WildLeaks celebrated as Tech for Good Pioneer in 2014

  • By ELI
  • December 4, 2014

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Changing the World through Tech: WildLeaks celebrated in this year’s Nominet Trust 100

  • Annual Nominet Trust 100 (NT100) list of the most inspiring digital social innovations highlights impact of global ‘tech for good’ market
  • Technology’s transformative power is driving social change around the world
  • WildLeaks is the world’s first wildlife crime whistleblower online platform

London, UK, 4 December 2014: Today, Nominet Trust proudly announced that WildLeaks has been named among the 2014 Nominet Trust 100 (NT100) – a global list of 100 inspiring ventures from around the world. Projects featured on the list are using technology to tackle some of the world’s biggest social problems from education and human rights abuses to climate change and health.

Following a global call for nominations earlier this year WildLeaks, the world’s first wildlife crime whistleblower online platform, has been selected by an independent steering committee in recognition of it’s innovative use of the state-of-the-art Tor encryption to stem the vast illegal trade in endangered species and protected timber. 

Commenting on their inclusion in the NT100, Mr. Andrea Crosta, Founder of WildLeaks and the Elephant Action, added: “serious wildlife crimes like ivory trafficking, rhino poaching or illegal logging very often go undetected and unchallenged when people do not speak up about them, and whistleblowers can play a crucial role in fighting back, creating awareness and supporting justice. We are thrilled that WildLeaks has made the Nominet Trust 100 2014 and proud that we’ve been recognized as a Tech for Good pioneer seeking to change the world with technology and an innovative approach”.

“Our first priority is to facilitate the identification of criminals and corrupt governmental officials behind the poaching and trafficking of endangered species such as elephants, rhinos, big cats, apes, pangolins and birds, as well as forest products, without forgetting the associated human toll ” said Mr. Andrea Crosta. “But we also put a lot of effort into protecting the people who chose to send us information, not only by providing a state-of-the-art secure system but also by managing and using the information in the correct way”.

This year, WildLeaks, which is run by the California-based Elephant Action League, is rubbing shoulders with organizations from established tech markets in the US and Europe, such as Freecycle, Random Hacks of Kindness and Google’s self-driving car, alongside initiatives from emerging economies, including eCompliance, a revolutionary use of fingertip-readers to record tuberculosis treatment in India; philanthropic food-photo sharing app Feedie from South Africa and HarassMap, an anonymous crowd-mapping platform for sexual harassment in Egypt.

Annika Small, CEO of Nominet Trust, the UK’s leading tech for good funder, said: “There is a striking progression in the quality and maturity of this year’s NT100, indicative of a wider evolution in the ‘tech for social good’ sector as a whole. “More people than ever before are using technology to solve problems that matter to them in bold new ways. This year’s NT100 list is populated by extraordinary people with inspirational stories to tell and it shows us that imagination, social conscience and technology make a potent mix to affect change.”

The final list was compiled by an illustrious steering group chaired by Annika Small and including General Partner of Google Ventures, Tom Hulme; angel investor and entrepreneur, Sherry Coutu; Chief Executive of Big Lottery Fund, Dawn Austwick; CEO of Big Society Capital, Nick O’Donohue; Director of Wayra Europe, Simon Devonshire; innovation expert, Charles Leadbeater; internet entrepreneur, Dickie Armour; Senior Fellow at the Stanford University Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society, Lucy Bernholz; and Deputy Editor of The FT Weekend Magazine, Alice Fishburn.

To see the full list of NT100 projects, please visit the Social Tech Guide, a dynamic, growing online resource to help inspire social enterprises, or follow the action @socialtechguide / #2014NT100.

–  Ends –

For further information on WildLeaks please contact: Mr. Andrea Crosta, info@wildleaks.org Project Leader of WildLeaks and Executive Director and Co-Founder of Elephant Action League www.wildleaks.org        www.earthleagueinternational.org

For further information on the NT100 or Nominet Trust please contact: Ellie Hale / Cathy White at Albion Drive Ellie.hale@albiondrive.com / cathy.white@albiondrive.com +44(0)20 7033 8914 / +44(0)20 7033 8941 Notes to editors: Important related web-links:

About WildLeaks WildLeaks is a not-for-profit collaborative project funded by the California based Elephant Action League (EAL) and managed by a small group of very experienced individuals, including directors of environmental NGOs, environmental lawyers, accredited journalists, security professionals and ex-law enforcement officers. Its mission is to collect confidential information about serious wildlife crimes and transform them into concrete actions. Since its launch in February 2014 WildLeaks already received over 60 leaks and started three field investigations in Africa and Asia. Leaks have been also shared with other NGOs and with a few law enforcement agencies. Among the Partners WildLeaks enjoys the collaboration of the Environmental Investigation Agency, Conservation International, Panthera, the Oxpeckers Center, EcoJust, Global Eye, the International Otter Survival Fund, the Shark Research Institute, 100Reporters and theHermes Center for Transparency and Digital Human Rights.  

About Nominet Trust Nominet Trust is UK’s only dedicated Tech for Good funder. The Trust is committed to realising the potential of digital technology to address complex social challenges. A UK registered charity, Nominet Trust brings together, invests in and supports people committed to using digital technology in imaginative ways to create social and economic value. Nominet Trust has invested more than £20 million in hundreds of UK-based ventures since its inception, providing business support as well as financial investment, connecting ventures to prospective partners who can help increase their reach and impact. Nominet Trust was founded in 2008 by Nominet, the not-for-profit organization responsible for the smooth and secure running of the .uk internet infrastructure. Nominet has a strong public purpose and the Trust is one example of its commitment to creating a safer, accessible and diverse internet. For more information, visit www.nominettrust.org.uk

Nominet Trust 2014 Winner

Related Posts

New Vaquita Report: Unraveling the Criminal Processes Behind the Illicit Totoaba Trade through Crime Script Analysis
ELI now actively involved on Capitol Hill and in Washington D.C.
Wildlife trafficking Europe
International Wildlife Trafficker Arrested in The Netherlands with ELI Support

Fight Back with Us

We are former intelligence, law enforcement and security professionals.
We protect Wildlife and our Planet with intelligence-gathering operations and by investigating and exposing wildlife criminals worldwide, including poachers, traffickers, businessmen and corrupt government officials. Earth League International (former Elephant Action League) is a hybrid non-profit organization that merges the worlds of intelligence, investigation and conservation in service of wildlife and the people who protect it.