Deadline: 19th August 2025
The Boring Fund supports the essential but overlooked aspects of conservation technology. In response to overwhelming demand in 2024, we’ve partnered again with Arm to provide more funding. In 2025, a total of $80,000 in grants will go to critical, foundational activities that help build a more resilient and effective conservation tech ecosystem, starting with the boring stuff.
What are they looking for ?
This fund will support often-overlooked projects and initiatives in our sector that will benefit the wider conservation technology community.
These include:
- Community management: Activities that engage and sustain active conservation technology communities through WILDLABS.NET and other communities of practice.
- Cybersecurity: Implementing cybersecurity measures to protect digital infrastructure, data, and communities, especially against emerging threats like AI bots.
- Data mobilisation: Curating historical data, labelling or managing large datasets, or increasing discoverability of data.
- Documentation and guidance: Publishing documentation and comprehensive guidance that is shareable and usable by the community.
- Expert intervention: Funding the participation of experts to enhance the collective knowledge of the conservation technology community on specific topics.
- Events: Organising webinars, in-person or virtual meetups, workshops, and other gatherings that foster learning and networking with the community.
- Knowledge transfer: Sharing expertise across teams, organizations, and communities.
- Maintaining existing technology: Supporting core, existing technology infrastructure to benefit the conservation technology sector and community. Note: The Boring Fund does not support building new features and components. Please apply to the WILDLABS Awards for support for this work.
- Self-led learning initiatives: Providing access to online courses, dedicated experts, certifications, or relevant literature.
- Technical debt management: Maintaining and improving technical infrastructure, servers, or backend systems that benefit communities of users.
- Training materials: Creating essential training resources such as online courses, instructional videos, or detailed guidelines.
- And much more, including other initiatives that contribute to the growth and sustainability of the conservation technology community.
Grant
- A total of $80,000 available
- The maximum amount per project is $12,500, but we encourage applications requesting smaller amounts. We acknowledge that not all essential solutions require large budget to make a big impact
Eligibility
We welcome applications for projects that may be considered “boring to fund” by traditional standards, as long as they address a relevant need within the conservation technology space.
They are looking for proposals that strengthen the core, often-overlooked components of the following conservation technologies:
- AI / Machine learning
- Bioacoustics
- Bio-loggers / Animal tracking
- Camera traps
- Data management and processing platforms (e.g., Movebank, Wildlife Insights, Zooniverse)
- GIS and remote sensing (satellite, multispectral, and thermal imagery, LiDAR)
- eDNA & genomics
- Mobile apps & citizen science platforms
- Non-AI computational tools (e.g., R, Python, statistical software)
- Networked sensors
- Protected area management tools (e.g., SMART, EarthRanger)
- Remote sensing & GIS
- UAVs / Drones
They will also consider applications that address at least one of the following conservation challenges:
- Biodiversity and/or environmental monitoring
- Captive breeding
- Citizen science
- Climate change / Resilience
- Habitat loss or destruction (e.g., deforestation)
- Endangered species & ecosystems
- Illegal or unsustainable fishing (IUU)
- Human-wildlife conflict and coexistence
- Invasive species
- Pollution
- Protected area management and planning
- Scientific research
- Species protection
- Wildlife crime / Illegal wildlife trade / Poaching
For more information and application.