Rainforest Connection
Model & Strategy
Rainforest Connection (RFCx) is focused on preventing rainforest deforestation, a leading cause of climate change and species extinction, by providing real-time monitoring and detection of illegal logging activity. RFCx transforms recycled cell-phones into autonomous, solar-powered listening devices that can remotely monitor and detect logging activity. Using this data, RFCx partners with local NGOs and indigenous tribes to deter incursions through more effective patrols or to pressure governments to take action to prevent further incursions. RFCx plans to make this data available to academic researches and government agencies in the hopes of reshaping the fields of field ecology and conservation.
Topher White is Founder and CEO of Rainforest Connection. Topher has experience building systems for large and small startups as well as international science projects, including four years working on nuclear fusion at ITER, in France. He has received multiple accolades for his work, including being named a National Geographic Emerging Explorer in 2015 and an “Engineering Hero” by the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
RFCx directly aids the efforts of local in-country partner organizations, NGOs, indigenous tribes and governments struggling to reduce environmental destruction. RFCx can already claim to be a key element in the protection of thousands of hectares of forest in Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Since 2015, RFCx has developed and deployed specialized conservation technology to empower the Brazilian Tembé indigenous people to protect 60,000 hectares of their native rainforest in Brazil, using real-time data and alerts.
RFCx also uses data streaming from remote forests combined with advanced acoustic algorithm development to measure biodiversity and ecology, creating new and simplified interfaces for scientists to contribute to environmental protection while furthering their own research.
Rainforest Connection News
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The Guardians of the ForestThe Borneo rainforest is severely threatened by deforestation. In this new video James Reed, a tree climbing expert, collaborates with the Rainforest Connection to place…Sep 2016 -
This Accelerator Is Building An Ecosystem For Climate Change StartupsRainforest Connection transforms recycled cellphones into solar-powered devices that monitor and pinpoint deforestation activity for intervention in real time. While the breakthrough technology has proven…Jun 2016 -
National Georgraphic: 2015 Emerging ExplorersDeforestation, much of it illegal, is one of the main contributors to climate change. Detecting and interdicting illicit loggers in remote areas has always been…Jun 2015 -
Topher White TEDx Talk: What Can Save the Rainforest? Your Used Cell PhoneThe sounds of the rainforest include: the chirps of birds, the buzz of cicadas, the banter of gibbons. But in the background is the almost-always…Sep 2014
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Did you know: The role of frugivorous seed-dispersing birds is fundamental in the process of forest restoration? Th… https://t.co/tmE96j5Hfi
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RT @HUAWEI_TECH4ALL: All by listening... @RainforestCx CEO Bourhan Yassin explains how acoustic-monitoring #Guardian devices work with #H…
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👏💻 Whether attending virtually or in person always a pleasure to join together with others in the industry and talk… https://t.co/fz4sgSuj5Y
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RT @HuaweiItalia: Orgogliosi di annunciare il ritorno dei Guardiani della Natura, con @WWFitalia e @RainforestCx. Raccoglieremo i suoni di…
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Did you know: Giving Tuesday was created in 2012 to counteract the spending of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Wanna… https://t.co/2K9tHoTcXA
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Happy Giving Tuesday! 👏👏 Today 2 min of your time can make a world of difference 🌍. Click here > >… https://t.co/AoUcSCrQgl
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RT @WeForest_org: No time to escape into #nature? Relax and unwind in the heart of the #forest we’re restoring with @InstitutoIPE in #Brazi…
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LISTEN IN!! 👂😍 Those are Mantled Howler Monkeys, or Alouatta palliata, in Panama! Noted as vulnerable by the IUCN,… https://t.co/ASERxszSPM
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Today, we wanted to tell everyone that makes RFCx's work possible - THANK YOU 🙏💚. To our corporate funders, non-co… https://t.co/XdMkndMsb2
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* UPDATE * on our impact!! 🔥 It's been a big year for us at Rainforest Connection as you can see by our new metrics… https://t.co/PdB8tNNnMU
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📣Partner Shoutout: Petzl! Offering products and solutions that allow people to access some of the most inaccessible… https://t.co/6CvDd0MOut
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👋Say hello to this Pithecopus palliatus! Sometimes referred to as the Jaguar Leaf Frog 🐸 they're a species in the P… https://t.co/dd2GG0eOcO
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Grateful that our founder, @topherwhite, was able to attend and represent RFCx at #COP27 this year!!🌍 Had a great… https://t.co/kbWOgbeCf4
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📣🙌Catch our CEO, Bourhan Yassin, at @NOAHConference Zurich on 6-7 December: the leading industry event for the Eur… https://t.co/I86oovbx1F
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From the bottom of our hearts💚: THANK YOU to all of our donors this past year! Protecting rainforests and wildlife… https://t.co/kn27OpsZvw
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👋Say hello to the Gray-Handed Night Monkey or Aotus griseimembra!! DID YOU KNOW: they live in Colombia 🇨🇴 & Venezu… https://t.co/Dh01YOBFY3
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👀 See what RFCx Field Agents Tadeu Palandi and Francisco Padilla have been up to in Alto Rio Guamá, State of Pará,… https://t.co/ZVr9XeQucu
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RFCx is excited to be partnering with DEEP on their BioDATA initiative!! 🙌💚 Can't wait to see where this new partn… https://t.co/WEpJ6QHUjM
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It’s not always rainbows🌈 and butterflies🦋 but all around it sure is a good time!! @Huawei_Colombia @inst_humboldt… https://t.co/vH2cII4hGq