Alan J. Hesse
Senior Behaviour Change Specialist (TRAFFIC); also independent author-illustrator and climate educator.., TRAFFIC International
My conservation career started in 1992 when I helped set up and joined a University expedition to the Bolivian Amazon. What started out as a 3-month experience ended up being a life-changing inflection point that set my professional and personal course to the present day. My conservation experience was built bottom-up and hands-on, and includes field data collection and logistics, grassroots organization leadership and project management, community engagement and capacity building, M&E, training and behavior change, and lately climate education through authorship of graphic novels and other resources. My conservation career includes positions as a senior staff member and a principal investigator at the Bolivian BirdLife Partner Armonía, field investigator in the Gran Chaco with WCS Bolivia, field logistics officer for Conservation International's RAP expeditions, and Programme Manager and Senior Manager of M&E at Rare. I currently work as Senior Behaviour Change Specialist with TRAFFIC International, applying behavioural science approaches to support TRAFFIC's work across wildlife supply chains globally.
I am a recent graduate from the Wildlife Research and Training Institute, with a passion for conservation and a diverse set of skills honed through hands-on experience.
During my attachment program at Kisite Mpunguti Marine Park and my volunteer work with Reefolution Trust, I have gained invaluable expertise in:
Coral Restoration: Engaging in coral planting, nursery maintenance, and out-planting to rejuvenate marine ecosystems.
Marine Debris Cleanups: Organizing and participating in cleanups to protect our oceans.
Community Engagement: Facilitating group discussions and outreach programs to foster local involvement in conservation efforts.
Data Collection and Entry: Gathering and managing data crucial for research and conservation projects.
Human-Wildlife Conflict Resolution: Developing strategies to mitigate conflicts between humans and wildlife.
My interests are deeply rooted in:
Wildlife Protection: Advocating for and implementing measures to safeguard endangered species.
Environmental Education: Sharing knowledge and raising awareness through my Twitter (X) page.
Habitat Restoration: Participating in projects aimed at restoring damaged ecosystems.
Community Engagement: Collaborating with local communities to develop sustainable conservation strategies.
Policy and Advocacy: Working on policies to support and enhance conservation efforts.
While I currently possess a broad range of skills, I am eager to specialize further and make a significant impact in the conservation community. Being part of the Wild Hub would provide me with the perfect opportunity to refine my expertise and contribute meaningfully to global conservation efforts.
Loretta Andrade
First an Animal & Wildlife Goodwill Ambassador & then a Corporate Professional, N/A
I have always believed that kindness should extend to every living being. My love for animals and nature is not just a passion. It is a part of who I am. I care deeply about Animal Rights, Welfare, and Wildlife Conservation, and I do whatever I can to make this world a gentler and safer place for them. Whether it is raising awareness or supporting meaningful causes, I try to play my part with heart and purpose.
Professionally, I have grown as an Executive Assistant and Administrative Specialist with hands-on experience across different sectors and cultures. Over the years, I have worked closely with senior leadership teams in Technology, Business, and Higher Education, always striving to be dependable, professional, and calm under pressure. I have earned an Advanced Certificate in Executive Assistance from BMTG UK Ltd which reflects my dedication to this profession.
I have also completed several training programs focused on workplace excellence and strong organizational skills. These skills help me adapt to change and keep things running smoothly in today’s fast-paced world. My work often involves managing international travel, planning both virtual and on-site events, and handling communication, immigration, and hospitality tasks. I approach each of these with care and a personal touch.
I also write professionally, preparing internal communications and business correspondence with clarity and precision. This has helped me build a reputation for being trustworthy, effective, and committed to high standards.
What truly keeps me going is my willingness to learn and grow. I believe that every day is an opportunity to do better, not just at work, but in how we treat others, especially those who do not have a voice. This journey of compassion, hard work, and lifelong learning is what I carry forward, wherever I go and whatever I do.
I'm a recently graduated wildlife biologist having varied interests in the fields of Illegal wildlife trade, Human-Wildlife Conflict and Conserving species through In-situ and Ex-situ Management practices.
Stephanie Manka (formerly Schuttler)
Wildlife Biologist and Science Communicator, Fancy Scientist LLC
Wildlife biologist 🐘 Mentor 👩🎓 Your Biggest Career Cheerleader 📣 Communicator 👥 | Showing animal lovers how to get their dream job✨ | Connecting people with nature for conservation 🌿 and community 🏙️
Trained in biology and anthropology, I have spent 20+ years in the non-profit sector. Passionate about social and environmental justice, my focus is on the intersection between conservation and community rights and wellbeing. As the co-director of Global Diversity Foundation, I have experience in organisational strategy development, fundraising and donor relations management, HR management and recruitment, financial oversight, operations, conflict resolution and mediation, non-profit governance, communications and dissemination, and event organisation. A highly skilled partnership-builder, relationship-manager and strategic thinker, I speak four languages and currently oversee a multicultural, multilocal team of 15.
I help run a UK charity that builds the capacity of conservationists to plan, implement, monitor, and report on their work. I also have a fair bit of experience in tiger and sea turtle conservation.
Louisa Richmond-Coggan
Founder & Conservation Consultant, LRC Wildlife Conservation Consulting
Is your organisation's technology decision-making as structured as it needs to be? Conservation organisations face real pressure to adopt technology, often without a clear process for assessing whether it fits their context, capacity, and conservation goals.
