I’m posting this specifically for East Africa–based WILDLABS community members.

WILDLABS is leading the International Conservation Technology Conference (ICTC) in Peru, and there is a lot of exciting work happening there across conservation technology, data, AI, monitoring, and practice. While WILDLABS as an organisation is not able to attend or participate in the Global Conservation Tech and Drone Forum (GCTDF 2026) www.GCTDF.org  2-6 March 2026, Kenya, there is a genuine opportunity for informal, community-level connection between the two events. 

Because I will be supporting the WildDrone.eu hackathon at Ol Pejeta Conservancy as a volunteer and cannot attend ICTC myself, and WILDLABS is not in a position to be present at GCTDF, I wanted to gently ask whether any East African ICTC attendees might be willing to share an informal update in Kenya, in their personal capacity.

Some East Africa–based practitioners will attend ICTC, while others will join us shortly afterwards in Kenya for GCTDF. This is not a WILDLABS-coordinated activity and does not imply sponsorship, partnership, or branding. The idea is simply peer-to-peer knowledge sharing: a short reflection on themes, insights, or discussions from ICTC that would be useful for practitioners, researchers, and conservation teams working in the region.

GCTDF 2026 is a non-profit, volunteer-led forum anchored in Africa and focused on applied conservation technology, including:
– Drones in nature conservation (Track 1), including the Drones in Conservation Community (of Practice)
– Data, AI, and conservation intelligence (Track 2)
– Sensors, satellites, and connected environments (Track 3)
– Women’s leadership and skills development (through the Women in Conservation Forum)
– Global Conservation Leaders Roundtable
– Conservation Data Management Summit
– Field demonstrations and applied sessions

If you are based in East Africa, attending ICTC, and also planning to be in Kenya in early March, we would warmly welcome your voice as part of this informal bridge between the two events.

If you are attending ICTC and would be open to sharing an informal update or reflections within any GCTDF track or side event, please contact me. We would be glad to invite you to contribute in your personal capacity.

If this sounds of interest, feel free to reply here or message me directly.

Also, as part of Track 1 (Drones in Nature Conservation) at GCTDF 2026, we are planning a coordination-focused panel titled “Drone Groups in Nature Conservation – Connecting the Dots”, intended to bring together leaders from existing drone-in-conservation networks and field operations to map who is doing what, reduce duplication, and strengthen alignment between field practice, scientific governance, and aviation safety. We would welcome participation from the WILDLABS Drones Group in an individual, community-of-practice capacity, not as institutional representation.

Thanks, and strong support to the WILDLABS team and the ICTC community for what promises to be a great conference in Peru.

David
[email protected]