The Diani Sustainability Collective is a collaborative platform for sustainability, community resilience, and responsible tourism in Diani
The initiative by HERI-Kenya brings together communities, businesses, institutions, and practitioners to strengthen environmental health and long-term sustainability. The Collective provides a structured way to align local action, private sector participation, and community-wide sustainability goals. It turns individual efforts into coordinated, measurable impact.
Diani’s economy depends on healthy ecosystems, clean public spaces, and resilient communities. Tourism, hospitality, and local livelihoods are directly linked to environmental quality and public health.
Local grassroots actors play a critical role in protecting these systems. Youth groups, women-led initiatives, and community organizations lead clean-ups, restoration, education, and innovation efforts across the destination.
However, many of these actors struggle to access consistent funding, technical support, and long-term platforms. As a result, effective initiatives often remain small, informal, or short-lived.
At the same time, hotels and tourism businesses increasingly want to invest in sustainability and community impact. Without a clear structure, these investments are often fragmented and difficult to track, report, or sustain.
The Diani Sustainability Collective was created to connect these needs through coordination, shared accountability, and long-term planning.
The Diani Sustainability Collective acts as a coordination and action platform. It aligns stakeholders around shared priorities while allowing each partner to contribute according to their capacity.
Grassroots actors gain access to structured support, visibility, and collaboration. Businesses gain a transparent and credible way to invest in sustainability and meet CSR and ESG objectives.
The focus is on long-term systems change rather than one-off activities. This ensures sustainability efforts lead to lasting outcomes.
The Collective works across key areas that reinforce one another:
- Environmental restoration and conservation
- Organic waste management and circular economy solutions
- Public and environmental health awareness
- Community capacity building and skills development
- Youth and women participation in sustainability action
- Applied research, learning, and evidence generation
Together, these areas support a holistic sustainability model for the destination.
The Diani Sustainability Collective offers partners a practical and credible entry point into local sustainability action.
Hotels and businesses benefit from structured engagement, measurable impact, and improved sustainability reporting. Participation also strengthens destination branding by contributing to Diani’s reputation as a responsible tourism destination.
Donors and development partners benefit from a coordinated platform capable of delivering integrated environmental, health, and community outcomes.
Beyond individual projects, the Collective strengthens Diani’s identity as a sustainable destination.
Improved environmental conditions, visible community participation, and coordinated sustainability action increase destination appeal for eco-conscious travelers.
This protects the natural and social assets that tourism depends on while supporting long-term economic resilience.
The Diani Sustainability Collective offers a shared pathway to protect the environment, strengthen communities, and secure Diani’s future as a sustainable destination.
Partners and supporters are invited to join this coordinated effort and contribute to lasting, locally grounded impact.
The Diani Sustainability Collective welcomes collaboration through:
- CSR and ESG aligned
- partnerships
- Co-funded sustainability initiatives
- Support for grassroots capacity building
- Applied research and learning partnerships
- Pilot and demonstration projects
Engagement is flexible and designed to align partner priorities with local needs.