NCF

What NCF does

Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) is a public charitable Trust and non-profit organization registered in India under the Indian Income Tax Act, headquartered in Bangalore and operating across five thematic program areas: Eastern Himalaya, High Altitudes, Western Ghats, Oceans and Coasts, and Education and Public Engagement. Founded in 1996 with a staff of 101-250, NCF conducts scientific research, community-based conservation, ecological restoration, and policy advocacy on flagship species including hornbills, snow leopards, hoolock gibbons, and bats. The organization maintains digital citizen science platforms such as SeasonWatch (tree phenology monitoring) and Bird Count India (bird population tracking), the Hornbill Nest Adoption Program, and the State of India's Birds assessment initiative. NCF also runs nature education programs targeting schools, colleges, and the general public.

NCF's business model is donation-dependent, channeling over four-fifths of funds to field science and conservation programs. Revenue streams include individual donations (tax-deductible under Section 80G and Section 35 of the Indian Income Tax Act), FCRA-registered foreign contributions, grants from government bodies (Department of Science & Technology), corporate CSR funding (Wipro, Cholamandalam, Moonfrog Labs), and international conservation funders (Chester Zoo, National Geographic Society, Whitley Fund for Nature, Wildlife Conservation Society, Snow Leopard Trust, Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund, and multiple European zoos). The organization maintains strategic research partnerships with MAHE for doctoral programs, the Long-term Ecosystem Monitoring Network (LEMoN), and Bird Alliance, and holds deep community partnerships in conservation areas like the EECEP Community Conservation Area in Eastern Himalaya. NCF does not generate commercial revenue from its programs; its value proposition centers on scientific data for conservation, community engagement, and public education rather than product sales.

Name

NCF

Legal name

Nature Conservation Foundation

Website

https://ncf-india.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) is an Indian public charitable trust that conducts scientific research, community-based conservation, and citizen science across five program areas—Eastern Himalaya, High Altitudes, Western Ghats, Oceans and Coasts, and Education and Public Engagement—funded by donations and grants from international foundations, zoos, government, and corporate partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wildlife Conservation Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Nature, Biodiversity & Ecosystem Conservation (BPADALAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Land Trusts & Protected Areas (BPAGAGAC), Wildlife, Biodiversity & Habitat Conservation Administration (BPAIAMAG)

Keywords

• Wildlife conservation research
• Citizen science platforms
• Community-based conservation
• Nature education programs
• Biodiversity monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Bangalore

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: NCF is a public charitable Trust that relies on donations from individuals, organizations, and international partners. Over four-fifths of NCF funds are channeled to field science and conservation programmes.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) is a public charitable trust that explores, understands, and conserves the natural world through field-based scientific research, community-based conservation initiatives, and public engagement programmes. Its work spans five thematic areas — Eastern Himalaya, High Altitudes, Western Ghats, Oceans and Coasts, and Education and Public Engagement — and is delivered via citizen-science platforms (SeasonWatch, Bird Count India, Hornbill Watch), community conservation programs (Hornbill Nest Adoption Program, Community Conservation Areas), and nature education initiatives for schools and the wider public.

