Governance in complex settings: merging Environmental Funds

In 2012, two different environmental trust funds in Jamaica, both created through debt-for-nature swaps with the United States Government, began the process of consolidation into a single conservation trust fund with the hopes of improving the effectiveness and viability of both funds.

This case study describes the experience of consolidating the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ) with the Forest Conservation Fund (FCF), including the challenges arising within two different governance structures as well as the way the optimal structures from each fund were combined to form a new governance structure designed to ensure the performance and sustainability of the merged fund.