My career has ranged from conservation projects for a British NGO in the Fiji Islands, Honduras and the Philippines, to community tourism initiatives in Northern Pakistan with the Aga Khan Foundation in my early twenties. I lived there for 20 months in 1991, after making my first overland journey across Asia as a hungry 18-year-old seeking adventure and truth.

I have also held many diverse roles as a project manager, such as working in fashion for a merchandising consultancy in Paris and as a Look and Feel manager for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. I have also led special interest tours through India and France, and diving expeditions around the World, including seaplane diving tours in the Maldives.

Since the pandemic and living in London, I have been lucky enough to work in the NHS. The people I work with are committed and have service at the very heart of their careers. I leave at the end of the day knowing only kindness is given, very much like a trustee gets to put the benefits of others’ wellbeing at the heart of every story.

The call of conservation – and community

I grew up in Borneo, surrounded by the beauty of biodiversity and adventures in nature. This privileged upbringing allowed me to witness first-hand the importance of conserving nature above one’s own immediate gratifications. Conservation work is all about good decision making.

My first conservation work was in Northern Pakistan with the Aga Khan Foundation. The project took me to communities living in balance and reciprocity with the natural world, even in some of the harshest and most hostile environments. One of the best experiences I witnessed there was after the valley opened with new built roads – many communities prioritised educating women now they could get access to school, resulting in a rapid improvement in general health and welfare, and uptake in education.

During my time with Coral Cay Conservation, I had my first experience of citizen science, which taught me the key lesson that good leaders learn most from hands on experience and being able to see issues from multiple perspectives. You can gain essential life experience from diverse interactions with the natural world and participating in scientific research, and it’s clear to me that nature’s classroom nurtures leadership qualities and improves decision making.

For example, in the Philippines, I witnessed the families of Bulata restarting their livelihoods again after a typhoon. Community leaders purposefully chose to preserve the Marine Sanctuary, despite the urgent need to feed themselves, because the importance of long-term preservation is widely understood as essential to the future of the island. Many of these community leaders then encouraged their own children to become the next generation of trustees for the sanctuary.

The power of these types of decisions for the betterment of many truly inspires me. Change may often take time and energy, but the benefits are clear. Conservation isn’t a luxury endeavor, but an art of living to be shared.

Becoming a Communities for Nature trustee

I met Rhoda on Danjugan island, when I was an expedition leader and project manager for another site. This project site had to close overnight for security reasons, and we approached our country partners, the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc. (PRRCFI) for help. Rhoda was the new island manager, so we had to rely on each other’s support and humor as we reallocated resources over to Danjugan Island.

Since then, Rhoda and I have stayed close friends, and when she approached me to be a Communities for Nature trustee, I knew both of our skillsets and instinctive ability to embrace change would lead us to make a successful team.

Being a trustee is a chance to nurture the values I believe in. I am happy to be involved in protecting biodiversity, promoting local community livelihoods, good governance and decision making. I am also aligned with Community for Nature’s transparency at every stage of our work. From where our funding comes from, to the communities and projects initiated, and the impact of our work.

Every day I am learning through our work how interconnected we are and discovering new ways to share skills, insights and resources, for the benefit of many. Drawing upon my own career as a project manager and leading expeditions, the key to building strong relationships is mutual respect and compassion.

I am also continually inspired by the trustees in the Philippines. They give Communities for Nature a sound foundation and selfless guidance to grow and build, especially in our first partnership with LMAX Group. There are so many projects and communities working to keep nature at the heart of life. These are the people we want to partner with.

The mutual model

As a trustee, it’s fantastic to see corporations wanting to make good decisions for the future, and our direct partnership model offers them a chance to really be hands on.

There is no blind donation. Each partnership is a co-designed, mutually respectful and beneficial relationship. Both groups, community and company, have different goals and objectives for the continuation of their work and lives and Communities for Nature can unite the two groups to find a common ground in which all can thrive.

Corporate sponsors benefit from the outlet for positive financial donations, meeting their ESG targets and having the chance to witness direct change because of their actions by interacting with communities directly and visiting their partnership in action, at the source.

