Our innovation projects create sustainable conservation solutions by piloting new tools and technologies in protected areas.
We believe that innovation in conservation is crucial to effectively safeguarding our planet. Habitat loss, climate change, and biodiversity decline are dynamic challenges that demand adaptive solutions. Embracing innovation means harnessing new tools and techniques to enhance community engagement, data collection, and resource management. These innovations can empower local communities, improve conservation outcomes, and enhance our ability to rapidly respond to environmental threats.
Despite advancements in conversation methods over the last decades, access to emerging technologies and techniques remains limited for many protected areas. LLF co-finances innovative conservation projects to introduce and trial new technologies and techniques in our funded landscapes. This initiative supports our implementing partners in discovering and testing new methods, while reducing the risks associated with piloting these techniques. This collaborative approach allows us to share responsibilities and resources, enabling us to explore and implement innovative solutions and maximize resource efficiency.
eDNA in Cardamom Mountains
In Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains National Park, environmental DNA (eDNA) technology is being used to advance biodiversity monitoring. This approach detects genetic traces of wildlife left in water samples, offering a non-invasive, cost-effective way to explore biodiversity across this vast 400,000-hectare landscape. Conducted in partnership with Conservation International and NatureMetrics, the analysis identified over 500 species, including 17 IUCN Red List species such as the Sunda pangolin, Asian black bear, and pileated gibbon. These findings establish an important baseline for monitoring and protecting one of Southeast Asia’s most biodiverse ecosystems.
eDNA has proven particularly useful in regions like the Cardamom Mountains, where dense forests and remote terrain make surveying techniques challenging. By capturing a wide range of species data, eDNA complements existing tools like camera traps, enhancing our understanding of ecosystems.
This project demonstrates how eDNA can enhance conservation monitoring by offering an efficient and scalable approach to long-term biodiversity tracking. It enables local stakeholders to contribute to data collection while reducing the effort and expense of conventional fieldwork. The biodiversity insights gained support more responsive conservation strategies, ensuring actions are informed by a thorough understanding of the ecosystem. eDNA also makes it possible to monitor changes in biodiversity over time, linking conservation efforts to measurable outcomes that reflect the impact of long-term funding commitments like ours.
The Cardamom Mountains eDNA study highlights the potential of innovative technology to address conservation challenges on a large scale. Through solutions like these, we can safeguard biodiversity, support local communities, and strengthen the protection of the world’s most important landscapes.
Voices of Madidi
Voices of Madidi is a production network and digital video library that empowers local and Indigenous communities in the Madidi legacy landscape of Bolivia, by providing them with a space to share their stories through video testimonials. Developed in collaboration with Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Radio France International (RFI) Planète Radio, this project builds on the foundation of a community radio station to give people living in protected areas a voice in conservation efforts. The project aims to integrate community perspectives into conservation efforts, ensuring that the voices of those living in protected areas are heard and valued.
The platform hosts a growing video library, with content created by a network of local correspondents trained to document and share community perspectives related to culture, livelihoods, and environmental threats. By promoting biodiversity conservation and fostering community participation, the project not only raises awareness about crucial environmental issues but also strengthens the relationship between conservation initiatives and the people most affected by them. This project offers a new, cost-effective format for audiovisual productions, and provides an accessible and participatory way for remote communities to share their perspectives on environmental issues.
Below you can view a trailer for the project, and for more information or to watch full videos, please visit Voices of Madidi.
