USAID and Biodiversity
Mary Rowen
Wildlife and Biodiversity Advisor
USAID/EGAT/NRM/B
Biodiversity and functioning ecosystems make up the foundation for human well-being.
USAID recognizes that improving livelihoods, security, and human health depend, in
part, on the conservation of biodiversity and healthy ecosystems. USAID is currently
implementing biodiversity conservation programs with an annual investment of $165
Million. These programs are diverse and cross-sectoral and include economic growth,
governance and the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
USAID assists developing countries in maintaining biologically diverse ecosystems and
environmental services while supporting sustainable development and economic growth.
USAID’s major emphasis in biodiversity conservation is to help countries maintain and
manage wild biodiversity in situ, in natural settings such as forests, grasslands, wetlands,
marine, and coastal habitats. In situ conservation maintains not only individual species,
but also functioning ecosystems and the services they provide. USAID’s approach to
conservation has evolved since the 1980s from programs that focused on single species
conservation and protected area management to programs that now emphasize
biodiversity conservation across large landscapes and multiple land uses. The current
approach recognizes that biodiversity cannot be conserved only in isolated areas and that
much of the world’s biodiversity is not located in protected areas. This approach
underscores that participation by local stakeholders in conservation programs is critical to
their success.
The USAID biodiversity presentations at this Symposium describe USAID’s approach to
biodiversity conservation, the USAID biodiversity earmark requirements, and how to best
fit biodiversity goals into cross-sectoral programs including agriculture, economic growth
and governance.