From Spark to Spotlight: The Tech4Nature Innovation Journey Continues to Shape Conservation’s Future. Join us at the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025, Abu Dhabi

The series ran online between 20^th of August and 17^th of September and brought together a global conservation community for three interactive three-hour events. Each workshop focused on one of three innovative and emerging technologies identified as highly relevant for conservation: artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and gamification. The aim was to support organisations in exploring how these technologies could help them solve critical conservation challenges. The workshops were designed to fill an important gap, giving conservationists an accessible space to learn about complex technologies and how they connect to their own work. Across the series, 18 conservation and technology experts shared their insights, with each showcase carefully chosen to demonstrate how emerging tools are being applied in practice. 

These workshops were rooted in Tech4Nature’s mission to strengthen conservation through digital innovation, rights-based governance, biodiversity monitoring, sustainable finance, and capacity building, and they were organised as part of Tech4Nature’s official build-up for Congress, ensuring they spoke directly to the themes that will take centre stage in Abu Dhabi. To bring these ambitions to life, each workshop began with expert showcases of real-world applications in AI and IoT, blockchain, and gamification. The showcases were carefully selected to reflect the wide scope of each technology while highlighting their alignment with Tech4Nature priorities and the IUCN World Conservation Congress’s global agenda. This approach gave participants not only a clear entry point into complex technologies but also the ability to connect them with their own conservation realities.

After hearing from the experts, participants moved into small discussion groups where they shared knowledge, listened to different perspectives, and reflected on how the technologies might be applied in their own contexts. This structure created an inclusive and collaborative space with contributions from conservation practitioners, technologists, policymakers, academics, and early-career professionals from around the world.

The real value of the workshops lies in the insights that emerged from these discussions. Participants identified opportunities, challenges, and enabling environments for each technology, creating a baseline of understanding that Tech4Nature will now take forward to Congress. In this way, the Innovation Challenge Workshops have not only broadened knowledge among participants but have also built a foundation for the next stage of Tech4Nature’s journey at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.

AI and IoT Smarter Conservation Through Real-Time Insight

AI and the IoT are opening new possibilities for how conservation teams monitor biodiversity, detect threats, and make decisions. These technologies align closely with Tech4Nature priorities for digital innovation, biodiversity monitoring, capacity building, sustainable finance, and rights-based governance, while also linking directly to Congress themes on strengthening governance and unlocking data for action.

The potential for faster and more inclusive biodiversity monitoring was one of the most compelling opportunities identified. Dr. Emma Kennedy (Australian Institute of Marine Science, ReefCloud) demonstrated how AI is transforming coral reef monitoring in the Indo-Pacific, automating benthic image analysis to deliver consistent assessments of reef health. This has created unprecedented possibilities for scaling coral monitoring while making data accessible to local scientists and managers. Sophie Maxwell (Connected Conservation Foundation) complemented this view from a terrestrial angle, showing how IoT powered networks of connected camera traps and sensors provide a 360-degree perspective on wildlife, threats, and ranger operations. The discussions that followed highlighted clear opportunities to expand monitoring across different ecosystems, while also surfacing challenges. These included overwhelming volumes of data, high costs of maintaining connectivity, and risks of leaving local practitioners unable to fully engage. Concerns were also raised that smaller NGOs and community-based teams could be left behind if training and support are not built in from the start. To address these issues, participants highlighted the importance of training local managers, developing inclusive open-access platforms, and expanding affordable connectivity options.

When it came to threat detection and adaptive management, the contrasts between expert perspectives highlighted the breadth of AI applications. Through RESOLVE, Dr. Carly Vynne presented TrailGuard AI, a discreet camera system that can detect both poachers and endangered species in real-time, alongside TerrAdapt, a satellite-driven AI platform that predicts and maps habitat change to guide planning decisions. These systems illustrated how AI can inform both immediate action and long-term adaptive strategies. Together, these tools showed how AI can connect field-level intelligence with long-term landscape planning, offering both immediate alerts and broader strategy. Dr. Alex Dehgan (Conservation X Labs) brought a global perspective, describing how their open platform, Wild Me, monitors more than 270,000 individual animals across over 250 species in land and ocean. Conservation X Labs’s approach demonstrates how access to biodiversity data can be democratised by addressing the underlying drivers of extinction and delivering emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and molecular science to the last mile. Together, these showcases sparked rich debate on the opportunities for faster decision-making, broader participation, and adaptive management at scale. At the same time, participants recognised the practical barriers, including the high cost of sustaining advanced systems, the risk of conservation practice becoming over-reliant on technology, and barriers facing smaller organisations with limited resources. Participants agreed that success would depend on creating the right conditions, including sustainable funding models, open access platforms, and governance mechanisms that prioritise equity and inclusivity to ensure that AI can strengthen rather than divide the conservation community.

