I’ve been friends with Lawrence and Gladys Zikusoka – founders of Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH) – for a few years after meeting them in Stockholm at an ICT4D conference. Our meeting was particularly exciting because of our shared interest in technology and primate conservation, and because of my previous conservation work in Uganda, the … Continue reading Conservation friends win Award
Category: Conservation
Ken Banks on technology for conservation: how mobile phones and other tools are helping protect wildlife and ecosystems in Africa and beyond.
Our breathing earth.
Breathing Earth is described as a “real-time simulation which displays CO2 emissions from every country in the world, as well as their birth and death rates”. The data used comes from reputable sources, although the site admits that a simulation on this scale can never be 100% accurate. Worryingly, they note that the CO2 emission … Continue reading Our breathing earth.
Walking with primates
I’ve been meaning to finish this post for a while now – it’s been sitting in “draft” mode for the past couple of months. It took a talk by Nathan Wolfe at TED last week – live-blogged by good friends Erik Hersman and Ethan Zuckerman – which finally got me thinking again. Nathan’s talk on … Continue reading Walking with primates
What’s the frequency, Kenneth?
This is a diagram for Bushmail, a system which allows users in very remote locations to send email using high-frequency radio signals. No need for a mobile signal, no need for cell towers and no need for any infrastructure. A wire strung up over a tree is enough to act as a transmitter/receiver, and a … Continue reading What’s the frequency, Kenneth?
Global gorillas
Last summer things began to take a turn for the worst for the worlds’ mountain gorilla population. Stuck between warring rebels, government troops and local populations, the deaths of a mother and infant took the 2007 death toll to nine. An estimated 380 mountain gorillas live in the Virunga National Park and surrounding volcanoes region, … Continue reading Global gorillas
Seizing the moment
Back in the summer of 2005, a few friends and colleagues gathered in a corner of the Commonwealth Club in London. There were environmentalists, conservationists, communications experts, senior mobile industry executives, businesspeople and a couple of potential investors. What brought us there was the Galileo Masters, an annual competition which awards incubation opportunities for innovative … Continue reading Seizing the moment
Where motives dare
I once caused a stir during a regular Friday night pub outing in Cambridge when I dared suggest that some people only worked in international conservation because it meant they got to visit cool places and work with exotic animals. Although some were a little shocked at my suggestion and strongly disagreed (I was, after … Continue reading Where motives dare
Climate change: It’s getting personal
Out of the six billion-or-so people on the planet, two out of three probably aren’t in much of a position to do anything about it right now. They’re either too busy trying to get their next meal together, or scratching a living off a few dollars or less a day. We’re talking climate change, and … Continue reading Climate change: It’s getting personal
What next for the Inconvenient Truth?
Al Gore has done an amazing job of publicising the global warming phenomenon. Road shows, documentary films and books have all at one time or another been conduits for his environmental message. And powerful it is. But the problem remains little understood, it seems, in the American press. Many of those that bother to take … Continue reading What next for the Inconvenient Truth?
Could this really be the “coolest thing in conservation”?
A new partnership has recently been announced, designed to tackle the age-old problem of how to attach ‘value’ to the environment, or to ‘ecosystem services’, however posh you want to make it sound. Stanford University, The Nature Conservancy and the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) are collaborators in what’s become known as the Natural Capital … Continue reading Could this really be the “coolest thing in conservation”?
A little post-primate talk interview
On 26th October I was invited to the Africa Table – a lunchtime series of informal talks – at the Center for African Studies here at Stanford University. The focus of my presentation was my year in Nigeria working with primates. After the presentation – which thankfully went so well I’ve been invited back to … Continue reading A little post-primate talk interview
What not to do on safari: Take a rubbish camera
When you visit one of the only national parks in Africa where you can freely walk – quite literally – among the animals, make sure you have a decent camera with you. After all, it’s not every day that a pack of African wild dogs pass through. Here’s one looking for breakfast. As for the … Continue reading What not to do on safari: Take a rubbish camera
Building the Olympic ‘dream’
I’ve tended to shy away from reproducing other people’s work on my blog. After all, it’s a bit lazy, isn’t it? But today I’m making an exception. Conservation is often accused of being too negative, always looking for the worst in everything. Although this isn’t strictly true, the people working behind the scenes often remain … Continue reading Building the Olympic ‘dream’
Throwing ‘precaution’ to the wind
Over 150 years in the making, global warming – a theory first aired by a Swedish scientist back in the 1890’s – is well underway. In the midst of all the argument and bickering, one thing is clear. The planet is getting warmer, and getting warmer rather quickly. Two degrees is apparently the ‘critical point’ … Continue reading Throwing ‘precaution’ to the wind