Reimagining Conservation

The loss of U.S. leadership in global conservation is devastating for local livelihoods, wildlife, forests, oceans, and human health. The disruption also creates a rare window to shape what comes next. Until early 2025, U.S. investment in global conservation was roughly $500 million a year across 60+ countries. With that funding halted, there is a unique opportunity to agree on what should be rebuilt, what should not, and how things could be done more effectively. Reimagining Global Conservation is building a bipartisan coalition and producing a practical playbook of functions, structures, decision points, and governance options for U.S. government engagement in international conservation.

On February 4, our team convened a group of cross-sector leaders to share practical wisdom on building broad-based, cross-party coalitions necessary to generate influence and sustain impact. Moderated by Tonya Rawe (TMRawe Consulting), the panel featured three experienced coalition organizers.

• Cassandra Carmichael (National Religious Partnership for the Environment): Unites diverse faith traditions around the shared value of stewardship.
• Kabir Thatte (DigDeep): Bridges the gap between rural districts and local stakeholders to solve critical water access challenges.
• Ellen Hamlett (Institute for Justice): Brings together diverse legal and policy advocates to ensure government accountability.

Here are five key lessons on how to avoid a “logo soup” coalition where organizations line up their logos on a statement without meaningful coordination and instead build a coalition that can withstand the challenges of a shifting landscape and create impactful systems-level change.

Lesson 1: Choose Mission Over Consensus

In the rush to build a big-tent coalition, it’s tempting to accommodate every partner’s preferences. One panelist warned that this leads to “bending over backwards,” resulting in a group that has “nothing new other than back pain.” The alternative is not rigid uniformity, it’s clarity: coalitions are strongest when they are for something together, while making explicit that members do not need to agree on everything else. That only works if you set norms that give people permission to disagree and boundaries that define what the coalition will, and will not, try to accomplish.

Practical Application: Keep coming back to the shared yes: the mission, the outcomes you are aligned on, and the handful of non-negotiables that make the coalition worth having. At the same time, make room for real differences by setting clear “permission to disagree” norms, so people can raise concerns early, disagree without contempt, avoid surprise public shots at partners, and assume good faith even when they do not share the same politics or priorities. Then, when requests or demands start pulling the group away from what is mission-critical, hold the line. It is usually better to let someone’s participation pause or evolve than to stretch the coalition into an everything-bagel that cannot hold.

Lesson 2: Be Intentional About “Front-Facing” vs. “Behind the Curtain” Advocacy

The panel distinguished between operating as a “front-facing” entity versus a “behind-the-curtain” coordinator, noting that effective coalitions must strategically shift between these modes depending on context and goal.

Practical Application:

• Go “Behind the Curtain” when specific moral or economic arguments are needed. One panelist noted that a “least common denominator” consensus statement—where everyone says exactly the same thing—is often weaker than allowing partners to use their own distinct language. By coordinating advocacy timing rather than the specific messaging, you allow a policymaker to hear unique, persuasive arguments from different constituents.
• Go “Front of the Curtain” when legitimacy is the goal. Conversely, utilize joint statements and public alignment when the strategy relies on proving that “unlikely stakeholders” are united on a specific outcome. This approach is necessary to “cut through the noise” and demonstrate that an issue has crossed the threshold into a “common value.”

Lesson 3: Leverage Messengers with Local and Economic Authority

To establish conservation as a core national interest, we must expand who carries the message. One panelist said that bringing in stakeholders from rural communities and the private sector validates to decision-makers that you aren’t working on a niche issue.

Practical Application: Map your stakeholders by influence and authority, specifically seeking out those with credibility and standing. For the international conservation community, engaging messengers who can speak to the tangible economic or security benefits of conservation helps cut through the noise and demonstrates widespread, common-sense support to decision-makers.

hold.

Lesson 4: Allow Members to “Walk Separately Together”

Alignment on a goal does not always require alignment on public tactics, and coalitions can actually gain strength when members disagree on important things but still choose to stand together on a few shared commitments. When people who do not naturally share the same worldview can credibly say, “we agree on this much, and it matters,” it signals durability, broadens legitimacy, and makes the coalition harder to dismiss as just another interest group.

Practical Application: At times, consider a “walking separately together” strategy. Coordinate on the ultimate destination while allowing partners to maintain separate tracks. This respects the distinct identities of members, such as faith-based organizations and corporate stakeholders who are rowing in the same direction but may need to maintain their own independent branding and voice.

Lesson 5: Build Relationship Resilience Beyond Any One Person

When designing for the long haul, professional transactions alone rarely sustain momentum through fiscal or legislative stalemates. True resilience relies on social capital: the personal trust that keeps partners engaged when strategies stall. However, if that trust resides in only a small number of individuals, it becomes a liability. Sustainability requires that these ties go beyond a few points of contact, ensuring that the departure of any one person does not jeopardize collective progress.

Practical Application: Prioritize personal connections as a strategic asset, but avoid relying on a single owner for critical relationships where possible. Look for lightweight ways to broaden points of connection, for example pairing a program lead with an operations or policy counterpart, creating occasional cross-team check-ins, or rotating who joins key partner calls. In some contexts, a simple “two-deep” practice can help, ensuring there is at least a clear second point of contact who knows the history and can step in when needed.

Join the Movement

This learning event was just one step in our effort to develop a playbook of scenario-based strategies to inform the future USG role in international conservation.

Ready to contribute? Join our mailing list for updates, resources, and invitations to upcoming working group sessions.Want to support this work directly? Make a contribution to help us expand our coalition-building efforts. Your donation serves as both direct input to the work AND a signal that conservation matters.