Planning and Preparation

Outline specific research questions or objectives that align with conservation goals. If possible, co-create your research questions or objectives with stakeholders (e.g., local communities, Indigenous peoples, conservation practitioners, government agencies) to ensure your research is grounded in real-world needs and perspectives. This also helps foster collaboration, ensure cultural sensitivities, and avoids duplicating existing research efforts. 

Plan the methods and analyses that will allow you to answer your research questions or objectives. Consider the type of data you need and the tools or techniques you’ll use to gather and analyze that data (e.g., GIS mapping, statistical modeling, interviews, etc.). 

Obtain ethical clearances from an Institutional Review Board or ethics committee, especially when working with people. Be sure to check any government requirements where you are collecting data. Ensure free, prior, and informed consent protocols are followed.

Plan a schedule for your research that includes key milestones such as planning and getting permissions, finalizing your methods and tools, conducting research, analyzing your findings, and reporting back to partners. This will help you to stay on track with your project and to stay within your budget. Be sure to consider how logistics and local context may affect your timeline, such as the time it takes to travel to the research site, time to obtain a visa, and participant availability and local holidays. It is normal for things to change or to experience delays as your research begins; planning out an approximate timeline will be a helpful reference if you need to adapt. 

Network and engage with stakeholders and rightsholders from the beginning to discuss your research questions or objectives and co-design or seek input on methods before finalizing research proposals and securing ethical approval. This helps build trust and ensures that your research is relevant and respectful of local knowledge. 

Reach out and partner with local researchers, organizations, institutions, and/or directly with the communities in question. They can enhance the relevance of your study and help with translation(s), cultural context, connecting with additional stakeholders and rightsholders, and logistical arrangements. Integrating expertise across disciplines (e.g. ecologists, naturalist guides, conservation managers, traditional knowledge holders) could also strengthen your research by providing diverse perspectives and skill sets.

Choose a team of people who will be involved in your research based on the methods you’ve chosen, budget, needed skills and roles, and relationships with local partners. In some cases you may need to contract additional research support or find volunteers for tasks like enumeration. It is also important to train your team so everyone understands the appropriate protocols and methods to achieve the greatest data accuracy and reliability. It can be a good idea to assign a project manager who is responsible for communicating with the team, setting meetings, and keeping everything on track.

Think about the benefits and impact of your work, whether through advancing scientific discovery, knowledge sharing, capacity building, direct project contributions, or involvement in decision-making processes related to conservation. 

Familiarize yourself with the cultural, social and historical context of the region where the research will take place. Look at information (e.g., literature, videos, podcasts, songs, ethnographies, blogs) focused on land-use practices, community traditions, cultural practices, governance, and social dynamics (e.g., conflicts, economic activities). Learning about the cultural, economic, and political environment of the area is key to contextualizing findings, while building rapport and avoiding misunderstanding or biased interpretations. 

Explore studies related to your project and/or similar studies conducted in other regions or focused on different species. For example, if you are studying human-elephant conflict, explore literature on human-lion, human-tiger, or human-carnivore conflicts. This comparative approach allows you to draw lessons and identify patterns around your research interest. 

Your budget should consider the following possible expenses: 

1. Travel and Accommodation: Transportation (e.g., visa, international and domestic flights, vehicle rentals, fuel, public transport), lodging costs, and funds for daily expenses (e.g., meals and incidental costs while in the field). 

2. Personnel Costs: Salaries and wages (e.g., compensation for the PI, co-investigators, research assistants, and/or other project staff), local collaborators fees (e.g., translators, guides, cultural mediators, local researchers, local field assistants, or any specialized experts needs for your study), and other personnel-related costs (e.g., professional transcribers, focus group facilitators, GIS specialists, audio-visual support).

3. Participant compensation: Provide a culturally appropriate token of appreciation (e.g., food commodity, meal, small payment) for community members or stakeholders participating in your research (e.g., interviews, focus groups, surveys, or workshops). If participants need to travel to interview sites or meetings, budget for their transportation or travel stipends. 

