Belize Fund Awards $1.1 Million to Boost Conservation Projects

This week, the Belize Fund for a Sustainable Future supported NGO’s promoting biodiversity protection and sustainability with over a million dollars in funding. The Belize Fund held a ceremony yesterday where eight NGOs received a collective one point one million dollars for their various ongoing project. These projects include mangrove restoration, sustainable seaweed farming, and plastic pollution prevention. Executive Director Dr. Leandra Cho-Ricketts says that the fund has already invested more than twenty-three million dollars into conservation initiatives being led by NGO’s and government agencies. 

Dr.Leandra Cho Ricketts, Executive Director: “Belize Fund has invested a total of 23.6 million Belize dollars so far into marine conservation initiatives with 21 non-government  entities  and six  government agencies benefiting directly to date. We’ve also engaged  in a three-year strategic partnership that provides allocated financing to support and boost the management effectiveness of nine marine protected areas. But today we’re here to celebrate our new  grants award program recipients, And we have eight of them in our third  grant cycle, and including for the first time community grants which we are very excited about. We will hear in this afternoon’s program about the Belize Fund’s grant-making impact and contribution to marine conservation and learn  a bit about the importance of partnerships  in helping us to achieve a vibrant and resilient blue economy. At the Belize Fund, we strive to ensure that our investments  are fit for purpose  and inclusive and that they enable Belize to meet its national and global targets for ocean conservation  while  building a vibrant blue economy. So it’s balancing conservation with development. We plan to scale investments to advance nature-based blue economies and improve ocean governance in partnership with the government of Belize  and through expanded financing for people and natures.”

Director of Blue Economy Felicia Cruz said that the grant disbursement emphasizes the importance of collaborations between environmental stakeholders.

Felicia Cruz, Director of Blue Economy: “To amplify our impact, are passionately cultivating partnerships with both government and non-government organizations, empowering us to realize our shared objectives. It is with great enthusiasm that I highlight a few of these  crucial collaborations.  Firstly,  our strategic partnership agreement  with the Belize Marine Protected Areas Network. This is a signed and ongoing agreement with a commitment of $3,895,000 over three years from June this year  to May, 2027. This partnership is vital for enhancing the compliance and enforcement mechanisms within Belize’s extensive network of marine protected areas. Together, we are dedicated to ensuring that  our MPAs are not only well managed and resilient,  but also robustly safeguarded against threats. This collaboration aims to preserve and protect the  invaluable marine biodiversity that thrives in these ecosystems, securing their health and reinforcing Belize’s commitment to sustainable ocean stewardship.  Secondly, our collaboration with the Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT) this partnership seeks to significantly bolster conservation financing  for  Belize’s Network of Protected Areas by identifying and exploring  various opportunities. We aim to deepen investment in both conservation and climate finance and through this collaborative approach, we are strategically directing resources to strengthen our national protected areas system.”

The organizations that received grants were: Blue Nutrients Belize, World Wildlife Fund Mesoamerica, ECOMAR Barrier Reef Watch, Sea of Life Solutions Plastic Academy, Shark Fishers Association, Chunox Fishermen Association, Creative Imageries Motion Art Studio, and Three Lagoon Sustainability Program.