By Milliam Murigi
The Global Conservation Tech & Drone Forum (GCTDF 2026) has announced the Women in Conservation Forum (WiCF) as one of its official side events.
Scheduled for Monday, March 2, 2026, in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, this will be an inclusive forum celebrating women leading conservation innovation, from drone-powered wildlife monitoring to geospatial analysis, artificial intelligence (AI), and data systems.
The forum is supported by key government and conservation partners, including the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and Action Labs, alongside funding sponsors The Wildlife Society and Island Foundation.
“The initiative underscores a growing recognition that effective and inclusive conservation efforts depend on women’s full participation at all levels of decision-making,” says the organizers.
Across Kenya and the wider continent, women play a central role in conservation—as community conservancy leaders, wildlife rangers, researchers, policymakers, and advocates. Their contributions are often at the frontline of protecting biodiversity, resolving human-wildlife conflict, and advancing community-led conservation models.
Yet, despite their significant contributions, women remain underrepresented in leadership and policy spaces. The Forum seeks to address this gap by providing a dedicated platform where women practitioners, policymakers, researchers, private-sector leaders, and international partners can connect, share experiences, and develop collaborative solutions.
The event will feature keynote addresses from prominent conservation leaders, including Arnolda Shiundu, Chair of the Kenya Wildlife Trust, who emphasized the broader significance of women’s participation in conservation leadership.
“Having a seat at the table and influencing decisions isn’t just a conservation issue, it’s a life issue,” Shiundu says. “This conference matters because it creates space for that leadership.”
The programme is designed to encourage meaningful engagement, beginning with mentorship and professional development workshops and concluding with a networking cocktail aimed at fostering long-term partnerships. Conservation organisations such as the Mara Elephant Project, Connected Conservation Foundation, and Leopard Ecology and Conservation are among the partners supporting the forum. Technology allies, including wilddrone.eu and Nature Drones CiC, will contribute to hands-on learning and knowledge exchange.
“The Women in Conservation Forum is a catalyst for building a stronger, more unified community of practice,” said Macayle Rose Guerin, the forum’s lead organiser. “By bringing women together across disciplines and sectors, we strengthen conservation outcomes for people and nature.”
The WiCF forms part of the broader GCTDF platform, which brings together conservation practitioners, technologists, and policymakers to scale innovation in biodiversity protection.
“The scale of biodiversity loss demands that we move beyond isolated projects,” said Jonty Slater, Co-Founder of GCTDF. “The forum exists to build the coalition’s necessary to scale what works.”
GCTDF 2026 is set to take place from 2 to 6 March 2026 in Nairobi and Konza Technopolis, Kenya, coinciding with World Wildlife Day on 3 March. This annual non-profit event serves as a significant platform for showcasing innovative solutions in conservation through the use of drones, AI, IoT, robotics, and data systems.
The forum aims to engage over 500 participants, including conservationists, researchers, technologists, regulators, students, and community leaders, focusing on biodiversity protection, community benefits, and climate resilience.
The forum is structured around three main domains and six specific tracks that will guide discussions and presentations. The tracks include ‘Drones in Conservation’, focusing on operational excellence and coexistence tools; ‘From Pixels to Patterns’, which examines AI and data integration for decision-making; ‘Landscapes in Transition’, addressing restoration and ecosystem resilience; ‘Wet Worlds’, dedicated to coastal and aquatic technologies; ‘Threat Detectors’, related to conservation security and ‘Community and Co-design’, which emphasizes ethics and inclusion in conservation efforts.
