Forging pathways towards sustainable human–wildlife coexistence: a coordinated global animal-tracking initiative

To reduce rates of biodiversity loss, we must urgently learn how best to share space with wildlife in the world’s unprotected areas. Spatial planning for sustainable coexistence requires an in-depth understanding of the needs of both people and wildlife. Cutting-edge wildlife ‘wearables’ can be used to generate detailed information on the movements and behaviour of wild animals, revealing where they struggle to cope with habitat loss, land modification, or human disturbance. In partnership with the National Geographic Society, we are launching an initiative that will build a network of field teams to collaboratively track a large number of bird and mammal species across gradients of urbanisation, agricultural expansion and human disturbance worldwide, producing a holistic understanding of animal behaviour in human-modified landscapes. The collective expertise and change-making potential of the field teams lies at the heart of our vision. Every field team will conduct a self-contained study, producing valuable findings of taxon- and location-specific relevance. As the network expands, pooling of data across species and contexts will unlock opportunities to address otherwise intractable objectives. For example, standardised animal-tracking data will be leveraged to develop improved spatial planning tools, such as digital twins, that can more accurately measure the functional connectivity of habitats, forecast the impacts of different land-use scenarios, or simulate the effectiveness of specific management interventions. As an innovative aspect of our design, field teams will be supported in their efforts to collaborate with local communities, policy makers and other interested and affected groups, to drive on-the-ground change. This approach addresses head-on the typical disconnect between high-level decision making at the science–policy–management nexus and the needs, opportunities and obstacles encountered at local scales. By combining the powers of inclusive community building, cutting-edge tracking technology, dynamic spatial planning tools, local empowerment, public engagement, education, and storytelling, we aim to identify innovative pathways towards sustainable human–wildlife coexistence, generating lasting benefits for both people and wildlife.