Harnessing Technology for Conservation: An Interview with the Executive Director of Connected Conservation Foundation

In a recent interview, Sophie Maxwell, the executive director of the Connected Conservation Foundation, shared insights into the organization’s mission, the role of technology in conservation, and the positive impacts they’ve made. Here’s a deep dive into the conversation.

Q: Can you give us a quick overview of the Connected Conservation Foundation?

A: Connected Conservation is a nonprofit organization, helping those in developing countries secure landscape-scale technologies urgently needed to stop nature loss and build resilient ecosystems and communities.

Today, we operate in 15 countries, helping design, secure, and implement technology solutions that drive change. Our projects deploy wide-area network connectivity, innovative IoT sensing, satellite imagery, AI, and advanced IT equipment to combat poaching, mitigate human-wildlife conflict, prevent habitat loss, and promote sustainable landscape management.

We partnered with Cisco in 2015, and we’ve been bringing together local teams, technology partners, and governments to provide the infrastructure, cutting-edge tools and education needed to protect biodiversity at scale.

Together, we support 29 protected areas across Africa, securing 5.6 million hectares of wilderness with digital infrastructure and wide-area sensing solutions. We also enable 19 remote parks to achieve reliable global connectivity, empowering them with data-driven conservation strategies.

Q: What led you to the field of conservation technology?

A: With a background in product and service development in the corporate sector, I transitioned to conservation nine years ago. I started at the Zoological Society of London, focusing on innovation in nature protection. This journey led to the founding of our charitable work, which has grown significantly since its inception in 2015.

Q: What are some of the successes of the Connected Conservation Foundation and how does technology help?

A: Together with Cisco, we pioneered the implementation of early-warning systems to protect species and wild places. We build networks that collect, analyze, and provide real-time alerts on threats to wildlife and the environment. From Kenya to South Africa, we are sustaining technologies that enable effective protected-area management and community stewardship of natural resources.

The solutions support our partner Northern Rangelands Trust with surveillance and wildlife intelligence across 22 community-led conservancies. Collaborative efforts contributed to Kenya’s national achievement of increasing the critically endangered black rhino population by 6 percent since 2017.

Additionally, our collective efforts have helped achieve success at Sabi Sands Nature Reserve in South Africa. Early-warning technologies, coupled with effective management, reduced rhino poaching by 96 percent within just 18 months of deployment.

Our technology support has also helped enable Madikwe Game Reserve to make 16 arrests of suspected rhino poachers between 2021 and 2023, a significant improvement from zero arrests in 2020 before our tech collaboration.

Q: What are the challenges conservationists face today?

A: The natural world stands at a critical juncture. Scientists estimate the potential loss of up to 1 million species within the next decade. Effective protected areas are essential to reverse the rapid decline in biodiversity. In December 2022, 196 countries recognized the urgency of the crisis by signing a global biodiversity plan—known as the 30×30 initiative—to protect 30 percent of the planet by 2030.

Africa, home to a quarter of the world’s biodiversity, has around 8000 formally registered protected areas that face unprecedented challenges. Many of these parks still lack the digital and physical infrastructure needed for effective management. Of the 161 vital protected areas identified by African Parks, a staggering 60 percent still require improved management solutions to move beyond being mere “paper parks” and ensure the long-term survival of these precious species and ecosystems.

CCF is responding with urgency, providing those on the frontlines with digital infrastructure, tools, and education to build resilient ecosystems and communities, important for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, clean air, fresh water, food, and stability.

Q: How does the Connected Conservation Foundation use Cisco products?

A: Cisco’s technologies play a role in three critical areas: early warning systems for conservation threats, continuous ecosystem monitoring, and empowering local communities with data-driven insights for better decision-making.

Across many sites, Cisco cameras, Meraki routers, servers and LoRaWan network technology enable tracking of wildlife and ranger movements, weather patterns, fence alarms, and natural resource health. Technology even facilitates livestock tracking for sustainable grazing management and monitoring carbon levels to assess ecosystem health. Data is consolidated into a single, unified system, offering a real-time, 360-degree view across the ecosystem. This holistic perspective supports immediate response measures and facilitates historical analysis, helping identify patterns and preemptively address conservation challenges.

A groundbreaking IoT network and high-bandwidth communication backbone now covers 22 of the Northern Rangeland Trust’s (NRT) community-led conservancies and four private reserves, enabling the deployment of nearly 300+ sensors.

Twenty LoRaWan gateways, a robust communication infrastructure, and a variety of sensors has strengthened regional operations centers, enhancing their capacity to transmit real-time wildlife and environmental data across vast distances. This network provides conservation managers with comprehensive situational awareness of landscapes, enabling private and community-led conservancies to collaborate more effectively in monitoring and management.

In 2022-2023, East Africa faced severe drought, devastating grasslands, water sources, local food supplies, and wildlife. The NRT faced significant challenges in sustainably managing natural resources and mitigating human-wildlife conflict. The IoT network supports the integration of wildlife, livestock, and environmental sensors to monitor foraging conditions, track movements, and observe water levels—all critical to ensuring the coexistence of wildlife and local people.

Q: What are the business outcomes and human elements you’ve observed from leveraging technology?

A: Technology empowers local rangers and contributes to community-led efforts to safeguard ecosystems for people and wildlife, helping them accomplish:

• Rhino numbers in Kenya have increased by 6 percent since 2017. Surveillance and wildlife intelligence tools have helped our partners contribute to this success.
• Communities in Sera Wildlife Conservancy monitor wildlife with the Cisco network and high-resolution real-time video streams. They have increased their rhino population by 60 percent. The sanctuary’s success now employs 100 new community rangers who use the technologies.
• Loisaba Conservancy established a Rhino Sanctuary and enabled around-the-clock, LoRa-enabled wildlife monitoring. It is now designated a safe park for the 21 reintroduced eastern black rhinos.
• Northern Rangelands Trust reports a decline in human-wildlife conflict. Community peace ambassadors across conservancies use Cisco connectivity to share data on early warnings, averting attacks and preventing conflicts.
• Sabi Sand Nature Reserve designated a safe park for the reintroduction of pangolins and white rhino for a rewilding initiative.

Q: What advice do you have for others looking to support sustainable conservation with technology?

A: Start with a digital ecosystem approach, focusing on robust tools, training, community engagement, and a sustainable financial plan. Begin with basic digital infrastructure and innovate gradually, proving the benefits of use cases and planning for growth.

Q: What is the vision for the future of the Connected Conservation Foundation?

A: We envision a future with a global network of well-managed, well-resourced, well-connected protected areas, with the infrastructure and cutting-edge technology to achieve sustainability and ambitious conservation goals.

We continually ask ourselves: is conservation technology advancing far enough? While significant progress has been made, we believe there is much more to accomplish. Therefore, we are committed to forging bold and innovative partnerships to expand and amplify our impact.

The Connected Conservation Foundation collaborates with technology leaders like Cisco and engages local communities to drive meaningful conservation outcomes. Our vision is a world where people and wildlife thrive together. The right tools, education, and a commitment to community-led conservation can contribute to bringing back endangered species and stopping precious ecosystems from being lost forever.

To find out about the Connected Conservation Foundation, and how to get involved, visit: https://connectedconservation.foundation/

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