About us
With over 18,000 animal species at risk of extinction, we are in a race against time to collect and preserve vital genetics that can support breeding programmes and prove instrumental to ensuring the survival of our natural world.
What we do
Nature’s SAFE began by a small group of cryopreservation specialists with a passion for wildlife. It has now grown into a global group of conservation scientists working to ensure that valuable biological material from all species can be safely stored in a living state.
We work with conservation partners across the UK, providing a free service of storage and stewardship of these priceless samples.
The ScienceWho we work with
Nature’s SAFE provides a third party service to conservation organisations across the UK. We work with zoos, aquariums, wildlife parks, wildlife rescue centres, centres of education and marine stranding organisations. After an animal passes, or during routine veterinary procedures such as castration, we work alongside veterinarians to secure cells and cell tissues to store in our biobank.
Nature’s SAFE is also the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) Biobank’s official UK-based cryopreservation partner.
As a charity, we provide sample storage free of charge at our state-of-the-art facilities. Each conservation partner maintains ownership of all samples they have stored in our biobank.
To assist breeding programme coordinators, we also provide reproductive health checks to our conservation partners upon request to check if their breeding animals are fertile. In addition to this, we collaborate with academic institutions to conduct applied research into cryopreservation and assisted reproductive technologies to further support the work of our conservation partners.
Conservation PartnersDue to the scale of the challenge to preserve our natural world, it needs a collective approach. We work with businesses of all sizes who share our vision of a sustainable, and healthy future.
Corporate PartnersWho we are
Nature’s SAFE Ambassadors are a distinguished and expert group of people who have achieved a significant profile in their field and are dedicated to the work of our charity.
President
Ambassador
Ambassador
Ambassador
Chief Scientific Officer of the Care Fertility Group, Ambassador & Scientific Advisor to Nature's SAFE
Ambassador & Africa Advisor
Zookeeper Ambassador
Youth Ambassador
What we do
governance
Nature’s SAFE is registered as a charity in England and Wales (No 1192876). We are governed by our Board of Trustees.
1.1 To promote for the benefit of the public the conservation, protection and improvement of the physical and natural environment by advancing the conservation of biological diversity, in particular by securing, preserving and facilitating access to genetic and reproductive materials from wildlife taxa.
In furtherance of this object, and consistent with global biodiversity conservation efforts, the Charity shall:
1.2.1 Establish, maintain and develop facilities and systems for the cryopreservation and long-term storage of biological materials, including but not limited to tissues containing immature gametes, mature gametes, embryos, and somatic cells from wildlife across all taxa, including native and exotic.
1.2.2 Safeguard such biological materials as a genetic resource for current and future conservation purposes, including scientific research, assisted reproductive technologies, species recovery programmes and other conservation interventions aimed at preventing extinction and supporting population sustainability and ecosystem resilience
1.2.3 Promote, undertake and support scientific research into gamete biology, reproductive science, cryobiology, vitrification, thawing, regeneration and related technologies relevant to the conservation of endangered taxa, and to publish and disseminate the useful results of such research for global benefit.
1.2.4 Develop, improve and share best practice in cell culture, genetic resource banking and wildlife biobanking techniques to ensure the long-term integrity, viability and accessibility of preserved materials
1.2.5 Collaborate with national and international conservation bodies, research institutions, zoological collections, wildlife organisations and other charities with similar objectives to maximise conservation impact and ensure coordinated, ethical and scientifically robust use of preserved genetic resources
1.2.6 Advance education and raise global public awareness of biodiversity loss, extinction risk, genetic conservation and the role of cryopreservation and biobanking in safeguarding wildlife for future generations
1.2.7 Build capacity, expertise and infrastructure in global wildlife genetic conservation and cryobiology to advance scientific knowledge and promote excellence in conservation practice.
