Supporting Frontline Organizations to Build a Prosperous, Sustainable Southeast Asia through Nature-based Solutions.
The SCeNe Coalition aims to deliver benefits for people, nature and climate through the expertise of international NGOs in the region.
About the SCeNe Coalition
The Southeast Asia Climate and Nature-based Solutions (SCeNe) Coalition is a collaboration between ten leading non-governmental organizations with an established presence in Southeast Asia. The Coalition aims to support local frontline organizations* (FOs) to accelerate and scale up high-quality, high-integrity, triple-benefit Nature-based Solutions (NbS) across the region.
Coalition members have decades of experience in Southeast Asia and include independent, science-based organizations. Founding members were Conservation International (CI) , The Nature Conservancy (TNC), IDH - the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), Birdlife International, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Mandai Nature, World Resources Institute (WRI) Indonesia, and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Singapore . RECOFTC – The Center for People and Forests joined in 2024 and the Zoological Society of London joined in 2026.
*May include local and national NGOs, community-based organizations, associations of Indigenous communities, smallholder cooperatives and farmers’ groups, country offices of international NGOs.
The successful implementation of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) is crucial in addressing the climate crisis we urgently face today.
Why Now?
Nature-based Solutions protect, sustainably manage and restore ecosystems to address societal challenges while benefiting both people and nature. Well-designed NbS can help conserve biodiversity, maintain important habitats and ecosystem services, strengthen resilience to climate-related hazards, and support food security, water security and sustainable livelihoods.
Achieving these benefits requires NbS to be designed, implemented and monitored effectively, with the people and organizations closest to the landscapes meaningfully involved throughout the project lifecycle. Frontline organizations play a critical role because they work directly with communities, Indigenous Peoples and local governments, and bring essential knowledge of local ecological, social and governance contexts.
However, frontline organizations often face practical barriers when developing and scaling high-integrity NbS projects, including limited access to technical resources, early-stage project development support, finance and relevant networks.
Helping People and Nature Through NbS
The SCeNe Coalition works alongside frontline organizations and other regional partners through three interconnected workstreams:
NbS Resources
SCeNe develops open-access tools and guidance to help frontline organizations scope, design and assess credible NbS projects. The NbS Tool supports early-stage project scoping by providing relevant baseline data and information on potential NbS interventions and their benefits.
The SCeNe Criteria for High-Integrity Nature-Based Carbon Projects provides practical guidance for designing and implementing projects that deliver credible outcomes for climate, biodiversity and people.
NbS Portfolio
Through the NbS Incubator housed under this workstream, selected frontline-led projects receive tailored technical and project-development support. This may include feasibility assessments that examine technical, legal, financial, social and implementation considerations, helping organizations understand project risks, opportunities and potential pathways towards investment readiness. Experience from these projects also generates practical lessons that can strengthen SCeNe’s resources and wider regional work. These projects, which intend to be the best examples of High-Integrity projects, will be featured as part of the SCeNe Coalition’s Portfolio.
NbS Enablers
SCeNe works with public sector, Coalition members and regional partners to strengthen the wider system-level conditions needed for high-integrity NbS to scale. This includes policy alignment, institutional and technical capacity, knowledge sharing and sustainable finance. The Coalition’s insights from frontline implementation help ensure that this system-level work remains grounded in practical experience and responds to the barriers faced on the ground.
These three workstreams are designed to operate as a flywheel, with the outputs from each strengthening the others. Practical tools and guidance help frontline organizations identify and design credible NbS projects. Insights and feedback from our network of frontline-led projects help SCeNe test and improve these resources, while revealing wider policy, capacity and financing barriers. These lessons inform efforts to strengthen the enabling environment, creating better conditions for more high-integrity, frontline-led NbS projects to develop and scale.
Stay Connected
To learn more about our work, please visit SCeNe Coalition.
Please note that we are currently updating the website in line with a very exciting launch in December 2026. If you would like to get in touch please reach out to Kaylee Campbell at kaylee.campbell@tnc.org.
Learn more
The Southeast Asia Climate and Nature-based Solutions (SCeNe) Coalition is a collaboration between leading non-governmental organizations in the region.
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