Viviana Solange Yanez Gomez is the force behind 18,000 Trees in Ecuador, a country famous for its incredible biodiversity, cities, and landscapes.

Although Viviana grew up surrounded by nature–hiking mountains and forests, she simultaneously watched these ecosystems get damaged. That early experience sparked her path toward conservation.

After graduation, she worked in environmental education with children on Ecuador’s coast, learning firsthand the power of community-driven solutions.

Today, she leads 18000 Trees, 18000 Puembeños, a community-led urban reforestation project in Puembo, Quito. Their goal? To plant 18,000 trees–one for every resident–over six years, restoring ecosystems, creating habitats, reconnecting green spaces, and building climate resilience. By linking parks, ravines, and neighborhoods through bio-corridors, the project boosts biodiversity, cleans air and water, and even cools the city. And it’s all rooted in community work, youth and women engagement, and environmental education.

Viviana is also an alum of CoalitionWILD’s EXCELerator FLEX program. With applications for the 2026 EXCELerator program opening on October 27th and running through November 24th, we thought there couldn’t be a better time to sit down and chat with such an inspiring individual. For those who don’t know, the EXCELerator program is a six-month intensive program that trains emerging conservation leaders to turn ideas into real-world action projects.

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Gwen Bridge is a member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation from Alberta, Canada, and works in consulting and support for Indigenous nations and their partners across North America.

In today’s episode, Gwen joins us to talk about Motion 107 – “Scaling Up Indigenous Leadership in the Protection of Biodiversity and the Sacred” and Motion 96 – “Setting Area-Based Targets on Scientific Evidence and Reversing Historic Injustices.” These motions, submitted by WILD.org and co-sponsors, continue the work that was initiated at the 12th World Wilderness Congress.

During the IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC) in Abu Dhabi this October, member organizations will gather in person to debate and vote on these motions live on the floor of the Assembly.

If we’re serious today about building more equitable relationships and societies, about bringing different visions together, we need to start with respect–respect for people’s perspectives, cultures, and ways of being. This is where harmony begins. For many Indigenous peoples, that also means recognizing sacred sites and spirituality as essential dimensions of a meaningful life. These sacred relationships matter–not just for culture, but for conservation.

In this episode, Gwen talks about centering Indigenous leadership in protecting sacred species and spaces, weaving Indigenous knowledge and wisdom together with scientific conservation models, why protecting Half the planet is neither too ambitious nor unrealistic, and much more.

Motion Guides:

Motion 096: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-096-Marketing-Brief-3.pdf

Motion 107: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-107-Marketing-Brief.pdf

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Vivian Delgado is Joma and Tiwa. Her mother’s people are from Taos territory, which spans Northern New Mexico into Colorado, where Vivian currently lives. She has an academic background in Indigenous studies and is doing extensive work with treaties and treaty-making. Vivian also serves as a consultant for the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project, where she works on regenerating American bison populations.

In today’s episode, Vivian joins us to talk about Motion 107 – “Scaling Up Indigenous Leadership in the Protection of Biodiversity and the Sacred” and Motion 96 – “Setting Area-Based Targets on Scientific Evidence and Reversing Historic Injustices.” These motions, submitted by WILD.org and co-sponsors, continue the work that was initiated at the 12th World Wilderness Congress. All were passed by over 700 delegates from around the world, and now, the proposed motions are heading to a vote in October at the 2025 International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) World Conservation Congress Members’ Assembly.

Indigenous knowledge and traditions have been diminished by laws and protections that primarily benefited non-Indigenous peoples. Indigenous leadership often comes late to the table, and navigating federal land bureaucracy can be complex. Efforts intended to protect land and species have frequently been reversed, leaving corruption and mismanagement in their wake. This has contributed to the biodiversity and climate crises we face today.

We need to slow down, halt the destruction of global natural environments, and recognize that Indigenous knowledge—passed down through generations—is central to addressing these challenges.

