AI for Conservation

Group

AI for Conservation / Feed

Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used in the field to analyse information collected by wildlife conservationists, from camera trap and satellite images to audio recordings. AI can learn how to identify which photos out of thousands contain rare species; or pinpoint an animal call out of hours of field recordings - hugely reducing the manual labour required to collect vital conservation data.

1099

Active members

285

Active discussions

1173

Comments

535

Resources

With new technologies revolutionizing data collection, wildlife researchers are becoming increasingly able to collect data at much higher volumes than ever before. Now we are facing the challenges of putting this information to use, bringing the science of big data into the conservation arena. With the help of machine learning tools, this area holds immense potential for conservation practices. The applications range from online trafficking alerts to species-specific early warning systems to efficient movement and biodiversity monitoring and beyond.

However, the process of building effective machine learning tools depends upon large amounts of standardized training data, and conservationists currently lack an established system for standardization. How to best develop such a system and incentivize data sharing are questions at the forefront of this work. There are currently multiple AI-based conservation initiatives, including Wildlife Insights and WildBook, that are pioneering applications on this front.

This group is the perfect place to ask all your AI-related questions, no matter your skill level or previous familiarity! You'll find resources, meet other members with similar questions and experts who can answer them, and engage in exciting collaborative opportunities together.

Just getting started with AI in conservation? Check out our introduction tutorial, How Do I Train My First Machine Learning Model? with Daniel Situnayake, and our Virtual Meetup on Big Data. If you're coming from the more technical side of AI/ML, Sara Beery runs an AI for Conservation slack channel that might be of interest. Message her for an invite.

Header Image: Dr Claire Burke / @CBurkeSci

Explore the Basics: AI

Understanding the possibilities for incorporating new technology into your work can feel overwhelming. With so many tools available, so many resources to keep up with, and so many innovative projects happening around the world and in our community, it's easy to lose sight of how and why these new technologies matter, and how they can be practically applied to your projects.

Machine learning has huge potential in conservation tech, and its applications are growing every day! But the tradeoff of that potential is a big learning curve - or so it seems to those starting out with this powerful tool!

To help you explore the potential of AI (and prepare for some of our upcoming AI-themed events!), we've compiled simple, key resources, conversations, and videos to highlight the possibilities:

Three Resources for Beginners:

Everything I know about Machine Learning and Camera Traps, Dan Morris | Resource library, camera traps, machine learning
Using Computer Vision to Protect Endangered Species, Kasim Rafiq | Machine learning, data analysis, big cats
Resource: WildID | WildID

Three Forum Threads for Beginners:

I made an open-source tool to help you sort camera trap images | Petar Gyurov, Camera Traps
Batch / Automated Cloud Processing | Chris Nicolas, Acoustic Monitoring
Looking for help with camera trapping for Jaguars: Software for species ID and database building | Carmina Gutierrez, AI for Conservation

Three Tutorials for Beginners:

How do I get started using machine learning for my camera traps? | Sara Beery, Tech Tutors
How do I train my first machine learning model? | Daniel Situnayake, Tech Tutors
Big Data in Conservation | Dave Thau, Dan Morris, Sarah Davidson, Virtual Meetups

Want to know more about AI, or have your specific machine learning questions answered by experts in the WILDLABS community? Make sure you join the conversation in our AI for Conservation group!

Country based in

Sort by

@ryanhuang
| He/Him/His

Conservation scientist based in Pretoria, South Africa

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
0 Discussions
6 Groups

@jsstamn
| She/her

PhD student at the University of Mississippi; research interests include predator/prey dynamics, particularly the landscape of fear in relation to species conservation. Rookie at using arduino

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
4 Discussions
5 Groups

@mkm4884

Neuroscientist & engineer looking for a data/R&D role in conservation.

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
0 Discussions
17 Groups

@zhongqimiao

I am a research scientist from the AI for Good Lab at Microsoft, working on AI applications in environmental science and ecology, including camera traps, bioacoustics, and overhead imagery.

TBC: xx articles
1 Resources
7 Discussions
1 Groups

@loveness

An Environmental sciences and Management graduate from SUA, passionate and eager to drive change to the Environment, making World a better place for present and future generations.

TBC: xx articles
4 Resources
35 Discussions
14 Groups

@hyodopenguin
| she/her

I am currently a rising junior at UC Berkeley studying data science. I hope to apply data with biodiversity, especially by utilizing camera traps for species classification. People in conservation tech are truly living my dream careers, and I can't wait to get even more inspired!

