Increasing Conservation Finance For Uganda's Protected Areas through Wildlife Tourism 

Uganda supports an exceptional network of protected areas capturing diverse and unique landscapes including savannahs, tropical forests and volcanic peaks. It is one of the top ten most bio-diverse countries in the world, featuring more than half of the world’s mountain gorilla populations and over 1000 bird species. However, like many protected area authorities in Africa, the Uganda Wildlife Authority lacks the financial resources to adequately manage their protected area estate. The Giants Club, in partnership with the African Wildlife Foundation, Conservation Capital and the government of Uganda, recently identified conservation tourism opportunities in Uganda’s protected areas and hosted the first conservation and tourism investment forums in Uganda. The forum generated incredible interest in smart investment in Uganda, which will result in a substantial increase in revenue for Uganda’s protected areas. This talk will highlight the challenges in conservation finance, the Uganda government led process to optimize the economic opportunities in their parks to enhance conservation and the next steps. 

Speaker Bio

Kathleen H. Fitzgerald, Vice President of Programs for East and Southern Africa, African Wildlife Foundation

Kathleen is Vice President of Programs for East and Southern Africa for the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF). She oversees the conservation programs for AWF across East and Southern Africa and has been based in Africa since 2007. Kathleen has helped AWF secure land and improve land management across the continent through easements, acquisition, leases, land use planning and the establishment of conservancies. She has completed dozens of land transactions and published numerous papers and articles on conservation and tools that can be used to protect land and wildlife in a way that supports communities. Kathleen has worked with protected areas—government, private and community—to enhance ecological, social and financial sustainability and leads AWF’s protected area finance program. Kathleen graduated from St. Lawrence University with a major in Environmental Studies and Government and has an MS from University of Vermont.