IoT applications also took centre stage in discussions on ranger safety, community benefit, and innovative finance. Bastiaan den Braber (Zambezi Zerø) explained how offline first IoT patrol systems and acoustic sensors are being designed for deployment in remote landscapes, generating verifiable data that keeps rangers safe while also building confidence for long-term investment. From the perspective of frontier landscapes in Africa, Tehanu’s work was presented by Keriane Nzabampema, showcasing a novel pilot centred on Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Tehanu combines AI and IoT sensors to identify individual gorillas and monitor their needs, linking these insights to blockchain-verified mobile money payments for community members who complete conservation tasks. This reframes human-wildlife relationships by turning coexistence into paid work, positioning local communities as conservation agents while endangered species receive timely protection tied to their specific needs. Participants were inspired by these innovations as ways to link ranger protection, community livelihoods, and new conservation finance, but they also recognised barriers. Energy demand, affordability, and the need for governments to regulate and enable fair access were identified as significant challenges. The discussion concluded with a strong sense of what would help, including public-private partnerships, government support for responsible deployment, and investment in energy efficient devices as conditions necessary to scale these solutions responsibly.

Taken together, the showcases and the discussions that followed created a nuanced picture of AI and IoT in conservation. Opportunities to expand biodiversity monitoring, detect threats in real time, and strengthen both ranger safety and community benefits were balanced against the challenges of affordability, sustainability, and equity. The discussions concluded with a focus on what will make these tools succeed in practice, highlighting the importance of accessibility, sustainability, and responsible scaling.

Blockchain Building Trust and Unlocking Finance for Conservation

Blockchain has often been viewed as complex or even controversial, yet it holds real promise for building trust, improving transparency, and unlocking new finance for conservation. Within the Tech4Nature priorities, it speaks directly to innovative finance, governance and rights, and transparent monitoring. The workshop revealed both the opportunities and the challenges of applying blockchain in practice, and the insights showed how communities, ecosystems, and markets might all benefit when the right conditions are in place.

One of the clearest benefits discussed was the potential to improve transparency and monitoring. Participants recognised that blockchain could make it possible to verify data on forests, carbon, and biodiversity in ways that were credible and tamper-proof, while also creating accountability in agricultural supply chains. These possibilities were brought to life through the work of Radoslav Dragov (Open Forest Protocol), who showed how blockchain, AI, and remote sensing can verify forest carbon storage. His work demonstrated how monitoring can be independent of traditional intermediaries, giving both governments and communities direct access to trusted results. Srivatsa (TraceX Technologies) complemented this with a supply chain focus, illustrating how blockchain can track commodities from farm to market and prevent deforestation driven by agriculture. By connecting farmers directly with premium markets, TraceX Technologies provides incentives for sustainable production that could be scaled across sectors. The challenges raised in discussion were substantial, including technical complexity, the difficulty of ensuring smaller organisations could access these systems, and the lack of regulatory clarity. Yet participants were equally clear about what would help. Regulation, shared standards, and sustained capacity building were seen as essential steps to make blockchain-based monitoring accessible and trusted.

When it came to finance and community benefit, the contrast between showcases highlighted the breadth of blockchain applications. Krasina Mileva (DOVU) described how dovuOS makes carbon and biodiversity credits accessible to buyers while directing revenue to those who manage the land. She showed how the system uses blockchain to create verifiable credits and remove barriers for conservation projects seeking to enter carbon and biodiversity markets. Eric Kaduru (Commonlands/CARE) presented a model of community-verified land certificates that channel funds securely to land stewards. By putting verification in the hands of communities themselves, this approach provides assurance to funders while strengthening local governance. Together, these perspectives showed how blockchain can bridge global finance and local conservation in practical and accountable ways. This focus strongly aligned with Tech4Nature priorities on innovative finance and rights-based governance. The participants recognised the potential of milestone-based funding, verified credits, and transparent revenue streams for communities. Yet participants also surfaced challenges such as the high upfront costs of implementation, the need to build community awareness, and the risk of smaller actors being excluded. There were also reflections on the reputational risks of blockchain, with participants noting that trust will only grow if systems are transparent, regulated, and clearly beneficial for communities. Participants stressed that progress would rely on benefit-sharing mechanisms, community capacity building, and policies that recognise and protect local land rights.