4. Field Equipment and Supplies: Data collection tools (e.g., mobile phones, phone data,  tablets, GPS units, cameras), material fees (e.g., printing surveys, interview guides, notebooks, writing utensils, batteries, USB drive), and other field gear (e.g., tents, protective clothing, first aid kit, rain boots). 

5. Data Management and Analysis Tools: Consider software for data analysis (e.g., SPSS, NVivo, Atlas.ti, GIS) or survey platforms (Qualtrics, Kobo Toolbox). If using cloud-based platforms for data storage, allocate funds for subscriptions and secure storage solutions. 

6. Ethical Clearance: Include fees for review and approval processes for obtaining ethical clearance.

7. Research Permits: In many countries, social science research, especially involving human subjects, requires official permits or permission from local authorities or institutions - often in addition to ethical clearance. Also, include any costs for obtaining permits required for fieldwork (e.g., permits associated with entering/studying in protected areas).  

8. Visas: If working in another country, budget for visa fees. 

9. Training and Capacity Building: If your project includes large gatherings or workshops for training, stakeholder engagement, or knowledge sharing, include costs for venue rental, materials, refreshments, and transportation for attendees.

10. Administrative and Institutional Overhead: Some organizations or institutions charge overhead fees (usually a percentage of total costs) to support administrative functions. Check if this applies and factor it into your budget.

11. Contingency Funds: Set aside 5-10% of your total budget as a contingency plan for unexpected expenses, such as delays in fieldwork, equipment failure, or changes in travel costs. 

12. Publications and Dissemination: If you plan to publish your research in open-access journals, allocate funds for article processing charges. If you plan to present your findings at a conference, include these costs (e.g., conference registration, travel, accommodation, meals). 

Fieldwork Logistics

If you need a visa, understand country visa requirements well in advance, particularly how long processing takes and the cost.

Check if your organization provides adequate travel insurance for fieldwork. If not, ensure you have your own travel insurance that covers all aspects of your research, including health and accident coverage, especially in remote or risky areas.

Depending on the field site and research budget, accommodations could range from hotels to guesthouses, homestays with local families, or camping. Be sure to confirm availability in advance, especially if working in remote areas, and that they meet your team’s needs.

Before heading to the field, research local food and common meals based on the season. If you follow a specific diet that may not align with local food customs, pack necessary food supplies. This is particularly important for remote areas where access to a variety of foods might be limited.

Consider how you will physically access your research site(s), especially if they are in remote or hard-to-reach areas. Depending on the terrain, arrange for off-road vehicles, boats, or animals (horses, donkeys) for transportation. Plan for vehicle breakdowns in remote areas and consider hiring local drivers with knowledge of the area.

Check the availability of local phone networks and if your mobile carrier supports connectivity in the area. If your mobile plan doesn’t work, buy a local SIM card with enough phone credit for the length of your stay, especially for internet. In isolated or potentially unsafe regions where phone networks are unavailable, consider bringing a satellite phone for reliable communication.

Secure all necessary permits for field access, research, and data collection from relevant government or local authorities. This may require both online and paper submission to their relevant offices in-country. Bring copies of all approved permits and permissions into the field.

Prepare a risk management plan, including emergency contacts, first-aid kits, protocols for wildlife encounters, proactive approaches for any gender-based concerns, or adverse weather. Always check the location of the nearest doctor or hospital and obtain their contact information. This also includes planning for safety measures such as traveling in groups, working with local security, or avoiding high-risk areas. Ensure you are familiar with your organization’s safety or security protocols, if available, and follow them closely.

Always carry a copy of your passport and important identification documents with you. It’s also advisable to keep a copy of key medical information about yourself (e.g., allergies, blood type, medical conditions) in case of emergencies.

Consider the climate and seasonal changes that may affect fieldwork, such as monsoons, dry seasons, or migratory patterns of animals.