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
5 Discussions
23 Groups

@AngelikaNocon
| she/her

I am a Nonprofit Relations Manager at Tech To The Rescue - a global platform connecting nonprofit organizations with tech companies.

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
3 Discussions
4 Groups

@Slater
| he/him

I am the Conservation Science Director at HawkWatch International, where I've worked since 2006. My work focuses mainly on conservation and research of Golden Eagles, including nesting, tracking, and winter ecology.

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
2 Discussions
4 Groups

@philmitchell

Mobile developer w/ a passion for nature and conservation

TBC: xx articles
1 Resources
17 Discussions
6 Groups

@charlz_wild

I'm a researcher in aquatic sciences, studying connections between fish biology and endocrine systems that govern growth and reproduction, contributing to fisheries management, conservation efforts and aquaculture innovations.

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
0 Discussions
5 Groups

@christinebarry
| she/her

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
0 Discussions
2 Groups

@milgrace

TBC: xx articles
0 Resources
1 Discussions
4 Groups

Description	Activity	Groups	Updated
Q&A: UK NERC £3.6m AI (image) for Biodiversity Funding Call - ask your questions here	This is super cool! Me and @Hubertszcz and @briannajohns and several others are all working towards some big biodiversity monitoring projects for a large conservation project here...	AI for Conservation, Autonomous Camera Traps for Insects, Camera Traps, Funding and Finance	1 year 10 months ago
DSAIL Tech4Wildlife Workshop Tutorials Now Available!	Hello! If you were interested in the DSAIL Tech4Wildlife Workshop last week exploring how AI can be used to aid conservation efforts, you...	AI for Conservation, Conservation Tech Training and Education	1 year 10 months ago
Where to start in ct ?	Very helpful, thank you. One more thing, are there any broad skills that apply to all areas of conservation tech that may be helpful to learn/improve, e.g data analysis?	AI for Conservation, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Early Career	1 year 11 months ago
NBM - A collaborative and open source project to monitor Nocturnal Bird Migration	Hi everyone! We were so delighted to have Adrien along to our June Variety Hour to share more about the Nocturnal Bird Migration project. If you missed it, you can catch up with...	AI for Conservation	2 years 1 month ago
Request: Public datasets and models for marine videos (with fish looking fishy-ish)	During Andrew's talk in our June Variety hour (see here), @dmorris put out a call in the chat that might be relevant to our marine and ai...	AI for Conservation, Marine Conservation	2 years 1 month ago
Project Spotlight: Monitoring tropical freshwater fish in Kakadu National Park with drones, underwater cameras and AI	During Andrew's talk, @dmorris put out a call in the chat that might be relevant to folks catching up on the video, so I'll drop it here too: Re: Andrew's fish work... part...	AI for Conservation, Camera Traps, Drones, Marine Conservation	2 years 1 month ago
Automatically detect animals in camera trap images and filter out the empties	Thanks, @pvlun,@pvlun we are going to try it to develop a model for feral cat and rat detection in camera trap.	AI for Conservation	2 years 1 month ago
New collaboration network - Computer vision for insects	A new COST action has been announced which will focus on the use of computer vision for monitoring insects.InsectAI will run for 4 years...	AI for Conservation, Autonomous Camera Traps for Insects, Camera Traps	2 years 1 month ago
ISO Speakers for Emerging Technologies class.	Carly, that would be great! Thanks! I work with soundscapes and love the work of Rainforest Connection! I'll send you an email (@CUNY) to coordinate!	Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Drones, eDNA & Genomics, Emerging Tech, Geospatial	2 years 2 months ago
Looking for AI volunteer positions	Hi Donya! You might check out the Conservation Tech Directory to see what projects/organizations/tools best align with your interests and skills.	Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Camera Traps, Drones	2 years 2 months ago
Mbaza AI recognized by UNESCO & new team member	Hey everyone, I am super excited to share two announcements with the Community!🏆🌍 Our flagship Data4Good project - Mbaza AI...	AI for Conservation, Camera Traps	2 years 3 months ago
Crowdsourcing individual ID for pop dyn?	That sounds like a really neat project! Do fish get re-caught often enough that individual ID is useful? Is sample bias (more data from popular spots) an issue?	AI for Conservation, Citizen Science, Software Development	2 years 3 months ago

Group