Using Innovative Technologies to Improve Conservation Outcomes

This session on innovative technologies held on 5th September 2021 highlighted how innovative technologies, collaborative partnerships, and a ground-up approach have developed and scaled a comprehensive suite of integrated tools and approaches that have not only improved conservation outcomes and protected area management, but also built the capacity of thousands of practitioners around the world.

The rapid development of new technologies is changing the way we collect, access, and use information to conserve biodiversity. Technology-based solutions seeking to solve complex challenges have proliferated as conservation area management capacity has sought to keep pace with increasing human pressures. However, these technologies are often developed outside the context of conservation, have limited scalability, or are provided with limited support. This session will demonstrate how innovative uses of technology can help achieve biodiversity objectives by empowering practitioners, meeting critical frontline needs, and emphasizing conservation outcomes. Panelists will present a comprehensive series of case studies on the application of SMART, a free and open-source suite of integrated tools used in more than 1000 sites across 70 countries that has revolutionized the way protected areas are managed and has become the most widely used protected area management solution globally.

Dr. Emma STOKE, Regional Director, Central Africa & Gulf of Guinea at WCS, presenting at the session

Moderator

Dr. Drew CRONIN, Associate Curator of International Conservation, North Carolina Zoo 

Speakers

• Ms. Claudine CLOETE, Senior Conservation Scientist,  Ministry of Environment, Forestry & Tourism, Namibia 
• Dr. Emma STOKE, Regional Director, Central Africa & Gulf of Guinea, WCS 
• Mr. Jes LEFCOURT, Director, Conservation Technology, Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence 
• Ms. Lily XU, PhD Candidate, Harvard University 
• Mr. Tojo RASOLOZAKA, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Officer, WWF Madagascar