Have a system for tracking expenses, receipts, and reimbursements to ensure you stay within budget.

Data Collection

Ensure your data collection methods are practical for the field. Tools like KoBoToolbox or ODK are great for remote, offline data gathering.

Choose sampling methods that are feasible given the local population size and geographic conditions (e.g., snowball sampling, stratified random sampling, purposive techniques). This circles back to the planning stage of the research and the benefit of co-creating your research design with local stakeholders. 

Be mindful of local schedules, such as market days, religious holidays, customs related to burials, or agricultural or fishing seasons, which could affect the availability of participants.

Test tools like survey instruments or interview guides in the field to ensure they are clear and appropriate for the local context.

Always have a backup for data storage, such as external hard drives, cloud storage (when possible), or duplicate data forms. Ensure that all collected data, especially sensitive information about participants, is anonymized and handled according to ethical guidelines.

Use translators or interpreters if necessary and prepare translated versions of surveys and consent forms prior to data collection. Test these with native speakers of the language. Also consider hiring local collaborators to gather the data, which can help elevate local voices in research and publishing.

Keep detailed field notes, not only about the data but also about the context, unexpected challenges encountered, and reflect on your positionality, biases, methods that may influence your findings. Photos, drawings, and GPS coordinates can also be invaluable.

Host debriefing sessions with your research team to gather insights from their experiences during fieldwork.

Local Engagement

Take time to build relationships with local communities and research partners. This includes setting up meetings prior to data collection, participating in community activities and gatherings, co-designing the research objectives and methods or asking for feedback, and taking the time to explain how the outcomes of the research may benefit them and/or the environment.

Before identifying individuals to participate in research, be sure to inform and seek permission to work in a local community. Always use free, prior, and informed consent processes when engaging Indigenous Peoples in research and consider using this principle for other communities as well.

Work with the local community to understand their approach to traditional knowledge and the sharing of that information outside of the community. Be sure to establish an appropriate process to  ensure data sovereignty for the community. 

Involve partners and the local community in the research process, from data collection to results dissemination. Be sure to share the results with the community prior to publication so they can provide feedback and/or raise any concerns.  

Provide a culturally-relevant acknowledgment to those who participate in your study. This could include a form of compensation, if appropriate or expected, whether in the form of a small payment, food, service, or other token of appreciation. To understand what might be culturally-appropriate, seek feedback from cultural mediators, key informants, local researchers, local field assistants, or other collaborators.

Share results in a way that resonates with different audiences - local communities, policymakers, natural resource managers - and that are accessible to different audiences. 

Post-fieldwork

Post-fieldwork is an opportunity to recognize the hard work of the team, debrief on challenges, and foster morale for future work. This includes taking the time to acknowledge and thank the people who supported your research, including local guides, translators, and research participants.

Factor in the time required for any data entry not completed in the field, data cleaning, and analysis. Ensure proper interpretation of qualitative and quantitative data in context, and in many cases, you’ll need to anonymize data by removing personally identifiable information to protect participant privacy.

Create diagrams, graphs, charts, maps, or other visual tools to help convey your findings. This is useful for both formal reports and presentations to stakeholders.

Some research requires long-term data archiving in repositories, especially if funded by public grants. This ensures that your data is available for future use or reanalysis by other researchers.

Share findings with both the scientific community and local stakeholders as well as the communities worked with during fieldwork. Transparency builds long-term trust and collaboration and is a time to engage ethically with the communities and stakeholders involved.

Based on your findings you may draft policy recommendations or practical guidelines for conservation practitioners, local government, or NGOs. Post-fieldwork often leads to new questions or areas that require further investigation, so this might involve planning additional research, writing grant proposals, or starting new collaborations.

Reconcile your fieldwork expenses with your budget, ensuring that all costs are accounted for and within the allocated funds. Prepare any financial reports for funders, detailing how the budget was spent.