The free Conservation Technology Decision Quiz takes five minutes. It scores your approach across three areas: Decision Clarity, Fit and Feasibility, and Delivery and Performance. Results include practical recommendations matched to your score, so you can see where your decision process is strong and what to address first. Start here: Technology Decision Quiz
I work with conservation organisations and funders on structured technology decision-making, the process that determines whether adoption actually works. Twenty-five years in conservation across the Global South. Technology-agnostic, no vendor affiliations.
If your team is navigating a technology decision, evaluating a pilot, or funding organisations that are, I'd welcome a conversation.
BACKGROUND
Dr. Louisa Richmond-Coggan. My career spans field-based ecology, international NGO and policy work, academic leadership, and conservation technology decision-making.
Field career: large carnivore ecology and human-wildlife coexistence research across Eastern and Southern Africa, including as Head of Ecology at the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia. I led Namibia's National Leopard Census, a multi-stakeholder project whose results fed into national and international policy. I built the Carnivore Tracker app, the first of its kind in Namibia.
Institutional career: BirdLife International, UNEP-WCMC, TRAFFIC International, Earthwatch. Academic Dean at the School of Wildlife Conservation at the African Leadership University. Technology and innovation work with IUCN Tech4Nature, including leading three Innovation Challenge Workshops and contributing to the strategic guidance framework on conservation technology adoption.
The Navigating Web 3.0 Guide: A Tool for Conservation came out of that work. It is a decision-support tool that starts with your conservation goals and operational realities, not the technology. 34 guided questions assess which emerging technologies are worth exploring across four areas: data collection and management, resource allocation and financial management, collaboration and communication, and monitoring and evaluation. Now integrated into the IUCN GSAP SKILLS platform. This guide is where the decision-support work started, and it remains the clearest entry point into conservation technology decision-making for teams new to this field.
Research at the International Conservation Technology Conference, Lima in 2026 confirmed what I had been building toward: the gap in conservation technology is not the tools. It is the structured process for deciding whether, which, and how technology fits an organisation's context.
PhD, Nottingham Trent University. MSc Conservation Biology, Durrell Institute. Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. IUCN WCPA Task Force on Human-Wildlife Coexistence. Member of the Nature Tech Collective and Top Tier Impact.
Przemyslaw Zdunek
Field herpetologist, Member of the IUCN SSC Monitor Lizard Specialist Group
Naturalist, traveler, French-Polish herpetologist, interested in biodiversity and the conservation of herpetofauna. I have always been passionate about observing and studying amphibians and reptiles, especially different species of lizards in many countries. This has allowed me to gain experience in scientific research by collaborating with other specialists, attending numerous conferences and writing papers on herpetofauna. I participate in numerous monitoring and conservation programmes. Member of the IUCN SSC Monitor Lizard Specialist Group. Addicted to Natural History.
Education and the sharing of knowledge is the key to progress and understanding.
"Learning from the past to understand the present and prepare the future."
Flavia Manieri
WildHub Community Advocates Coordinator|Interdisciplinary Researcher, Uppsala University
I am a passionate communicator and researcher with an extensive background in the environmental humanities and social sciences, dedicated to exploring and fostering connections between people and nature. Based between Sweden and the UK, I work in academia as a researcher and lecturer, teaching courses in environmental law, historical ecology, and disaster risk management. I actively contribute to non-profit organisations promoting conservation and animal welfare. I work with Faunalytics, translating complex research into accessible insights for evidence-based advocacy; write feature articles for Ubuntu Magazine spotlighting conservation initiatives; and serve as Community Advocates Coordinator at WildHub, driving strategic communications and leading initiatives that connect and empower conservation practitioners worldwide.
When I’m not working, you’ll find me hiking forest trails with my dog or enjoying a good cup of coffee.
I am a solutionist on a lifelong quest for more effective and impactful ways to address nature, climate, and social justice challenges. I set up Dialogue Matters in 2000 to facilitate better and fairer decisions that help people and nature flourish. I do this by delivering effective and ethical Stakeholder Dialogue, process design and facilitation in environmental contexts.
I am a Zimbabwean conservation professional specialising in protected area management, biodiversity conservation, GIS and conservation technology. My work combines field-based conservation leadership with the use of technology and spatial data to strengthen conservation planning, operations and decision-making.
I currently lead Biodiversity Monitoring & Ecosystem Services, overseeing conservation operations across landscapes within the Zambezi Valley, with a particular focus on the Sebungwe Corridor and the wider Lower Zambezi–Mana Pools (LOZAMAP) Transfrontier Conservation Area.
I have a particular interest in using GIS, remote sensing, drones, SMART, EarthRanger and other emerging conservation technologies to strengthen field operations and better understand changing landscapes.
My broader professional interest is in helping conservation organisations build practical, technology-enabled approaches that connect effective protected area management with communities, biodiversity and long-term landscape conservation.
I am especially interested in collaboration around conservation technology, GIS, protected area management, biodiversity monitoring and community-based conservation across Africa.
I work for WildTeam UK, helping to deliver training workshops, write conservation best practice manuals and share them as widely as possible. Previously a Writing Fellow working with various conservation organisations across India. Background in research, particularly behavioural ecology. Bird nerd.