025 (including a 70% increase in the number of species assessed as globally threatened).
Other changes were made to the priority geographies, with the Chindwin River in Myanmar being dropped from the list of priority corridors due to the unfavorable security situation in the area. It was replaced by the Hala-Bala Forests Corridor in Thailand to create more opportunities for CEPF support to civil society groups in this country.
In terms of thematic priorities, the updated strategy includes an explicit focus on organisational development and makes provisions for start-up support and flexible financing (such as mini-grants or seed funding) to new grassroots organisations and groups led by Indigenous peoples and local communities.
About the Grant-Making Process
Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to familiarise themselves with the ecosystem profile, and to contact the RIT (email: [email protected]) if they have any questions or wish to discuss project ideas.
CEPF grants are competitive and applications are subjected to an objective peer review process.
Preference will be given to projects that address the following criteria:
- Are the closest fit to the investment priorities eligible for support under the call.
- Have a high likelihood of achieving their stated objectives and contribute strongly to sustainable conservation outcomes.
- Build upon past initiatives and complement ongoing initiatives.
- Represent good value for money.
- Demonstrate the institutional capacity and experience necessary to carry out the work.
CEPF welcomes applications from current and past grantees, as well as organisations that have not previously received CEPF funding.