Governance and inclusion were explored through two distinct but complementary approaches. Mark Pascall (The Wellbeing Protocol) illustrated how blockchain platforms can stream funds directly to local community projects in transparent and accountable ways. He explained how this model, built as a Decentralised Autonomous Organisation (DAO), gives local groups the ability to decide how resources are used, making governance more participatory and offering a structure that conservation initiatives could adopt to strengthen equity and accountability. Yuting Jiang (Agora Citizen Network) demonstrated how decentralised identity can safeguard privacy and support collective decision-making. By using blockchain-based identity, Agora protects individuals while creating space for inclusive dialogue across diverse stakeholders, which participants saw as particularly valuable for contentious issues in conservation. These innovations revealed the potential of blockchain to strengthen equity and participation in conservation. While there was enthusiasm for more transparent decision-making and community-led governance, participants raised concerns about trust, adoption, and the challenge of balancing traditional governance with digital systems. The discussion ended constructively, with participants stressing that success will rely on legal frameworks, inclusive participation, and digital literacy to ensure blockchain supports governance in diverse conservation contexts.

Together, the blockchain showcases and reflections painted a picture of both potential and uncertainty. Opportunities for transparency, direct community finance, and inclusive governance are clear, but so too are the barriers of complexity, cost, and reputation. The conversation concluded with agreement on the conditions needed for success, highlighting that blockchain’s value for conservation depends on inclusive design and application.

Gamification Engaging New Audiences and Inspiring Behaviour Change

Gamification may be less familiar in conservation than other technologies, yet it carries significant potential to expand audiences, inspire empathy, and generate new forms of data and finance. Within the Tech4Nature priorities it connects to inclusive access, innovative finance, biodiversity monitoring, and capacity building. The workshop revealed how games can link people and nature in creative ways, while also surfacing questions about quality, funding, and partnerships.

One of the strongest benefits highlighted was the ability to reach mainstream audiences. Gautam Shah (Internet of Elephants) demonstrated how games that feature real animals and conservation themes can bring wildlife into the daily lives of millions of people, reframing conservation as entertainment. His work showed how empathy can be built through playful interaction, while also creating revenue streams for conservation organisations. Jennifer Estaris (Monument Valley III) added an industry wide perspective, describing how global gaming studios are embedding sustainability messages into popular titles that reach billions of players. This revealed the scale of possibility when conservation messages are carried through mainstream platforms, from in game tree planting campaigns to direct fundraising. Building on these perspectives, Andrew Brennwald (Yaldi Games) underlined the importance of partnerships between game developers and conservation organisations. He stressed that such collaborations are central to ensuring conservation stories are told effectively in games and that the outcomes translate into real world action. Discussions reflected both the excitement of reaching new audiences and the challenges of ensuring conservation themes are not oversimplified or dismissed as tokenistic. The importance of inclusion was also highlighted, with participants cautioning that games must reflect diverse perspectives to avoid reinforcing narrow or western-centric narratives. Creating the right conditions for success will require partnerships with game studios, narrative design that keeps entertainment and substance in balance, and targeted campaigns that translate engagement into conservation results.

Another area of focus was how games can contribute to science while also influencing behaviour. Lilli Wakinekona Carlsen (FathomVerse) showcased how gaming environments can be designed to contribute directly to ocean research. FathomVerse creates a virtual underwater world where real species and ecosystems are represented, allowing players’ interactions to generate shared biodiversity datasets and support scientific understanding of marine life. This approach highlighted the potential for citizen science at scale and the ability to engage diverse audiences in marine conservation. Prof. Nils Bunnefeld (University of Stirling) brought in an academic perspective, illustrating how ecological knowledge games, such as EcoKnowGames, can model policy trade-offs and record the behaviour of players as they navigate conservation dilemmas. This creates valuable datasets that help researchers understand human decision-making in sustainability contexts. Games were also recognised as a powerful tool to widen participation in science and create new forms of behavioural data. Challenges were also raised, including how to ensure data quality, maintain engagement over time, and address licensing barriers for integrating conservation data into commercial products. For these ideas to work, participants emphasised the importance of open access resources, validation by research institutions, and communities of practice that connect developers and conservationists.

