From the Ford Foundation.

Mac Chapin's article "A Challenge to Conservationists" (November/December 2004) addresses a number of issues the Ford Foundation has worked on for many years and which we consider key to our efforts to reduce poverty and injustice among indigenous and rural communities around the world. The article raises important questions about the relation of biodiversity conservation and community development. We agree that these matters need to be discussed and analyzed.

However, the article contains factual errors and is generally misleading in the way that it portrays Ford's and other donors' work to generate a constructive dialogue about the development implications of large-scale conservation approaches. First, the article implies that a Foundation-funded inquiry on large-scale conservation and community development is primarily about indigenous peoples and conservation. This ignores the range of issues related to large-scale conservation trends that were examined, and does not capture the Foundation's concern for other local communities--in addition to those of indigenous peoples--which are central to our community-based natural resource management programs.

The article is also incorrect in its depiction of the nature of internal Ford discussion abut the inquiry, particularly regarding the involvement of two Foundation trustees, Kathryn Fuller and Yolanda Kakabadse. The discussion among Foundation staff and trustees, which took place at our regular board of trustees meetings, focused exclusively on the ways we could best achieve the goals of the inquiry. Ford staff drew on the expertise of Kathryn Fuller and Yolanda Kakabadse and were pleased with their willingness to promote engagement of their organizations and others in a dialogue that explored concerns about large-scale conservation. Contrary to Mr. Chapin's claim, at no point did either trustee try to suppress the release of the report resulting from this inquiry. The fact is that the report was released last June to the participating donors, the conservation organizations, and other interested parties.

In analyzing the Foundation's follow-up grant-making and responses to the dialogue between conservation NGOs and the group of funders collaborating on this effort, the author failed to verify with the Foundation the steps we have taken. The author fails to mention that in addition to the grants to WWF and IUCN, Ford is also providing support to the International Institute on Environment and Development for a dialogue that will involve a range of stakeholders. Moreover, had he contacted us, we would have made clear that the approval process for any proposed grant to an organization with which a trustee is affiliated includes review by an independent committee of the board.

Lastly, the author makes misleading remarks about funders' perceptions of indigenous peoples. In no way do they reflect the views of the Ford Foundation. We find these remarks particularly troubling because we have long supported the development work of indigenous groups in many parts of the world and remain engaged in this effort. While Ford continues to support the community-based natural resource management projects of international conservation organizations, the bulk of our funding focuses on supporting the work of those closest to the problems, particularly the organizations of low-income rural and indigenous peoples. In fact, a recent review by Harvard University of funding for indigenous groups in the United States identified the Ford Foundation as the largest source of private funding, with over $72 million in grants in the last decade. Outside of the United States, we have provided in the last three years over $26 million in grants specifically focused on indigenous peoples. Readers of Mr. Chapin's article would be left with a very different impression.

PABLO J. FARIAS

Vice President, Asset Building and Community Development Program, The Ford Foundation