Public awareness on environmental and biodiversity conservation
Workflow analysis, Partnership building, and Overall planning
Years of research and conservation practices have not only stressed the importance of biodiversity data but also revealed the flaws of current workflow, ranging from inefficient data management, lack of data integration, to limited public-accessible data applications. Moreover, such workflow is mainly man-powered and often involves a lot of repetitive work, taking up huge amount of conservationists’ time.
Following the rapid development of technology, we have gradually realized the potential of technology to bring solutions to our “pain points” for long. In order to utilize technology tools in places in most needs, a systematic review and analysis of the current workflow was conducted to identify bottlenecks with high priorities and the possible solutions. The contemplation began in May 2018 and was materialized starting from Jun 2019 after potential technical partners emerged. Based on the systematic workflow analysis and close partnership, we made a step-by-step plan, aiming at developing modules one by one, considering our limited resource and manpower (e.g., from community-based camera trap monitoring assistant app, to BiA tool, to citizen science data visualization platform, to camera trap data management system).
A systematic review of current workflow and gap analysis that indicates where technology tools can help
Reliable and supportive technical partners (through trial and error)
An ambitious yet practical plan
Engaging various colleagues in the discussion of workflow and technical solutions is helpful to collect more valuable ideas.
Different technical companies have different work styles. Choose the ones that suit your work style and values.
Spatial and temporal campaign page displaying gingko investigation results
Shan Shui Conservation Center
Species records in Yunnan province
Shan Shui Conservation Center
[GIF] Home page and spatial campaign page (e.g., squirrel investigation results)
Shan Shui Conservation Center
[GIF] Spatial and temporal campaign page (e.g., gingko investigation results)
Shan Shui Conservation Center
[GIF] Data visualization on different administrative division levels (e.g., Zhejiang Province)
Shan Shui Conservation Center
During nature watch campaigns, citizen scientists are invited to observe and record wildlife timely, which not only strengthens the connection between citizens and nature but also serves as a promising species distribution data source. Species record data collected by citizen scientists via online questionnaire automatically flows into the visualization platform database (after data cleaning and manually periodically check) and turns into intuitive and attractive visualized charts and maps (two types: spatial, spatial and temporal) via Power BI. The platform, with both web and mobile version, provides real-time feedback to citizen scientists’ nature watch efforts, boosting their sense of accomplishment and motivating their future participation in nature watch activities. Moreover, since the platform integrates multiple nature watch campaigns with links to web articles about specific analysis of each campaign, it offers a broad range of biodiversity knowledge and enables “virtual nature watch” for citizens to get to know wildlife in other regions.
A brief timeline of the platform:
Jan-Feb 2021: form team, analyze analysis, make blueprint
Mar-Jun 2021: develop database and platform
Jul-Aug 2021: trial test
Sept 2021: go live and promotion
A well-designed data-collection questionnaire and automatic data cleaning mechanism to ensure data quality and a manually periodically check (normally once a season) to ensure data reality.
Visualization methods selection and aesthetic design with the engagement of citizen scientists.
PowerBI technology.
Citizen scientist WeChat community operation and maintenance.
As a public outreach product, it would never be too much for polishing contents and aesthetic design to make the platform user-friendly and attractive.
Engaging users in the planning stage and collecting their thoughts is very helpful for identifying user needs.
Questionnaires are needed to be well-designed and citizen scientists are needed to be well-trained before recording data. Otherwise, it’s easy to cause data loss.
AI detected camera trap image: red fox in the Sanjiangyuan region
Shan Shui Conservation Center
AI detected camera trap image: snow leopard in the Sanjiangyuan region
Shan Shui Conservation Center
Community-based camera trap monitoring assistant app
Shan Shui Conservation Center
Camera trap data management system: species identification page
Shan Shui Conservation Center
To accelerate camera trap data workflows, an online data management system along with app-based tools and AI image recognition is being developed supported by technical partners, which consists of:
Community-based camera trap monitoring assistant app: the app allows local monitors to automatically record the time and GPS location of camera trap setup/pickup, saving the cumbersome process of collecting data from local monitors and manual data entry. (blueprint: Jun 2019, development: Oct 2019-Feb 2020, trial and use: Mar-Oct 2020)
AI image recognition models: AI models help detect animals and identify species in camera trap photos, which greatly reduce the number of photos that need human identification and enhance data processing efficiency.
