From Calls to Conservation
Join the Amphibian Survival Alliance and Anura Africa on Monday, August 24 for a free, live seminar on amphibian bioacoustics: from listening, to counting, to conservation.
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Connecting Amphibian Conservation with International Development — ASA Seminar Series
March 30, 2026ASA Team
Understanding how amphibian conservation connects with international development goals, policy frameworks, and funding mechanisms is increasingly important for practitioners working to protect species around the world. Yet for many in the conservation community, navigating the international development landscape can feel distant or inaccessible.
This upcoming seminar brings together three speakers with experience bridging conservation science, international policy, and development practice to help make those connections clearer and more actionable.
Speakers
Collin VanBuren, PhD Collin is a Visiting Scholar in Vertebrate Biology at the Virginia Museum of Natural History and ASA's Strategic Youth Advisor. He co-founded the Future Leaders of Amphibian Conservation program in 2015 and spent nearly four years at the U.S. Agency for International Development advancing youth participation in programs addressing biodiversity, climate adaptation, and economic development.
Jennifer Kane, MS/MPP/MFA Jennifer is an independent strategic and technical advisor focused on advancing biodiversity conservation, ocean resilience, and nature-based solutions in policy, programming, and finance contexts. She was a Senior Environment Advisor in the Latin America and Caribbean Bureau of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), where she worked for over 12 years. Jenny holds a Master of Science in Sustainable Development and Conservation Biology and a Master of Public Policy in Environmental Policy from the University of Maryland College Park, and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Randolph College.
Sara Carlson, PhD Sara is an independent biodiversity advisor who leads efforts to integrate scientific research and evidence in international conservation, aiming to bridge the "research-implementation gap." Sara worked as a Senior Biodiversity Advisor at the United States Agency for International Development for over 12 years, where she led the Biodiversity Division's work on evidence-based programming and also focused on the linkages between food security and biodiversity conservation and how to design development programs that conserve nature while supporting the food security and nutrition of the people who depend on it. A plant evolutionary biologist by training, Sara holds a PhD from Yale University in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.
What to Expect
Participants will come away with a better understanding of how amphibian conservation connects with international development goals, the international policy context for biodiversity conservation, and a high-level overview of the international development funding landscape. There will be 60 minutes of presentation followed by 30 minutes for questions and discussion.
Details
Register here: Registration Link
