Conservation Trust Fund

Mongolia's nature, held in trust

Securing lasting financial and technical resources to restore, protect, and enhance Mongolia's unique biodiversity, for present and future generations.

About Us Our Initiatives

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Mission

We unlock the finance and know-how to help Mongolia's people safeguard their unique natural heritage and build a climate-resilient future.

Vision

Shaping a better future for nature and people through sustainable finance.

Global Context

Framing Mongolia in
Global Context

Across the globe, biodiversity faces increasing threats from climate change, land-use change, and unsustainable resource use. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) sets ambitious targets for 2030 to halt and reverse biodiversity loss through well-connected, effectively managed, and equitably governed conservation systems.

Mongolia is aligning its national strategies with these global commitments, advancing policy and financial reforms to strengthen biodiversity protection. As a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Paris Agreement, and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, Mongolia has made bold commitments to safeguard its unique ecosystems and build climate resilience.

These include protecting and sustainably managing 30% of Mongolia's land including grasslands, forests, deserts, mountains, rivers and lakes, and safeguarding critical migratory corridors that connect Asia, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and strengthening climate resilience. These landscapes are essential to sustaining ecosystem functions and services that underpin local livelihoods, while contributing to a global network that benefits both people and nature far beyond Mongolia's borders.

Why Mongolia

Four reasons conservation matters here

01 / 04

Protecting Mongolia's Ecosystems

Mongolia is home to one of the world's largest intact ecosystems covering grasslands, taiga forests, steppes, and deserts supporting unique biodiversity. Conserving these landscapes is vital, as grasslands act as major carbon sinks and strengthen climate resilience.

02 / 04

Safeguarding Biodiversity and Wildlife

Mongolia's diverse ecosystems support species of global importance, including snow leopards, argali, saiga, gazelles, cranes, vultures, and a wide range of native vegetation. Protecting these habitats is essential for maintaining regional biodiversity and ecological stability.

Snow leopard
Argali
Saiga
Gobi bear
Wild camel
Mongolian gazelle
Cranes
Cinereous vulture

03 / 04

Sustaining Livelihoods and Culture

Healthy ecosystems underpin the livelihoods and traditions of nomadic herder communities who represent one-third of Mongolia's population and have sustained their cultural heritage across generations, relying on these landscapes for their way of life.

04 / 04

Sustainable Development

Safeguarding critical landscapes and ecosystems is essential to sustaining long-term development, diverse and resilient economies, and quality of life.

$61M Financing committed to MNLF

16 Protected areas in portfolio

13.8M+ Hectares under stewardship

2024 Year founded

Who

we are

Founded in 2024, the Mongolian Nature's Legacy Foundation (MNLF) is an independent, non-profit Conservation Trust Fund, legally registered in the United States as a 501(c) and operating in Mongolia through its representative office. Guided by the principles of transparency, independence, and good governance, MNLF is a dedicated, national financial intermediary that mobilizes and manages resources to fund high-impact projects delivering lasting, measurable results for biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, and environmental protection, in line with government priorities.

About

What

we do:

01
Mobilize and catalyze sustainable finance from public, private, and international sources, unlocking additional investment for conservation and climate action.
02
Strategically fund impactful initiatives aligned with national environmental priorities, ensuring measurable and lasting results.
03
Strengthen systems and capacity by supporting governance, planning, monitoring, and results-based management in environmental programs.
04
Foster partnerships to drive innovation and new approaches, bringing together government, private sector, and communities to deliver effective conservation solutions.

Our Initiatives

Eternal
Mongolia

Project Finance for Permanence

A long-term initiative to permanently close the conservation financing gap, securing $198M over 15 years for Mongolia's protected areas.

$198M financing

2024 program starts

4 programme goals

About the PFP

four main goals

01 / 04 Community-Based Natural Resource Management Securing livelihoods and rangelands for 24,000 herder families through the Green Herder Loan Programme. Read more

02 / 04 Management Effectiveness of Protected Area Systems Ensuring Mongolia's parks are well-managed, well-resourced, and resilient under updated legal frameworks. Read more

03 / 04 Expand the National Protected Area Network Adding 14 million hectares of new protected lands to reach the global 30×30 commitment. Read more

04 / 04 Sustainable Financing Mechanisms Building diversified, lasting funding tools, from results-based budgeting to biodiversity offsets. Read more

Our Grantees

Protected Areas Accelerator Program
Grantees

See Grantees

As part of the Eternal Mongolia PFP, MNLF provides grant funding and technical assistance to protected area administrations across Mongolia, strengthening management, governance, financing, and community stewardship across the national PA network.