In the remote wilderness of Zambia's Itezhi-Tezhi area, deep within Kafue National Park – one of Africa's largest protected landscapes – a quiet technological development is underway. Working among elephants, lions, wild dogs and antelope, rangers are no longer relying on patrols and instinct alone. A network of sensors, thermal cameras and real-time data helps them detect poaching threats before they happen.
The Kafue National Park Connected Conservation project (KNP CCP) is real-world initiative showing that digital connectivity can be a powerful a conservation tool. Working with Zambia's Department of National Parks and Wildlife, and supported by technology partners including Cisco, FLIR, and SMART Parks, the project links advanced computing, surveillance systems and communication networks into one connected ecosystem – allowing rangers to respond faster and coordinate more effectively across vast terrain.
Beyond the technology, this narrative on the KNP CCP, developed for the Call for Narratives on community-centred connectivity initiatives and environmental justice – tells the story of how connectivity reinforces and strengthens environmental protection while creating new opportunities for surrounding communities. The project demonstrates how resilient digital infrastructure can serve both ecological protection and community resilience, offering valuable lessons for expanding connectivity in environmentally sensitive areas.
Read the narrative here.
Tamara Bengesai is an internet governance and digital inclusion practitioner from Zambia with expertise in community-centred connectivity, telecommunications, digital rights and online safety. She works at the intersection of technology, policy and sustainable development, advancing initiatives that expand meaningful connectivity in underserved communities while promoting inclusive and resilient digital ecosystems. Tamara is a 2026 Internet Society (ISOC) Community Advocacy Fellow and has participated in regional and global internet governance initiatives focused on connectivity, digital inclusion and community empowerment. Her work explores how locally driven digital infrastructure can support equitable development, environmental sustainability and community resilience across Africa.
All the authors of the Call for Narratives were consulted regarding the use of AI, following APC policy on AI-generated content guidelines, which prioritise transparency. The author of this work reported that AI “was used as a writing support tool during the development of the narrative. It was used for refining the structure, improving clarity and readability, enhancing grammar and style, organising ideas into a coherent manuscript, language editing and diagram support.”
About Call for Narratives
The Call for Narratives on community-centred connectivity initiatives and environmental justice brings together proposals from different regions and countries around the world, featuring a variety of community environmental concerns to address the ways in which CCCIs are facing climate change, caring for the environmental issues affecting their territories and developing strategies to act in their different contexts. Find all the selected proposals here.
This call was launched in the framework of the COP30 following which the LocNet initiative developed a series of activities to highlight the intersection of community-centred connectivity and socio-environmental justice, recognising that communities are often at the frontline of both the territorial and environmental impacts of technology, as well as the consequences of climate change. Learn more about this initiative here.
The LocNet initiative is a collective effort led by APC and Rhizomatica in partnership with grassroots communities and support organisations in Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean. This call is part of its “Meaningful community-centred connectivity” project implemented with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and UK International Development from the UK Government through its Digital Access Programme. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the supporters’ view, but that does not make them any less valuable.