Nature Markets

Nature markets are mechanisms that pay for the benefits nature provides: carbon stored in forests and soils, freshwater secured for downstream communities, and commodities produced without converting habitat. They can direct private capital toward protecting, restoring, and sustainably using the ecosystems the global economy depends on. WWF's Nature Finance and Investment team (NFI) originates, supports, and finances high-integrity nature-based projects for markets across ecosystem services, with a focus on carbon outcomes. Rooted in six decades of conservation across 100+ countries, our portfolio of projects is designed to address nature loss, support sustainable livelihoods, and mitigate climate risks. It shows how nature markets can deliver measurable environmental and community outcomes alongside credible returns for investors and lenders.

Our approach to nature-based projects

WWF originates and supports the highest-impact projects in critical landscapes around the world, working with local stakeholders and leading developers in places where we have a long-standing presence and local knowledge. We back projects that center nature and people — protecting the watersheds that supply drinking water, restoring habitat for wildlife, and opening new income streams for local communities — working with partners to build investable projects that meet market demand. With integrity as the baseline, we are advancing project design that is not only investible but defined by quality for inclusive community engagement, landscape integration, benefit sharing, and nature outcomes.

Within NFI, our Nature Markets team originates or supports projects in priority landscapes that both meet our high-impact standards and can attract the finance they need. We direct carbon finance to restore, protect, and improve the world’s most important natural capital by unlocking high-integrity projects — providing early-stage financing, strong institutional backing, and technical assistance. In doing so, we are demonstrating how carbon and other commercial finance can be mobilized at scale to deliver the conservation and community impacts at the heart of our mission.