Protecting Wildlife at Scale

Background

National parks, including large wildlife reserves, play a critical role in protecting endangered plant and animal species, yet often their size and terrain make continuous monitoring difficult. Reserves such as Etosha National Park in Namibia span thousands of square kilometers and include open savanna, salt pans, waterholes, road networks, and multiple access points. Despite the presence of trained rangers, limited personnel and resources make it challenging to prevent illegal activities such as poaching and unauthorized entry. Technologies, including, but not limited to aerial drones, satellites, fixed monitoring systems, and AI-assisted detection, offer opportunities to support ranger efforts. However, these tools also require coordination, staffing, and thoughtful deployment to be effective. Conservation organizations must decide how to balance human patrols and technology to provide meaningful protection across space and time.

The International Mission for Monitoring Conservation (IMMC) has asked your team to develop a modeling approach to help guide protection strategies for large wildlife reserves and national parks, beginning with Etosha National Park as a case study.