A series of AI models has been trained and/or tested with technical partners, including PU & PKU ResNet18 model (2018), MegaDetector (test only, 2020), MindSpore YOLOv3 model (2021).
Online data management platform: camera trap information collected via the app along with photos are upload to a structured cloud database. The data management platform not only supports species identification via AI and human, but also enables global data search and statistics reports. (blueprint: Apr-Aug 2021, development: Sept 2021-Jun 2022, trial and use: Jul 2022)
A systematic review of the current camera trap data workflow and translating into technical system development needs
Open-source and good-performing camera trap image AI recognition models
Cloud resources for AI computing, data storage, etc.
Rounds of trial use and feedback to fix bugs and improve the usability of the system
Rome was not built in a day. Due to time and resource constraints, we have to divide the system into different modules and develop modules step by step. We believe that each module itself can enhance one or more steps in our workflow and have benefited from modules before they are incorporated into the full system. Yet it is important to have a big-picture perspective in the beginning and make long-term plans for the final system integration.
A system cannot be perfect from the start. When the app first came out and put into use in one community, it did not work as we expected and local monitors reported various types of bugs. We collected and analyzed the feedbacks to improve the UI-design and functionality of the app.
Program personnel visited villages in areas considered at-risk for Ebola virus outbreaks. This engagement helped to identify community interest in contributing to animal mortality reporting and assess the potential role of hunters in the network. While researchers and ecoguards initially provided some reports of carcasses, the majority of reports were ultimately received from hunters, allowing for more focused engagement of this demographic group. In addition to reporting, outreach was conducted to reach hunters and communities in several ways to support awareness of risk reduction strategies. For example, in the Étoumbi region, the Field Veterinary Program provided outreach education on Ebola and livestock husbandry to the Étoumbi Hunters’ Association, as well as hunters and other villagers of Mbomo and Kellé. Communities around national parks (Nouabalé-Ndoki and Odzala-Kokoua) were engaged, and visual posters and books were also provided to a village nurse for further dissemination.
Long-term efforts in the region fostered trusted relationships with the community that likely facilitated successful engagement and participation.
Sensitivity to the needs and priorities of local stakeholders, including food security and cultural traditions, promoted practical solutions that supported buy-in and uptake.
The reporting process established clear channels for information flow, minimizing the burden for community participants providing reports while ensuring information was communicated from local to national levels.
This program was initiated in 2005. There may be updated regulations regarding hunting and other subsistence or commercial use of wildlife in the region that could affect practices, and additional technologies (e.g. vaccination) are now available that could change the management strategies for humans and potentially wild animals in the event of Ebola virus or other disease detection. However, the program reinforces the utility of locally-relevant approaches and solutions, as well as the role of involving stakeholders that may be perceived as far outside of the conservation or public health sectors. In this case, hunters and community members living in Sangha district were among those at greatest risk of exposure to infection from handling carcasses, making their awareness and engagement in risk reduction practices critically important. Given the importance of food security and cultural traditions, top-down approaches were and likely still are unlikely to be effective, instead requiring stakeholder engagement and locally-accepted solutions.
Information Flow, Animal Mortality Monitoring program
WCS
Components of the system involved mortality reporting by hunters and community members, investigation of reports by veterinarians trained on specimen collection and handling protocols, specimen transport to national laboratories, and laboratory screening for disease diagnostics. Each of these involved specialized inputs, but the coordination between entities created the system. Information management and communication were conducted throughout the process. A Carcass Data Collection and Reporting Protocol was integral to the process, ensuring consistent reporting.
