Rainforest Connection | 2022: A Year in Review

2022: A Year in Review

December 31, 2022

Rainforest Connection Threat Detection & Biodiversity Monitoring

The heavy pour of jungle rain in remote forests, the echos of monkey calls, and endless bird chatter – we’ve quite literally been in the thick of it this year. And we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

With the increasing threats, and complexity of the impacts of climate change taking effect all around the world, Rainforest Connection’s work protecting rainforests and monitoring species increases in demand and necessity in this world every year!

Check out the stats below to see a recap of RFCx’s 2022:

391,300+ hectares monitored
expanded into 19 new countries
559 RFCx Guardians deployed
2,900+ species classified for automatic detection

We’ve developed and implemented Arbimon Insights, an interactive and shareable biodiversity reporting system that highlights biological and ecological results from each project.

We’ve developed automated identification models based on deep learning approaches for more than 600 species in threatened ecosystems around the world.

We’ve added new analytical tools (Audio Event Detection and Cluster analyses) in our free web-based platform that allows the automatic detection and categorization of sounds in large audio datasets, with an intuitive UI to explore the results.

We’ve provided 10 Arbimon workshops focused on acoustic monitoring training techniques to our partners, students, and professionals from the conservation sectors.

We’ve published 5 peer-reviewed papers ranging from quantifying soundscape diversity, improving monitoring of invasive species through acoustic monitoring, to understanding the impact of a hydroelectric dam in Amazonian birds.

We are very excited about our achievements that have improved biodiversity monitoring and provided valuable ecological insights toward wildlife conservation. We are even more excited about the recent global agreement at COP15 aiming at ensuring the integrity of ecosystems, preventing extinctions, and the sustainable use of natural resources. We are confident that collaboration and acoustic monitoring will play an essential role in achieving the goals associated with the agreements. - Marconi Campos-Cerqueira, RFCx Chief Scientist

RFCx 2022 year in Review - Marketing Team

We did a week-long instagram takeover for the UN Biodiversity page (United Nations Convention on Biodiversity).

We participated in Giving Tuesday for the first year and raised over $13,080 in one day.

We got our story covered by Social Media influencer and “Good News” giver Sam Bentley.

New RFCx partnerships from 2022: Jurúa Institute, IPÊ, Jane Goodall Institute, Partnerships4Forests, and Bialowieza National Park

We’ve implemented projects with incredible partners around the world including in Brazil with the Jurúa Institute and IPÊ, with the Jane Goodall Institute in Gombe, Tanzania, with Partnerships4Forests in Indonesia, with Bialowieza National Park in Poland, and with over 70 other local and international organizations around the world.

We’ve joined forces with a wide array of organizations allowing us to magnify our impact, including Google.org, Tech4All, the McGovern Foundation, PUMA, Salesforce, DEEP Energies, Hitachi Vantara, Aspiration, Change Happens Foundation, and many more.

I am the most optimistic I have ever been about our capacity to tackle climate change, extinction rates, and habitat destruction. Even just this past year, we have seen a surge of corporations, NGOs, Indigenous Peoples, and governments coming together to take big steps to further global conservation goals. Rainforest Connection is excited to provide the ecoacoustic data to empower and inform this movement. - Chrissy Durkin, RFCx VP of Growth & Expansion

We have over 60 ongoing projects around the world ranging from mapping biodiversity returns to reforested sites, to halting illegal logging in critically threatened rainforests to understanding native bird and anuran presence in agroforestry projects, and to tracking critically endangered species in protected reserves.

We’ve attended and spoke at over 20 events around the world including NYC Climate Week, Collision, NOAH, First Colombian Congress of Bioacoustics and Ecoacoustics, and the American Ornithology Society’s Annual Meeting.

In 2022, we made a significant impact at Rainforest Connection. We expanded our team, increased the scope of our projects, and strengthened our commitments to our partners. Looking ahead to 2023, we are determined to have an even greater impact on conservation through the use of innovative technology and a focus on collaboration with like-minded organizations. By continuing to engage with local communities and stakeholders, we hope to effectively address the critical challenges facing our environment. - Bourhan Yassin, RFCx CEO

The work of protecting rainforests from illegal activities and monitoring species behaviors to gather insights for conservation efforts around the world does not come without endless challenges.

If you’d like to support the continuation of our critical work please consider making a contribution to ensure these places and species do not go unheard.

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We’re so proud of the shared determination & collaboration that has gotten us where we are this year. Cheers to the new year, may it bring hope and new opportunities to create a brighter future where species are better understood, better protected, and rainforests are preserved for generations to come.