Established in 1972, Trust for Nature is one of Australia’s oldest conservation charities. Our job is to permanently protect habitat on private land to give native plants and animals safe places to live forever.
In Victoria, 62 per cent of the land is privately owned—it holds some of the most intact vegetated areas of the state; more than two-thirds of habitat for threatened species.
There are a number of ways we protect privately-owned land:
- we work with landholders who volunteer to put conservation covenants on their property
- we manage more than 40 reserves across Victoria for conservation
- we buy properties that are on the market and have conservation value. We then resell them to buyers who agree to put conservation covenants on them.
We have partnered with more than 1,500 Victorians who have voluntarily taken legal steps to protect habitat on their property, forever, with conservation covenants. Together with conservation covenants and reserves, we have protected more than 110,000 ha across Victoria. Our work is guided by our Statewide Conservation Plan which provides a scientific framework to inform conservation on private land across Victoria.
We protect 437 threatened plants and animals.
And we do it together. Trust for Nature works in partnership with more than 140 organisations including Aboriginal groups, farmers, Zoos Victoria, catchment management authorities, conservation bodies, and community groups to achieve what we do.
Our innovative Revolving Fund purchases private properties across Victoria that hold unique conservation value. The land is then restored and sold to new owners with the ongoing protection of a conservation covenant.
All proceeds from property sales are recycled directly back into the Revolving Fund, which allows Trust for Nature to purchase and protect even more properties.
Trust for Nature also has 42 conservation reserves, including 30,000 ha Neds Corner Station on Ngintait Country in the far north west of the state.
Some of these reserves are open to the public — learn more about our reserves and how to visit them.
Since our foundation, we have also contributed to Victoria’s public reserve system by purchasing and transferring land to the state, including on Bunurong Country parts of Mornington Peninsula National Park and French Island, and the Anglesea Heathlands on Wadawurrung Country. We continue to contribute to the protection of threatened wildlife and ecosystems such as the Helmeted Honeyeater.
Make a contribution
With your support we can continue to ensure Victoria’s biodiversity is protected for the future.
Get involved
So much of what we do couldn’t be achieved without the dedication and goodwill of all our supporters
Landowner support
There are a suite of services we can offer to assist you protect and improve habitat on your property.