A $15 million unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott is giving Maliasili a new source of capital as the African conservation organisation begins work under a new 2030 strategic plan. The grant, received in late 2025, is the second time Scott has supported Maliasili. Her earlier funding, awarded in 2021, helped establish the Maliasili Conservation Fund, a pooled funding model designed to give conservation organisations more flexible and longer-term financial support. As reported by Maliasili, since then, that fund has attracted more than $14 million and supported 28 partner organisations over three years. Maliasili says those partners have also used the funding to bring in additional resources, strengthening the model beyond the original grants.
How Scott’s $15 million grant could change conservation funding for Maliasili
The latest $15 million award arrived as Maliasili was preparing to begin a new phase of its work. The organisation describes the money as one-time unrestricted funding, giving it considerable scope in how the grant can be used within its wider strategy.For Maliasili, the timing matters because the organisation is beginning its new strategic plan for 2030. Rather than treating Scott’s latest contribution as a standalone grant, it plans to use part of the funding to expand an approach that emerged from her first gift.Scott’s support has become associated with unrestricted or trust-based philanthropy, in which organisations are given greater discretion over how money is allocated. In Maliasili’s case, the earlier grant was used to test a funding structure intended to address a longstanding issue for conservation groups: access to reliable core funding rather than money tied only to individual projects.
The conservation fund that grew from Scott’s first grant
Maliasili used its 2021 funding from Scott as seed capital for the Maliasili Conservation Fund, known as MCF. Instead of operating as a conventional grant programme, the fund combines flexible financial support with organisational strengthening and help with fundraising.That distinction has shaped how the fund has developed. Partner organisations receive core and multi-year funding, while also getting support intended to improve their ability to operate, raise money and build stronger institutions.Over the following three years, MCF secured more than $14 million in additional funding. Maliasili says the fund supported 28 partners during that period. The organisation also points to the money that those grants helped generate beyond the initial investment. For every $1 provided through the conservation fund, partners unlocked roughly another $3 in funding, according to Maliasili.
Why flexible funding is at the centre of the model
Many conservation organisations operate with restricted project grants, where funding is attached to a particular activity or outcome. That can leave less room for spending on staff, organisational development, planning or other needs that do not fit neatly into a project budget.MCF was designed differently. Its funding could be used more flexibly, alongside practical support intended to strengthen the organisations receiving it. Maliasili says this combination has helped its partners become stronger organisations while increasing their capacity to deliver conservation work. The organisation is now seeking to extend that approach to more groups and across a broader geographical area.
Maliasili builds on its $14 million conservation funding experiment
The $15 million grant will provide seed capital for the new pooled funding mechanism. Maliasili plans to make this a significant part of its strategy through 2030, building on what it says has already worked through MCF.The organisation sees flexible funding as a way of drawing more resources towards African conservation groups working directly with communities and landscapes. Those organisations often have long-term conservation responsibilities but can face difficulty accessing funding on terms that allow them to invest in their own priorities.Maliasili’s new approach is intended to address that gap without treating the initial grant as the end of the funding process. The organisation describes the capital as a catalyst, with the expectation that it can help bring further resources into locally led conservation work.The experience of MCF provides the basis for that expectation. More than $14 million has flowed into the fund since its creation, while its 28 partners have collectively used the support to strengthen their organisations and attract further funding.
A wider role for African conservation organisations
The expansion also reflects a broader shift in how Maliasili wants resources to reach conservation groups. Its stated focus is on African organisations that are closely connected to the communities and landscapes where conservation work takes place.Under the new fund, Maliasili intends to reach a wider set of partners rather than concentrating the approach on the organisations already supported through MCF.The structure will continue to emphasise flexible capital, organisational support and fundraising capacity. Partner involvement in designing the fund is also expected to remain part of the model.
