Successful Sustainable Livelihood Enterprises

Many local and Indigenous communities have embraced sustainable livelihood opportunities through enterprises that support social and environmental objectives while providing necessary financial income.

The fish market, Ancón, Peru. The community in Ancón is working together to make their practices as responsible as possible, including setting up protected areas and limiting catch based on on-going surveys of their impact. Photo © Jason Houston

When examining successful enterprise development efforts worldwide, especially those involving local and Indigenous communities, there are common elements, including a viable business model, sustainable financial flows, operational capacity, access to financial capital and markets, and supportive legal and policy frameworks. TNC’s Guide to Sustainable Livelihoods and Community Enterprises has identified seven factors as key elements (grouped into four enabling conditions and three cross-cutting considerations), summarized below:

Enabling Conditions

1. Capacity building – Whether sourced from inside a community or through outside partners, capacity building is the process of developing the necessary knowledge, skills, and experience within the community and its partners to effectively implement new enterprises.
2. Technical Assistance – Specialized activities, such as business planning, can be outsourced either permanently or until trained community members are ready to take on those roles.
3. Access to Markets – When a community enterprise can meet what the market wants, it is known as being "market ready." Reliable access to markets allows a business to generate enough revenue to cover its expenses, provide benefits to communities, reinvest in the business, and save for the future.
4. Access to Capital – Businesses require money to launch and operate, before any returns can be expected. Many entrepreneurs do not have enough money to finance their businesses, so they turn to capital providers for support. 

Cross-Cutting Considerations

5. Promoting Rights and Equity – Community enterprises engage with communities from the very beginning to center their voices, choices, and actions. 
6. Safeguarding Against Unintended Consequences – It is crucial to carefully consider the risks of any sustainable livelihood initiative and identify strategies to mitigate unintended consequences. 
7. Weaving Multi-Sector Partnerships – No single organization can tackle sustainable livelihoods on its own. Building a portfolio of multi-sector partners is critical to supporting the development of sustainable enterprises. 

See the Introduction to Sustainable Livelihoods Online Course for more information on sustainable community enterprises. 

The Sustainable Livelihoods Toolkit was developed in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC’s) Indigenous Peoples & Local Communities Team and the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program, drawing on TNC's Indigenous & Community-Led Conservation Approach, Guide to Sustainable Livelihoods and Community Enterprises, and Voice, Choice, & Action Framework.