A local team, supported by a global program, ensured continuity of the broader Animal Mortality Monitoring Network and technical expertise to develop and implement disease investigation protocols
Full integration and support of Congolese government officials from multiple ministries helped prioritize the animal-human link for public health and conservation outcomes
Availability of functional national and international laboratories and the ability to move specimens rapidly, including from remote areas, supported diagnostics in endangered species
In this setting, hunters and some community members were the key eyes on the ground for wild animal mortality detection, having some of the only human presence in forest areas where carcasses may degrade rapidly, providing a limited window for detection and investigation. While the overall Animal Mortality Monitoring Network included a broader scope of reporting, only reports meeting certain criteria (such as being a great ape species, the extent of carcass degradation, and other factors) prompted disease investigation, keeping the scale of the program feasible and cost-effective. Unfortunately, despite its demonstrated value, sentinel detection in wild animals is not routinely a formal part of public and animal health surveillance in many parts of the world, missing a critical source of potential information that could promote early warning for disease threats in humans and other species. Training was also an important component of the project, including on biosafety protocols for safe disease investigation and diagnostic screening.
Training staff in the use of digital mobile data collection.
map scientific services
Training of staff is important to ensure the effective implementation and long-term success of the solution. Prioritise training during the designing and deployment phase, as well as after the deployment to ensure continued use of the solution.
Technical officers or champions to drive the training and use on the ground improve the chance of success.
Use the organisational reporting tools to track user engagement and usage to pinpoint when and if they are not using the applications as planned. Identify why there may be a problem, and work with them to overcome the problem.
Language barriers can be an issue and forms need to be simple for effective data collection.
Training should not be seen as a once-off exercise but rather a continuous process.
Staff turnover is a reality and organisations need to ensure continuity by always having more than one senior staff member trained on the various workflows and administration of ArcGIS Online.
Implementation partners can make training and long-term support of the solution more manageable.
An example of pre-configured workflow tools for wildlife monitoring. These including survey forms, dashboards and web applications
Esri
ArcGIS Online provides a secure and flexible framework for both deploying useful applications and integrating other conservation technology to holistically support workflows related to each initiative that is being implemented by a protected area. The foundation of all workflows includes tools for data collection such as mobile survey forms (Survey123), data visualisation (dashboards or web applications), analyses, and reporting. Additionally, the ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World gives you access to the foremost collection of geographic information from around the world to support your workflows, this includes the latest satellite imagery and products such as forest loss.
There are several pre-configured workflows for initiatives that can be unpacked and implemented immediately. These initiatives include:
Track Illegal Activity.
Monitor Wildlife.
Mitigate Wildlife Conflict.
Maintain Park Infrastructure.
The workflows are configurable and allows users to customise them based on their needs. Alternatively, organisations have access to all the necessary building blocks to develop entirely new workflows for their own initiatives e.g., a community outreach or public participation initiatives.
Listen to and work with the frontline practitioners to understand the problem and define the requirements before designing and deploying the workflow.
There are several configurable applications available on ArcGIS Online, understanding how they work and how they can link with each other is crucial in developing effective workflows.
Follow the design, deploy, operate, and review strategy to develop a workflow and maximise its impact.
Prototype and test before rolling out.
Establish essential procedures and guidelines.
Follow the best practices and trends.
Experience in ArcGIS is hugely beneficial, alternatively use implementation partners to make the process easier and effective.
Take advantage of the ArcGIS Community and online training resources.
The Protected Area Management Solution and workflows are built using ArcGIS Online as the foundation. ArcGIS Online is a cloud-based mapping and analysis solution. It gives users access to workflow-specific apps, maps, and data from around the globe, and tools for being mobile in the field. Users can use it to make maps, analyse data, and to share and collaborate. Your data and maps are stored in a secure and private infrastructure and can be configured to meet your mapping and IT requirements.
Organisations can apply for low-cost access to ArcGIS Online through the Esri Conservation Program by filling out the Technology assistance application. Alternatively, licencing can be purchased through a local Esri Distributer.
ArcGIS Online is software-as-a-service (SaaS) cloud-based offering that requires an internet connection. However, tools are designed to work offline by default. Once surveys are downloaded, captured data will be saved in the device so it can be later synchronized.
ArcGIS Online allows you to create a great central destination for all your organisations monitoring data.
ArcGIS Online can be daunting to configure if you are unfamiliar with GIS.
There are rich resources for learning about ArcGIS Online, use them, especially the free Esri Training.
Great Esri Community Forum for ArcGIS Online where you can post questions.
There are several user types available based on the members’ needs and requirements. The user type determines the privileges that can be granted to the member. It is important to have a good understanding of which and how many user types your organisation needs.
Organise your members into well defined groups to organise activities and data access.
