WWF works to sustain the natural world for the benefit of people and wildlife, collaborating with partners from local to global levels in nearly 100 countries.
In June, WWF welcomed supporters from across the country to this year’s Partner Symposium, which we presented in an entirely virtual format. Our foremost experts and leadership discussed how, with your help, WWF is setting the course toward a healthy future for people and nature. Please see below for recordings of the sessions from this year’s event.
President’s Report with Carter Roberts, with a welcome from Julie Miller
Welcome to the 2020 Partner Symposium, followed by a report from WWF President and CEO Carter Roberts on the organizational response to COVID-19, our current priorities, our statement on racial injustice, and opportunities for our work looking ahead.
WWF has long understood that people who live in the places where we work are critical partners in conservation. WWF experts Kerry Cesareo, Allard Blom, and Alex MacLennan tell the story of community-centered conservation in the Dzanga-Sanga Protected Area Complex, where WWF works directly with people to support community management of natural resources in the forest ecosystem that gorillas, elephants, and people call home.
WWF’s Chief Conservation Officer Nik Sekhran, Chief Scientist Rebecca Shaw, and Senior Vice President of Wildlife Conservation Ginette Hemley explain on our work at the intersection of conservation and human health, and offer strategies to create better health opportunities for people and nature.
We concluded the Partner Symposium with a live Q&A on the state of conservation with Nik Sekhran, Rebecca Shaw and Ginette Hemley. Participants posed questions about the Symposium sessions and other conservation-related topics.
Court Whelan, Director of Sustainability and Conservation Travel for Natural Habitat Adventures, led a group discussion about the benefits of ecotourism, WWF’s Travel program, and how COVID-19 is impacting the travel industry and local communities.
Erin Simon, WWF’s Head of Plastic Waste and Business, discussed the challenges with plastic recycling and explored how COVID-19 is impacting plastic pollution, offered the group examples of how to raise your voice to influence business’ policies, and revealed WWF’s latest work to partner with some of the world’s largest corporate consumers of plastic to reduce their footprints.
Nelly Kadagi, Director of WWF’s Education for Nature (EFN) program, shared her personal story of growing from a EFN scholarship recipient to director of the program. She also shared her ambitions for the future of EFN, how the program works to support its alumni, and how WWF empowers other emerging conservation leaders around the world.
Led by Sara Thomas, WWF’s Activism and Outreach Director, and Jemma Paradise, a WWF Panda Ambassador, this group learned about the amazing work of our Panda Ambassador program, saw examples of WWF’s activism efforts, and heard how supporters can advocate for our planet by speaking with their local representatives in DC during our Lobby Day event.
Kerry Cesareo, WWF’s Senior Vice President of Forests, led a discussion about her personal experience as a woman in conservation, talked about female role models she has had throughout her career, and shared examples of empowering women on the ground to lead their local community’s conservation efforts.
Alex MacLennan, WWF’s Senior Director of Content and Editorial Communications, and Bex Young, WWF’s Director of Social Media and Digital Engagement, spoke with this group about sharing WWF’s story through our magazine and social media platforms, how we work to make supporters feel connected to WWF’s work, and how we adapt our messaging in a changing world.
