Today, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to advance the bipartisan U.S. Foundation for International Conservation Act from Sens. Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) that would establish a foundation to provide financial support for effective local community management of protected areas around the world. This vote comes after the House Foreign Affairs Committee also approved a companion measure from Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) last month. In response, WWF issued the following statement from Alejandro Pérez, senior vice president of policy and government affairs:
"Today's action in the Senate to advance the U.S. Foundation for International Conservation Act is a major step forward in reaffirming American leadership to protect nature around the globe. Nature is under increasing threat, and we need to find ways to mobilize significant new finance from both the public and private sectors if we are to address this challenge at the scale required. By creating a new U.S. Foundation for International Conservation, this legislation will help to forge new public-private partnerships to conserve essential landscapes and seascapes and the natural resources they provide. WWF commends the bipartisan group of lawmakers that has now advanced this legislation through committees in both the House and Senate. We urge both chambers of Congress to pass it into law in order to strengthen U.S. government partnerships with the private sector, local communities, and developing countries that will help protect our planet and the people who depend on it."
