Dilmah Conservation was initiated in 2007 to incorporate environmental and wildlife conservation efforts into the work of the MJF Charitable Foundation, which primarily focuses on social justice.

Following its inception, Dilmah Conservation has worked towards promoting the sustainable use of the environment in partnership with other organisations including the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka (FOGSL), the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science (SLAAS) and a number of professional and academic institutions including several local universities. This work has been categorised into four focal areas which are sustainability, biodiversity, heritage and communications.

With the 2010 Declaration of a Core Commitment to Sustainability, Dilmah further reaffirmed its pledge to sustainable initiatives with environmental protection at its core. This was followed through by projects launched by Dilmah Conservation which revolved around the creation of reconciliation programmes by using nature as a catalyst, introduction of sustainable initiatives in the spheres of agriculture, and the implementation of programmes on the protection of species habitat and biodiversity through public service announcements and other media.