Hey Frank, Thanks for your reply. I really appreciate your insights. It’s cool to see the different paths available in this field. I feel like I’m just starting out and trying to figure out which technologies are key in these industries. 

I’m aiming to move from a Data Analyst role to a Data Engineer as that seems to be a standard progression My background is in API and full-stack development with Java/Spring. Right now, I’m diving into Python data libraries and brushing up on my SQL skills. 

I’ve put together a simple data pipeline using the Open Weather API (check it out here: https://github.com/MGadhvi/weather-etl) and did some analysis on rhino sighting data from the IUCN (you can find it here: https://github.com/MGadhvi/iucn-rhino-analysis). I’m currently working on a similar project with a larger dataset from the IUCN, using Google Cloud Platform to handle the heavy lifting. 

I’m thinking it might be a good idea to find a data role elsewhere to get some experience before jumping into conservation efforts. It might be better to volunteer if possible to learn the ropes 

Thanks again for your help. Much appreciated 

Best, Manish Gadhvi

Hi Alex,

Thank you for your reply. I've used Kaggle before but I've never heard of the others.

I'm hoping to start volunteering at my local zoo soon as well so I'll see if there is anything I can do there

All the best,

Manish 

This is super helpful. Thank you for sharing!

Hi Dominique,

Thanks for your responses and congratulations on getting trained! 

I can see that speaking directly with a climbing professional could be the most beneficial because what climbing methods and equipment you may need will depend very much on individual project goals and budgets. Did you end up speaking with your trainers about your field research goals and what climbing methods may be best for you? 

Hi Mark, thanks for responding. I think you've identified one of the most difficult parts of research climbing: maintaining your climbing skills and knowledge between field sessions. 

My husband is an experienced arborist and practices his skills almost daily. I am not an arborist, so I schedule climbing time to keep my abilities fresh and my husband is there to assist. But I know it's difficult for individual researchers to practice on their own and they should only be climbing alone if experienced and not in a remote area.

However, it's possible to train researchers to safely climb in the field for multiple field sessions. My husband and I trained a group of climbers in Cameroon in January, 2024. The goal was to train four climbers who would go into the remote rainforest for several weeks and set up camera traps. They would deploy and retrieve arboreal cameras at different survey locations over two years. We needed to train the teams to operate safely and independently (without an instructor present) in very remote areas. 

To train them sufficiently, my husband and I spent 1 month in Cameroon with the field team. We did a few days of basic training at a location near the city and then went with them on their initial camera deployment where we continued field training for 2.5 - 3 weeks. Before going to Cameroon, we had several discussions to determine what climbing method and equipment would best meet their data collection goals and were appropriate for their field site and conditions. We taught them basic rescue scenarios. We also set a climbing practice schedule for the team to maintain their climbing and rescue skills. We strongly emphasized to their management that the field team needed access to the climbing gear and needed to follow the practice schedule. Since the training, the team successfully finished two other camera trap surveys and is planning their third.

This was a lot of up-front training and cost. However, these climbers are now operating on their own and can continue operating for the foreseeable future. I think a big reason is receiving extensive training, tailored to their needs. General tree-climbing courses are great for learning the basics, but they'll never be a substitute for in-field, tailored training.

Thank you so much for such amazing resources and insights! I'll definetly keep all this in mind, thank you!!

Thank you so much! Sadly, those centers are from the US, and it's difficult to get a job there being European (as far as I know). I am a postdoc now and I know about this kind of opportunities, but they are difficult to come across.

Thank you!!!

Thank you for confirming, Vance! I will check out environmentjob.co.uk!

The weird bit about LinkedIn is that I ran into two opportunities posted by someone that I could respond to with an offer. Which is of course nice, but also very much dependent on coincidence, having a broad enough network, and of course endless  browsing.

I noticed that LinkedIn currently has a selection of 'requests for work'. Haven't checked it out though because it requires a premium account. Guess, I will take the free temporary upgrade.

Hej Szilvia!

What an interesting story, especially in light recent questions popping up on business models for nature conservation enterprises!

So, how or where do you find commissions for your drone and geospatial consultancies in nature conservation?