Communities benefit from this as it provides an opportunity to grow and protect their people, culture, and resources by educating others, on a global platform, the struggles, and successes of their way of life.

To the horizon

Looking ahead, in the short term, our goal is to secure more partnerships in the Philippines, but the long-term future of Communities for Nature is bringing people together and facilitating more immersive experiences between the communities and corporate benefactors. Currently, this is assisted through technology, which is great for reaching out to a wider audience, but it doesn’t compare to the fulfillment and joy of direct hands-on experience.

I believe we are nature, and we are all constantly changing. This value enhances my sense of wonder and curiosity, growing my understanding and helping me to make trustee decisions with ease.

Rhoda’s environmental journey began in 2001, after a term banking in the Philippines when, looking for a new challenge and the chance to make a difference for local communities and the planet, she secured the role of Island Manager and Education Officer for the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc (PRRCFI) on Danjugan Island, a marine sanctuary that had been saved just years before in 1994.

The island had an immeasurable impact on Rhoda – its coral reefs, mangrove forests, white-bellied sea eagles, and community. For example, it was on Danjugan Rhoda first met Gerry Ledesma, Kaila Trebol and Sef Carandang, each with complementary skills, passion and vision, and now founding members of the Communities for Nature board.

At this stage, Rhoda was already inspired to help transform the culture of PRRCFI, define its vision and reset the organisation as a sustainable and strategic NGO. As the island evolved from a scientific hub into an award-winning marine protected area, eco-tourism destination and centre of community engagement, some of Rhoda’s personal highlights of PRRCFI’s achievements include helping to put over 4,000 students through marine camps. An alumnus and one of PRRCFI’s local fisheries, forestry and agriculture scholars was even recognised by Michelle Obama for her efforts in conservation. This core value of intergenerational engagement is something Rhoda carries with her today, alongside her belief in the power of diverse leadership, whether gender, class or otherwise.

Hungry for new horizons, Rhoda relocated to London to take on an MBA with a focus on culture change, where for over 15 years she led on a number of transformation programmes for Westminster City Council, and founded a management consultancy focusing on identifying and nurturing talent, called LDN.

Rhoda maintained her connection with Danjugan Island throughout, acting as a Board Trustee for the PRRCFI. But this wasn’t enough. She recognised the golden thread of supporting talent and driving change in hearts and minds that ran throughout her career, and set her sights on using her experiences for something bigger. Her belief that, given the right platform and support, people can achieve incredible things and actualise long-held ambitions drove her to create Communities for Nature: a facilitator to channel the talents and energies of disparate groups across continents into action helping to build a sustainable future for all.

Rhoda recognised the potential in her position and experience to help businesses think beyond their borders for trusted, effective environmental restoration and community engagement projects. She could take PRRCFI’s tried and tested community-led model and connect enthusiastic corporate supporters with those on the front line of conservation and sustainable development, to co-create solutions to challenges created by the climate and biodiversity crises.

It was out of witnessing PRRCFI grow and evolve and welcome new collaborators that Communities for Nature’s model was born: each partnership is co-designed by community and partner. It’s not just a blind donation, or best boast for corporate comms. With equity at heart, each voice is valued in a Communities for Nature partnership, supporter and community alike. Communities receive funding channeled where they need it the most and corporates have the chance to build relationships and share their skills with their partnered community, whilst being assured that their financial contribution is effecting real environmental change.

Rhoda describes her relationship with Danjugan as a love story, and it led to Communities for Nature. What began on a small marine sanctuary off the coast of Bulata in the Philippines is already creating change and building lasting relationships across the thousands of miles between London and Danjugan Island, through Actions for Communities and the Environment, Communities for Nature’s first partnership between LMAX Group and PRRCFI.

In time, Communities for Nature hopes to extend its model to support communities around the world, but if you are interested in exploring a Communities for Nature partnership there is no need to wait. Your love story with Danjugan can begin today. Be a part of building a sustainable future for all.