The discussions also highlighted how games can support decision-making and connect people more closely with local nature. Dave Sharp (Blue Sight Games) described how games designed specifically around conservation issues can raise awareness, influence behaviour, and provide interactive ways to explore solutions. His work highlighted the potential for gamification to shift attitudes and inspire new conservation actors, particularly when games are accessible across platforms and demographics. Andrew Brennwald (Yaldi Games) also shared insights on how cosy exploration games such as Out and About can reconnect players with local landscapes. He emphasised that conservation organisations should consider cost-effective approaches by leveraging existing global platforms such as Roblox and framing partnerships around content creation within these environments. These contributions showed how gamification can shape everyday choices while also mobilising volunteers and supporters for conservation initiatives. Participants recognised the opportunities to build empathy, encourage local action, and create new communities of practice. At the same time, they acknowledged barriers such as limited funding and the difficulty of finding suitable partners in the gaming industry. The conversation closed with a constructive focus on partnerships and collaboration as the conditions for success. Closer collaboration with the games industry can provide platforms, audiences, and technical expertise, while conservation charities and academic institutions bring the knowledge and credibility needed to ensure games support real conservation outcomes. Networks of conservation game creators were also highlighted as essential for sharing learning and building momentum. 

Taken together, the gamification showcases and discussions revealed both creativity and caution. The opportunities to mobilise mainstream audiences, generate new datasets, and influence behaviour were compelling, while the challenges of funding, design, and perception were equally recognised. The conversation ended with a focus on what is needed to make gamification work in practice, emphasising partnerships, open resources, and creative networks as the drivers of a wider and more inclusive conservation movement.

From Innovation Challenges to Congress: The Tech4Nature Journey

The insights generated through the Tech4Nature Innovation Challenge Workshop Series will take centre stage at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi. These online discussions created a shared foundation of opportunities, challenges, and enabling environments for applying AI and IoT, blockchain, and gamification in conservation. This knowledge now feeds directly into What the Tech?! Harnessing Appropriate Technology and Digital Innovation for Conservation Action, where lessons from the workshops will be combined with flagship country showcases and the strategic framework to demonstrate how technology can unlock new pathways for conservation action.

The Congress journey begins with Tech4Nature: Redefining the Limits of What’s Possible for Conservation, a lightning talk led by Marina (TECH4ALL Programme Director) and James McBreen (Senior Programme Manager, Technology and Innovation for Conservation, IUCN Centre for Conservation Action). This opening session will set the stage by introducing who Tech4Nature is, what it does, and why everyone is invited to be part of a technology revolution for conservation.

From there, participants are invited to join The Tech Takeover? Debating the Future of Conservation, which brings technologists and conservationists into an Oxford-style debate on the balance between innovation and tradition. This session builds directly on one of the recurring tensions raised during the workshops, how to embrace the promise of innovation while recognising adoption challenges and the importance of lived conservation experience.

Of course, at the heart of the journey is our What the Tech?! Harnessing Appropriate Technology and Digital Innovation for Conservation Action. This dynamic session invites participants into an interactive format of showcases, audience activity, and shared reflection, building a space to explore how conservation and technology can come together in practice.

Momentum continues with And the Winners Are…Tech4Nature Award 2025, a celebration of global leaders whose innovations are driving real conservation impact. This session highlights how pioneering approaches are already being applied in practice, offering inspiration to those looking to scale their own solutions. To close the journey, Tech4Nature: Masterclass with Tech4Nature Award Winners provides an opportunity to hear directly from Award winners, share lessons learnt, and connect with innovators during an interactive networking event.

In addition, Congress will be a chance to explore the GSAP Skills Platform, which now includes dedicated pages on emerging technologies (Tech4Species), including those highlighted in the Innovation Challenge Workshops. Two sessions will bring the platform to life. Global Species Action Plan Online Knowledge Platform: one stop shop for conservation tools will show how the platform can help put the Global Biodiversity Framework into action. How to scale up species conservation action innovatively and achieve greater impact for all? will gather practitioners, policymakers, and community organisations to share ideas and strategies for scaling up species conservation. Both sessions promise lively exchanges and practical insights, giving participants the chance to see how the GSAP SKILLS Platform can serve as a go-to hub for tools, inspiration, and collaboration.

Together, these sessions form the Tech4Nature journey at Congress, moving from inspiration and debate to practical showcases and interactive exchanges. They build directly on the foundation laid by the Innovation Challenge Workshops, linking online collaboration with on-the-ground engagement in Abu Dhabi. This momentum builds on the five years of the Tech4Nature partnership to date, and the invaluable insights shared by experts and participants from across the world, whose reflections laid the foundation that now carries forward into Congress. This is the moment to come, join us, interact with global experts and innovators, and play a part in shaping how technology can drive conservation forward. We look forward to seeing you at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi!