Volunteer

Yolanda Davis

"My name is Yolanda M. Davis, and I am a Principal Software Engineer currently at Cloudera. I am also a Data Scientist/Analyst volunteering with WildTrack. My main focus area for WildTrack has been identifying opportunities to improve their current image analysis process using data analytics and machine learning. My recent project work studied how to improve the effectiveness of image quality assessment using an automated process.

I wanted to work with WildTrack in this area because I love any opportunity to help organizations simplify and streamline their day-to-day processes using technology. Given WildTrack’s overall goal of supporting wildlife conservation, any effort to eliminate bottlenecks in their work can translate into various improvements, from increasing the performance capabilities of automated classification to freeing up subject-matter experts to focus on other mission-critical areas.

In my volunteering experience I have enjoyed my first opportunity consulting with the mindset of using data science methodology in order to aid an organization in their goals. Also, nothing feels better than working for an organization whose mission is tied to making the world a better place through wildlife conservation!

I look forward to continuing the journey with WildTrack in improving their image quality analysis process and also finding new ways to improve their existing species identification and classification models."

Kari Dorth

"Hi, I’m Kari Dorth, WildTrack’s Operations Manager. The work that WildTrack does inspires me and gives me hope for advancing innovative ways of protecting endangered species through non-invasive methods like FIT. My objective with volunteering with WildTrack is to exercise my business and artistic skills while learning more about wildlife conservation. I enjoy supporting a non-profit whose mission aligns with my values."

Debbie Liske

"I’m Debbie Liske, a senior data scientist in the corporate world, a graduate of Harvard’s Data Science Master’s program, and a lover of all animals. I connected with WildTrack as part of my final capstone project at Harvard which revolved around WildTrack’s efforts to utilize AI to add and improve capabilities for wildlife conservation. Although it started as a four-month project, I will continue working with the co-founders, Zoe and Sky, for many years to come. Not only are they awesome and super fun, they are highly motivated to protect endangered species and are pioneering a unique non-invasive approach to wildlife monitoring.

Volunteering with WildTrack has been an amazing experience. I have learned many new AI skills in computer vision and have gained knowledge about endangered species, morphometrics, and biodiversity. By working with neural networks, we were able to identify an individual Indian Star Tortoise from images of their shells. This information is captured non-invasively and can immediately be used by researchers in real time.

I look forward to further integrating AI into the WildTrack pipeline, building new models, and saving more animals. I would encourage anyone interested in expanding their world to give Zoe and Sky a call."

Debbie Liske