The Darwin Initiative

The Darwin Initiative seeks to help safeguard the world's biodiversity by drawing on biodiversity expertise to work with local partners in countries that are rich in biodiversity but poor in financial resources. Since its launch at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio, the programme has already committed over £80 million to more than 725 biodiversity projects in over 150 countries.

Defra is now inviting applications for Scoping and Fellowship funding and for the UK Overseas Territories Challenge Fund. The guidance notes for applicants and application forms are available on the Darwin website at http://darwin.defra.gov.uk/apply. If you have difficulty accessing the information and forms please contact LTS International. The documents are also available in large print on request.

Please read the Guidance Notes carefully because there are changes to the eligibility criteria for both the Scoping and Fellowship schemes, which broaden the scope.

The closing date for all applications is Monday 30 January 2012. Defra expects to announce the successful applicants towards the end of March 2012.

Further information on the Darwin Initiative, including lists of projects funded in previous rounds, and copies of project documents can also be found on our website.