In this episode, Vivian shares why sacred sites and spiritual relationships with nature are essential to conservation, why centering Indigenous leadership is critical for protecting sacred species and spaces, why IUCN Members must align area-based conservation targets with the scientific call to protect at least 50% of the planet, and much more.

Motion Guides:

Motion 096: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-096-Marketing-Brief-3.pdf

Motion 107: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-107-Marketing-Brief.pdf

Before listening to the episode, please consider supporting our work at WILD.org, which allows us to dedicate time to creating these conversations for you.

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Fátima Gigante is the Program Coordinator at CoalitionWILD. She began as a volunteer leading the Global Mentorship Program and now also manages the Accelerator Program—CoalitionWILD’s two flagship initiatives. With mentorship at the heart of both CoalitionWILD and WILD’s work, Fátima has been closely involved in shaping the IUCN World Conservation Congress Motion 97: “Mainstreaming mentorship for young ecological stewards to enhance conservation efforts” by writing, designing, and presenting it.

In today's episode, Fátima joins us to talk about this important motion.

The motion took root at the 2020 IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, following Motion 76 on the Role of Children and Youth in Nature Conservation. Motion 97 builds on that foundation—and on the 12th World Wilderness Congress’s Resolution 4—by recognizing mentorship as a key tool for transformative conservation. It is now heading to a vote at the upcoming Members’ Assembly.

What does this mean? During the IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC) in Abu Dhabi in October, Member organizations will gather in person to debate and vote on these motions live on the floor of the Assembly.

This is a critical moment where alliances, visibility, and strong advocacy can make all the difference in whether a motion is adopted or rejected.

Okay but why is this so urgent? Because environmental challenges today demand more than technical expertise, they call for intergenerational collaboration and leadership renewal. Mentorship is essential to ensure younger generations are prepared to lead.

In this episode, Fátima shares what meaningful mentorship in conservation really looks like, how to make programs accessible and culturally grounded, and how mentorship can foster both protection and resilience.

Motion Guide: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-097-Marketing-Brief.pdf

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Anja Fjellgren Walkeapää is a reindeer herder in the southern part of the Swedish side of Sápmi. Her reindeer graze in a herding community called Mittådalen Mittahduhlen, and with a master’s degree in forestry, Anja has also worked at the Swedish Forest Agency as a national-level specialist in reindeer herding.

In today’s episode, Anja joins us to talk about Motion 131 – Protecting the Sápmi Forest: Safeguarding Biodiversity and Indigenous Livelihoods. This motion, submitted by WILD.org and co-sponsors as part of our work with our WILD Sápmi program and as a continuation of the 12th World Wilderness Congress’s Spontaneous Resolution 12, is heading to electronic vote at the 2025 International Union for Conservation of Nature’s World Conservation Congress.

What does this mean? From August 27 to September 10, IUCN members will vote online to decide whether the motion passes. This decision will be made digitally. That’s why we need to make as much noise as possible, right now, to help ensure IUCN delegates vote in favor of it.

Sweden is eradicating old-growth forests at a rate six to seven times faster than the Amazon is being destroyed. Sámi reindeer herders have been some of the strongest defenders of these ancient forests, but without international support, they face overwhelming odds.

Motion 131 calls for a halt to the destruction of old-growth boreal forests in Sápmi and for the recognition and elevation of Sámi traditional knowledge and leadership in sustainable forest stewardship.

In this conversation, Anja explains explain what’s truly at stake if Sweden’s old-growth boreal forests continue to disappear at this pace, how Motion 131 aims to change that trajectory, why the traditional knowledge she was raised with is essential for effective conservation—and how she responds to the motion rejectors - those who claim this motion is a threat to economic growth.

Motion Guide: https://wild.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Motion-131-Marketing-Brief.pdf

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Is everything we know about wildlife rooted in science—or is it shaped by cultural beliefs?

