Designing Conservation Projects for Transformational Change
Great conservation begins with rigorous and inclusive project design. This course gives you the frameworks, tools, and practical considerations to build projects that are fundable, equitable, and durable over time.
$125
Total: Course cost
5 hours to complete
modules
Online - self-paced
Learning modality
Earn a credential
View credential
$125
Total: Course cost
5 hours to complete
modules
Online - self-paced
Learning modality
Earn a credential
View credential
$125
Total: Course cost
5 hours to complete
modules
Online - self-paced
Learning modality
Earn a credential
View credential
$125
Total: Course cost
5 hours to complete
Duration
Online - self-paced
Overview
Conservation projects that aim for short-term outputs alone rarely produce lasting change. This course explores how to design projects that address root causes, engage the right people, and align with both ecological priorities and local community realities.
Learners will work through the full project design process: defining clear problem statements, mapping stakeholders and governance structures, establishing roles and responsibilities, and connecting project activities to broader social and ecological goals. Along the way, you will build practical fluency with core tools including theory of change, logical frameworks, stakeholder engagement planning, and adaptive management.
Key Benefits:
- Review and adapt a complete project design package from stakeholder assessment to work plan
- Learn to design with communities, not just for them
- Practical tools you can apply immediately in your own conservation work
- Understand how project design connects to fundraising, implementation, and accountability
- Honing critical thinking to ground conservation projects in specific contexts
- Practice real-world judgment calls through a guided scenario-based project
What's Included:
- Lessons covering the full project design process
- Hands-on project checkpoints using the Aurelia Coastal Resilience scenario
- Practical insights from experts at leading conservation organizations
- Case studies from real conservation projects
- Resources and templates to support you in effective conservation project design
Learn the strategic planning foundation needed to design conservation projects with the coherence, credibility, and community grounding that transformational impact requires.
Recommended resource
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Project Management Job Simulation
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Certificate program
This course is a part of the following certificate program:
Who this course is designed for
- Designed for early-career conservation professionals who are beginning to take on project design and management responsibilities.
- Beneficial for mid-career practitioners seeking to formalize and strengthen their design practice.
- Relevant to professionals working across NGOs, conservation agencies, research institutions, government bodies, and community-based organizations.
Outcomes
By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- Assess stakeholders and rightsholders and define their roles in project design and implementation
- Identify community and ecological needs, and develop a clear, evidence-based problem statement
- Build a logical framework with defined outcomes, measurable indicators, and milestones, and articulate a theory of change that explains how project actions will lead to the project goal
- Define the assumptions that must hold true for project success, identify key risks, and develop mitigation plans to address them
- Draft a work plan and implementation plan that guides project delivery from design through to action
- Explain the purpose of safeguards and safeguard plans, and integrate safeguard considerations into project design even when full plans are developed after project start
Practical skills you will develop
This program equips learners with vital skills to thrive in today's complex workforce. Key skills include:
These skills directly apply to these careers
Program support
Have additional questions?
Please reach out directly to conservationfuturesacademy@asu.edu for all course content related questions.
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