Product overview

NCF (Nature Conservation Foundation) is a public charitable trust dedicated to exploring, understanding and conserving the natural world through research and responsible engagement with society. The organization operates across five key thematic areas: Eastern Himalaya, High Altitudes, Oceans and Coasts, Western Ghats, and Education and Public Engagement. NCF's work combines scientific research with community-based conservation activities, citizen science initiatives, and nature education programs. Key programmatic offerings include citizen science platforms like SeasonWatch (tree phenology monitoring) and Bird Count India (bird population tracking), the Hornbill Nest Adoption Program for community-based conservation, Nature Narratives in the Media for strategic science communication, and the Nature Education Program for schoolchildren. The foundation also maintains research partnerships with institutions globally and produces educational publications, field guides, and conservation materials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SeasonWatch A citizen science initiative that engages the public to monitor tree seasonality (phenology) across India by recording leafing, flowering, and fruiting patterns to track climate change impacts. Targets amateur naturalists and nature enthusiasts.
• Bird Count India A citizen science platform for monitoring bird distribution and abundance across India, enabling birdwatchers to contribute data for conservation research. Targets amateur naturalists, birdwatchers, and conservation researchers.
• Hornbill Nest Adoption Program A community-based conservation initiative that engages local communities in protecting hornbill nesting sites in the Eastern Himalayan region, combining hornbill research with community participation. Targets local communities in the Eastern Himalaya and conservation partners.
• Hornbill Watch A citizen science platform that enables public reporting and tracking of hornbill sightings across India to support conservation research on hornbill populations. Targets birdwatchers, citizen scientists, and conservation researchers.
• State of India's Birds A collaborative research initiative that assesses the conservation status of India's bird species using data aggregated from citizen science platforms, used to inform conservation policy and action. Targets conservation researchers, policymakers, and birdwatchers.
• Nature Education Program (Early Bird) An educational initiative that partners with birders, schools, teachers, and designers to create age-appropriate and locally relevant nature learning frameworks and modules for children. Targets schools, teachers, and educationists.
• Nature@Work A nature outreach initiative that uses hands-on experiences and learning approaches to deepen awareness, curiosity, and care for the natural world among urban populations. Targets urban adults and nature enthusiasts.
• Nature on Campus An outreach programme that engages college and university communities in ecological observation and nature education activities on campuses across India. Targets college and university students and faculty.
• Nature Narratives in the Media A strategic storytelling initiative that engages India's nature experts to create awareness about India's biodiversity heritage across Indian languages through media communications. Targets the general public and nature enthusiasts.
• Pakke Nature Information Centre An environmental education centre located in Pakke Tiger Reserve that provides nature education programmes and information about local biodiversity to visitors and surrounding communities. Targets reserve visitors, local communities, and students.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over four-fifths of funds directed to field conservation activities

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Snow Leopard TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNCF and the Snow Leopard Trust work together in India's high altitudes to conserve the snow leopard through research, community involvement, conservation education, and policy-level dimensions.
• MAHE (Manipal Academy of Higher Education)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDoctoral programme partnership for conservation research and academic collaboration.
• Long-term Ecosystem Monitoring Network (LEMoN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of research institutions collaborating on long-term ecological monitoring across ecosystems.
• Bird AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with bird research and conservation organizations across India.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• BirdLife International: Global partnership of bird conservation organizations with a strong presence in India. Directly comparable scientific mission to NCF's Bird Count India and State of India's Birds, and a potential global partner/peer on bird-data work.
• Conservation International: Large global conservation NGO with significant biodiversity and climate programs, including in South Asia. Comparable as a funder, peer, and partner on biodiversity action frameworks and ESG/nature-related disclosure work.
• The Nature Conservancy: One of the world's largest conservation organizations. While not India-focused, it shares NCF's climate-biodiversity, scientific monitoring, and community-engagement orientation, and is a reference point for benchmarking scale and program design.
• Wildlife Institute of India: Government-affiliated Indian apex training and research institution for wildlife conservation. Comparable in research output and doctoral training focus (NCF's MAHE partnership is a parallel), though it operates under a government mandate rather than independent trust structure.

Direct peers

• Wildlife Conservation Society: A major global wildlife conservation organization that is also a direct NCF funder (Wildlife Conservation Society-NY). Both combine scientific fieldwork, community-based conservation, and policy advocacy across multiple ecosystems, making WCS the closest international peer and donor.
• Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE): India-based research and conservation nonprofit combining rigorous ecological science with policy and community engagement. Highly comparable to NCF in academic orientation, geographic focus on the Western Ghats, and mixed research/conservation model.
• Snow Leopard Trust: Direct strategic partner of NCF in the High Altitudes program. A species-focused international NGO working on snow leopard conservation through research, community, and policy — a direct peer on the high-altitude program specifically.
• Wildlife Conservation Trust: India-based conservation NGO working on species and habitat protection, with growing operations in the Western Ghats and central India. Comparable in mission and scale to NCF, with overlap in forest landscape conservation.
• World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) India: India's largest wildlife conservation nonprofit, operating across species and habitats with strong international branding. Directly comparable to NCF in mission, donor base, and field programs in the Western Ghats and Himalayas.
• Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS): One of India's oldest conservation organizations, with a long history in bird research, citizen science, and field conservation. Highly comparable in the bird/avifauna space, including a 'Bengal Natural History Society' archive that NCF is also helping to preserve.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ncfindia
• Facebookfacebook.com/ncfindia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nature-conservation-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NCF