What role does culture actually play in the disappearance of species? Sometimes, how we act toward animals is guided not just by facts, but by the stories we grew up with—stories that may be misleading, that have driven species to the brink, and that complicate our ability to coexist.

You probably grew up hearing tales of the ‘big bad wolf’ or the image of gentle bears enjoying honey. It’s ingrained in us to think something about these animals, whether negative or positive. With Claire, we’ll unpack these stories.

Most importantly, how have these narratives influenced how we’ve erased these animals from our landscapes—and how are we now reintroducing them?

Today, we explore these fascinating questions with Claire Galloni D’Istria, a biologist and anthropologist whose work focuses on two iconic Alpine species: wolves and bears.

Before listening to the episode, please consider supporting our work at WILD.org, which allows us to dedicate time to creating these conversations for you.

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A humanitarian and ecological crisis is rapidly unfolding in the southeastern lowlands of Kenya, in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Over 200 Indigenous families are facing eviction from ancestral lands they have lived on for generations.

Since July 2nd, 2025, fencing poles have been erected around entire settlements—cutting off vital routes that have connected communities, livestock, and wildlife for centuries.

They are being locked out of the main road. Locked out of their rivers. Locked out of sacred sites. Their freedom of movement—and with it, their daily lives—is being shattered.

At the heart of this crisis is Mkocheni, a fragile community nestled within the Lake Jipe ecosystem—known as The Community That Lives With Elephants. This rare wetland sustains not only elephants, hippos, and hyenas, but also migratory species that depend on its delicate balance.

Here, Maasai herders, artisanal fishers, and pastoralists live in deep connection with the land. But this shared land is now being targeted for agricultural expansion—threatening both human life and biodiversity.

If we do not act now, we risk losing not only a people’s home—but one of East Africa’s most vital ecological and cultural heritage sites.

Joining us is Zachary Mutinda, Project Lead of the Eco Jipe Program. Zach was part of WILD’s CoalitionWILD 2021 Excelerator Cohort. He describes what he sees as a ticking time bomb in one of the region’s biggest possible human-wildlife conflict hotspots.

We’re honored to have him with us today—to help us better understand the on-the-ground reality, the deep knowledge of local communities, the role of wildlife, and how each of us can take action for this community and the conscience crisis that’s happening.

📣 Update: The situation has worsened since the podcast was recorded. Vegetation has been cleared, which negatively affects both elephants and their corridors. Zach is concerned about the human impact this will have in the coming days and months.

Learn more: https://wild.org/blog/indigenous-struggle-for-land-in-kenyas-lake-jipe-region/

Before listening to the episode, please consider supporting our work at WILD.org, which allows us to dedicate time to creating these conversations for you.

Eco Jipe Program: https://ecojipeprogram.org/

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Todd likes to focus on three main ideas that many of us in this community are well acquainted with, and yet rarely stop to unpack them. First: wild places. Second: rewilding. And third: how to prevent ‘de-wilding’ or the quiet deletion of the natural world?

Todd Wilkinson has been a journalist for over 40 years. Believe it or not, he began his career as a violent crime reporter in Chicago, but his roots trace back to just north of Minneapolis—a place where nature was often seen as something to use, not protect.

That perspective shifted when he became an environmental journalist, writing for National Geographic, The Guardian, and many others. Much of his recent work focuses on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. This is the last great wild system in the lower 48 that still has all of its large, charismatic species intact.

Today, as more people live in cities and suburbs, Todd observes what he calls an epidemic of ‘ecological illiteracy’. This is why he sees his work not just as journalism, but as a kind of activism—not pushing a specific agenda, but insisting that we ground our decisions in fact. A concept that might seem foreign and lost these days…

He’s written extensively about our relationship with animals like wolves and bears, not to romanticize them, but to ask real questions like: Does wildlife matter? Do we want it to be here for future generations? And if so, are we ready to change how we live to make that possible?

Before listening to the episode, please consider supporting our work at WILD.org, which allows us to dedicate time to creating these conversations for you.

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