Motivation
The natural world is under threat by many different drivers that act on a global scale. Many people watch beautiful documentaries about exotic places and wonderful plant and animal species or visit the most remote and pristine areas on their travels. They have positive feelings regarding these places and images and feel peaceful and comforted just thinking of them. However, the current state of many natural areas and the negative news about nature, climate and biodiversity, although true and real, can have a discouraging effect and create a negative feeling which can lead to indifference and apathy.
Especially for young people who have yet to start making a difference in this world, this can be very discouraging. Those who are motivated to become active in nature conservation often become discouraged by the negative news and the challenges ahead. While they are and should be the new leaders for nature! Inspired by Future For Nature (FFN) Award winners and other nature conservation heroes, the Future For Nature Academy believes that positive and optimistic stories about successes in nature conservation help increase awareness and create motivation and empowerment that spark individual actions to turn things around.
A word-cloud based on the various texts on the FFN Academy website. This is what we are about!
Who we are
The Future For Nature Academy is a movement, a (inter)national network of students and young graduates with a passion for nature conservation. It was founded in 2016 by ecologists Ignas Heitkönig and Rascha Nuijten in the Netherlands and quickly grew into a buzzing community. By organizing varying activities such as lectures, documentary-evenings, workshops and symposia we create a platform for people to meet, discuss and form new ideas. Through this platform young people meet and make plans for a better future for nature. Together. We operate under the wing of the Future For Nature Foundation.
What we do
Over the past two years the movement expanded and organized a wide range of free-for-all activities, from small-scale workshops about making your own plastic free bread-bags to big symposia about science and nature conservation to palm oil campaigns with Friends of the Earth. Most activities are opportunistic and focus around conservation success stories, but we do not shy away from topics such as biodiversity loss or (national) climate change policy.
The FFN Academy offers young, passionate people a chance to build their own network and meet like-minded peers and experts, to create plans about how they themselves can contribute to a better, more sustainable future. Leading by example we promote a ‘green(er)’ lifestyle and explore sustainable choices in all aspects of daily live (from food and cosmetics to sustainable banking and political choices). Sharing these experiences within and beyond our network motivates others to also opt for green alternatives. To help the new generation on its way to become the conservation heroes of the future, we also share internship and volunteering opportunities and facilitate individuals to join workshops.
Conservation Optimism
Next to our slogan Passion. Inspiration. Conservation. , Conservation Optimism is our core value. We are therefore very happy to join the Conservation Optimism movement and we fully identify ourselves with the mission statement. We hope that through this network all the partners stand stronger in their fight and that together we will make a positive change for nature.
This blog is written by the
Future For Nature (FFN) Academy.
