Protection for nature, humans, and animals

The Vontobel Foundation is committed to initiatives and projects that contribute to sustainable living conditions for both humans and animals.

Intact ecosystems are essential for life. We support projects that strengthen animal welfare, protect nature, and sustainably shape land use.

In the area of Nature, we support projects addressing the following issues:

The conflict between animal welfare, nature, and nutrition
Nature and species protection in Switzerland and abroad
Landscape protection in Switzerland and abroad
Small education-oriented nature conservation projects
Education and awareness in dealing with nature
Zoos, wildlife parks, and nature museums in the greater Zurich area
Applied animal protection
Consulting projects for the benefit of the environment

We support young researchers at established research institutes focusing on the following issues:

Ecologically regenerative land use
Animal husbandry and nutrition
"One Health" topics such as zoonoses or antibiotic resistance
Scientific bases for animal-assisted mental health therapies

Insights into our funding activities

Bee Finder” project by the Vontobel Foundation: A bee sits behind a purple flower.

Boosting Wild Bee Populations with a Web App

The Vontobel Foundation offered support to “IG Wilde Biene” (IG Wild Bees) with a contribution towards the further development of their "Bee Finder" app, a tool that promotes growth of wild bee populations and thus increases biodiversity.

The Vontobel Foundation's “Fachstelle Muka” project: Two cows standing next to each other in a meadow.

Supporting Dam-Calf Contact Rearing in Dairy Production

So-called “MuKa” rearing is a dairy production method in which newly born calves are not separated from their mothers. The Vontobel Foundation supports this project led by the Centre for Dam-Calf Contact Rearing.

The Vontobel Foundation's “Tierpark Goldau” project: photograph of a section of Tierpark Goldau.

Ensuring Species-Appropriate Wildlife Care

The scientifically managed Goldau Nature and Animal Park is redesigning its red deer enclosure. The Vontobel Foundation is contributing financially.

Promoting the Low-Stress Slaughter of Cattle

The Vontobel Foundation has had a longstanding cooperative relationship with the Research Institute for Organic Agriculture (“FiBL”). From 2022 to 2024, the foundation has supported FiBL with a contribution to the research project "Low-Stress Slaughter – Impact of On-Farm Slaughter on Behavior, Stress Physiology, and Meat Quality of Cattle."

Preferences

We give preference to projects that:

follow innovative methods and produce measurable results
have the potential to be replicable and achieve broad impact
foster the resilience of individuals and communities
pave the way to sustainable financing models
aim to achieve realistic goals over several years
build on a realistic risk analysis and require minimal reserves
are transparent and have an excellent chance of success

Exclusion criteria

The following are generally not eligible for funding:

Fundraising campaigns following disasters
Infrastructure projects unrelated to our objectives
Activities that are primarily commercial in nature
Animal shelters and sanctuaries

There is no entitlement to the Foundation’s services. They remain at the discretion of the Foundation Board. In the case of a rejection, we ask for your understanding that we do not provide justification for our decision.

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