About Us

The Congo Conservation Foundation is an independent nonprofit organisation established to protect the ecosystems, communities, and biodiversity of the Congo Basin and Central Africa. Registered as a 501(c)3 in the United States, we operates through strategic partnerships with protected area authorities, field-based organisations, and local communities to advance conservation and sustainable development across one of the world’s most vital landscapes.

Where we work

We work across the Congo Basin, the largest remaining intact tropical forest system on Earth, with current programmes concentrated in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and the Greater Virunga Landscape. Our partnerships and mission extend across the wider Basin, encompassing the transboundary ecosystems and shared landscapes of Central Africa.

Organisation Philosophy
Conservation rooted in community

We support conservation grounded in the recognition that lasting ecological protection depends on the stability and well-being of surrounding communities.

Across the Congo Basin, protected areas exist within landscapes shaped by poverty, demographic pressure, political instability, and competition over land and resources. Durable conservation must therefore strengthen not only biodiversity, but also the legitimacy and resilience of the landscapes it operates within.

 

We believe conservation must generate tangible value for local populations.

Protected areas and surrounding ecosystems must support livelihoods, local partnerships, scientific knowledge, and long-term opportunity. Conservation cannot rely on enforcement alone.

The organisation supports applied, field-focused approaches with measurable impact; biodiversity protection, ecological restoration, human–wildlife conflict mitigation, One Health initiatives, research and monitoring, emergency response, and landscape-level resilience strategies suited to complex operational environments.

Effective conservation in the Congo Basin requires long-term commitment and durable partnerships between protected area authorities, local communities, governments, researchers, and international partners working across ecological and political boundaries.

Meet the Board


  • Emmanuel de Merode

    Director,
    Virunga National Park

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    Emmanuel de Merode

    Director,
    Virunga National Park

    Emmanuel de Merode has served as Director of Virunga National Park for over two decades, working at the intersection of conservation, conflict, and development in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. A trained anthropologist, he has advanced a model of conservation that integrates hydroelectricity, sustainable agriculture, and local economic development - recognizing that protected areas can only endure where communities benefit directly. His leadership of the Kivu-Kinshasa Green Corridor initiative applies these lessons at regional scale, fostering conservation-based economies across Central Africa.

  • Nicole Mollo

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    Nicole Mollo

    Nicole Mollo’s career spans senior leadership across The Wildcat Foundation, African Parks Network, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and the Recanati-Kaplan Foundation - institutions at the forefront of African conservation funding. She brings deep expertise in donor engagement, foundation management, and the philanthropic architecture that sustains long-term conservation impact.

  • Laura Parker

    Head of Conservation,
    Virunga National Park

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    Laura Parker

    Head of Conservation,
    Virunga National Park

    Laura Parker serves as Head of Conservation Programs at Virunga National Park and has worked in Central Africa for nearly two decades, beginning in humanitarian response before transitioning into conservation and sustainable development in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since joining Virunga in 2013, she has helped develop and implement programs focused on biodiversity monitoring, applied research, wildlife health, endangered species conservation, and transboundary collaboration across the Greater Virunga Landscape. Her work brings together science, field operations, and long-term conservation planning to strengthen ecological resilience and support sustainable conservation outcomes.