From Conservation Challenges to Entrepreneurial Solutions: 15 Ventures Funded by Nature Returns

The Nature Returns Programme has reached an important milestone with the completion of the business development support phase for all selected entrepreneurs. Across five pilot protected areas in Europe and Africa, 15 ventures have now progressed from early-stage ideas towards implementation through Connectology’s tailored support process.

Nature Returns is a five-year initiative that explores how conservation, innovation, and entrepreneurship can work together to address environmental challenges while creating sustainable local economic opportunities. Within this framework, the 15 selected ventures were developed with a dual focus: contributing to biodiversity conservation and/or complementing the management capacity of protected areas, while also supporting sustainable local development.

The journey of these ventures began with onsite Academies and a structured selection process, where entrepreneurs worked closely with mentors and experts to refine their ideas. Building on this foundation, they then entered a business development support programme also led by Connectology. Through one-to-one mentoring, strategic guidance, investment readiness assessments, webinars, workshops, and ongoing helpdesk support, each venture received tailored assistance adapted to its specific needs and stage of development.

This personalised approach helped entrepreneurs strengthen their business models, refine their implementation strategies, and navigate the practical challenges of building early-stage nature-positive ventures. The selected ventures have demonstrated that protected areas can become spaces for innovation, entrepreneurship, and local resilience when conservation efforts are combined with structured, adaptive support. 

Find out more about the initiative here: https://nature-returns.eu/