Read the WILDLABS 2024 Annual Report

Since our last report in 2022, WILDLABS has evolved significantly. As we marked our 10th year, we had so many milestones to celebrate, including exceeding 10,000 members, launching innovative funding mechanisms, delivering platform updates that meet community needs, and delivering sector-wide research to inform funding and policy priorities. Our community has grown not just in size, but in strength, ambition, and global relevance. What started as a collaborative experiment is now the world’s leading conservation technology network, uniting over 12,000 people across 135+ countries with a shared mandate: to unlock the full potential of modern innovation for conservation impact.

In a world facing accelerating environmental challenges, WILDLABS embodies hope - sparking collaboration, ingenuity, and action across sectors to deliver impact where it’s needed most. From informing global innovation agendas to equipping local practitioners through training and grantmaking, this year’s report celebrates major achievements since our last update in 2022 and sets our sights on a bold vision for the years ahead. 

Keep reading below to see some key highlights from the report!

Delivering Measurable Impact

Strengthening Our Platform

In 2023 and 2024, we built on the launch of WILDLABS 2.0 with the release of new features that make finding information, connecting with others, and making discoveries even easier, including:

• The Inventory: Providing a conservation tech wiki
• Courses: Expanding learning opportunities
• Badges: Celebrating our most engaged members

Deepening Community Ties

Over the last two years, we’ve continued doing what we do best: convening the community in engaging and exciting ways to create a more connected sector. Through the continuation of our regular Variety Hour series, the creation of two new groups on WILDLABS, and the launch of a new Group Leadership Programme, we’re taking measures to support our rapidly growing community. Thanks to participation in our 2024 Network Survey, we’re better suited to evolve our programmes to better suit our users’ needs.

Uncovering Sector Insights

The 2023-2024 period was critical for our insights division. The first-ever State of Conservation Technology Trends Report analysed three years of survey data, revealing critical insights into how our sector has evolved over time, and a 5-year update is coming soon. Our thematic research in movement ecology and bioacoustics continues to surface shared priorities and catalyse action, resulting in two forthcoming publications and a major collaborative initiative to establish a new  Biodiversity Observation Network for animal movement (Move BON). Increasingly, our research is going beyond community insight sharing and is and actively informing funding and global policy mechanisms. 

Delivering Impactful Support

We’ve spent the last two years growing our support programmes to new heights, partnering with external organisations to ensure that investment in conservation technology results in maximised on-the-ground impact. In 2023 and 2024, we were proud to deliver the following support programmes:  

• Women in Conservation Technology 2023 and 2024: With expansion into Tanzania, the continuation of this capacity building programme means that more early career women in East Africa receive hands-on training, mentorship, and direct technical support that drives innovation and impact.
• AI for Conservation Office Hours: In 2024, we began the latest iteration of this programme, which connected 18 conservationists with AI specialists for direct, live, one-on-one support, and 24 conservationists to digital support.
• The WILDLABS Awards: Launched for the first time in 2024 and again in 2025, The WILDLABS Awards provide critical funding for groundbreaking conservation technology projects that are developing, adopting, or scaling technologies for conservation.
• The Boring Fund: Born from the difficulty to fund the critical but often overlooked elements of conservation technology, we launched The Boring Fund in 2024 to support projects that are difficult to fund through traditional avenues, but are essential to the sustainability and progression of the sector. 

Looking Ahead

WILDLABS has been on a remarkable journey since our inception in 2015. What started as an online forum for conservation technology has evolved into a cross-cutting support mechanism and resource hub delivering tangible impact for the sector. Our success is reflected by the steady growth and continued engagement of our wonderful community, funders, stakeholders, and champions. 

As we continue to hold steadfast in our core values and mission, our future is shaped by discussions with our community, team members, and steering committee. We look forward to continuing on our growth trajectory, evolving our programme, and supporting the community as it evolves in tandem. Most of all, we’re thrilled to continue working to serve the conservation technology sector. 

Thank you for being a part of our community. You are the reason we do what we do—every programme, feature launch, new initiative, funding opportunity, community call, research paper, and more, is done for this inspirational, creative, collaborative community. The growth of WILDLABS is a reflection of the growth of the sector—when the sector thrives and succeeds, so does WILDLABS. It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of your work for 10 years, and we greatly look forward to continuing to provide a place of community, belonging, insights, support, and more, for years to come. 

Read the report now.