The following is a summary of CCNet’s accomplishment’s this past year. The full overview can be downloaded here. These accomplishments were made possible by financial and considerable in-kind support by our members, partner organizations and donors. Thank you!
Recruit, Train and Support Coaches across Multiple Institutions around the Planet
We trained 44 new conservation coaches from Bulgaria, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, Haiti, Lebanon, Madagascar, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, and Russia. We currently have 625 active coaches, representing close to 200 institutions and helping projects in over 60 countries on all continents.
Approximately half of our members work with non-profit organizations, followed by 20% in independent consultancies and 13% in government agencies. Approximately 7% work with academic institutions and 4% in community-based and indigenous organizations and networks, and less than 2% represent foundations and land trusts.
Establish a Clear Pathway towards Professional Conservation Coaching
Newly minted CCNet coaches in Spain 2017.
Photo by Annette Olsson, CI
We completed a business plan for a CCNet Certification Program to provide an opportunity for conservation practitioners who coach projects with the Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation to be recognized through certification that indicates that they have achieved an “officially” acknowledged level of proficiency.
The program will entail second party certification, where CCNet is the entity certifying Conservation Coaches. The most experienced coaches in CCNet will be asked to help in reviewing coaches for certification. An initial cadre of proficient coaches is currently helping us pilot the program and we intend to promote this at our upcoming 2018 Coaches Rally. Based on our assessment, we believe that once 40-50 coaches are certified, the program will be recognized as a clear and desirable standard and will become sustainable.
Promote Efficient Knowledge Sharing
Our Franchises – Franchises are localized groups or network hubs that link and strengthen coaches within each region. This year we bolstered leadership in North America and Mesoamerica and established a regional website in Spanish for Mesoamerica and South America. Most franchises have conducted courses to train practitioners and students in the Open Standards in a variety of languages, including English, French, Spanish, and Russian. CCNet Europe held a regional Rally, where colleagues met to sharpen specific skills, elect a new franchise leader, and celebrate the formal registration of CCNet Europe as a legal entity.
Our Website – We have added updated content, reviewed and rated training materials with an inter-institutional vetting team, linked CCNet News to stories on our website, and improved search capacities on our website. This enables colleagues around the world to access free resources that help them conduct conservation and sustainable development projects and train colleagues in multiple languages.
Our Listserv – Through a simple e-mail exchange service we connect 544 subscribers from around the world. Subscribers ask questions, share experiences, and tell each other about interesting opportunities for applying the Open Standards, and talk about topics related to the practice of conservation and sustainable development.
Our Newsletter – We produced our biannual CCNet News to provide a unique forum where conservation practitioners tell stories about their work around the world in their own words. We invite you to look at past editions and sign up for the CCNet News here.
Our Partners – Through our alliance with the Conservation Measures Partnership, we launched our first global Open Standards “Adaptive Management Case Study Competition” as part of our commitment to cross-organizational, cross-project, and cross-coach practitioner learning. Our judges narrowed the entries down to the top five, which were then voted on via crowdsourcing. The first prize went to the Jane Goodall Institute and their story of twenty years of adaptive management protecting chimpanzees in Tanzania. Read more about this process and the three winners from Tanzania, Australia, and the United States here.
Institutionalize and Strengthen the Network.
For many years our colleagues in CCNet Europe have helped train practitioners and support important projects, but since only a few of the coaches in Europe are affiliated to an organization, most work has been on a volunteer basis. In May 2017, the European CCNet Franchise became a legal entity in Germany as a non-profit organization/association. Formally registration means CCNet Europe will be able to raise funds to expand its reach in the region.
This past December, we launched our first Crowdfunding Campaign on https://chuffed.org in alliance with 4nature, an Australian volunteer-based conservation group, to raise funds to help people from smaller organizations, or those working as individuals, attend our biennial CCNet Rally in Australia in 2018. The rally is incredibly empowering; coaches go back to their countries revitalized to support project teams with fresh ideas and renewed tenacity. Diversity is key to our community, and we hope to raise US$20,000 to help up to 20 coaches from unrepresented parts of the world cover travel costs.
Click below to watch the trailer that coaches from around the world helped put together. Our campaign will be open until February or March 2018, and we invite you to contribute! Any amount can make a difference to a coach in need.
What lies ahead? Please join us, so together we can:
- Hold our biennial gathering, the Global CCNet Rally from April 30 to May 3, 2018, in the Blue Mountains in Australia. The CCNet Coach Rally provides an opportunity for approximately 150 members of the CCNet community to come together to connect, exchange experiences, and explore and review new and evolving approaches, adaptations, and tools.
- Expand professional growth opportunities for CCNet members.
- Investigate new funding models to contribute to a self-sustaining network.
- Pilot the CCNet Certification Program with a first cadre of professional coaches.
CCNet Contacts:
- CCNet General Coordinator: John Morrison, WWF
- CCNet Chair: Brad Northrup
