What Conservation Science Partners does

Conservation Science Partners (CSP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2011 and headquartered in Truckee, California, that delivers advanced quantitative analysis, geospatial modeling, and decision-support products to conservation practitioners. The organization operates through five program Labs — Analytics Lab, Changing Landscapes Lab, Freshwater Solutions Lab, T&E Lab (Threatened & Endangered Species), and Innovation Lab — which collectively cover ecosystem and population modeling, multi-scale conservation planning, and applied research across freshwater, terrestrial, and wildlife systems.

CSP's core technical stack combines advanced geospatial and earth-observation analysis with statistical and machine-learning modeling. It has produced a portfolio of proprietary interactive tools including The Climate Atlas (US-wide mapping of climate and conservation values on federal lands), the Protected Rivers Explorer, the Vegetation Futures Tool, the Boreal Toad Dashboard, the Wildfire Mitigation Priority Web App, and the Anthropogenic Impact Metric (AIM), alongside analytical frameworks such as an integrated desert tortoise survival model and BirdNET audio-confidence thresholds for California birds. AI/ML is applied across NLP (public-sentiment analysis), computer vision (aerial-imagery land-use mapping), and audio (BirdNET) modalities. Notable third-party validation includes the 2023 Google Geo for Good Impact Award and publications in Nature Sustainability, PNAS, Science, and Ecology Letters.

The organization is funded through grants from foundations and contracts with federal/state agencies, NGOs, tribal governments, and increasingly corporate partners such as bp and Microsoft. Customers include the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Nevada DOT, Nevada Department of Wildlife, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, The Pew Charitable Trusts, American Rivers, the Center for American Progress, the Southern Ute Tribe, and the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens. CSP does not sell commercial products or use traditional pricing tiers; it is staffed by approximately 22 core professionals, most with PhDs, led by founder/CEO and Chief Scientist Brett Dickson, PhD.

Name

Conservation Science Partners

Legal name

Conservation Science Partners

Website

https://csp-inc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Conservation Science Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides advanced geospatial analysis, ecological modeling, and interactive decision-support tools to federal and state agencies, conservation NGOs, tribes, and corporate partners for applied conservation science.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Truckee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Grants and Contracts: CSP is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that receives funding through grants from foundations and contracts with government agencies for conservation research and analysis services.
2. Donations: The organization accepts donations to support conservation science work as indicated by the Donate link on their website.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Conservation Science Partners (CSP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides advanced quantitative analysis and planning services for conservation through five program Labs. It conducts applied research, develops interactive decision-support tools (such as The Climate Atlas, Protected Rivers Explorer, and Vegetation Futures Tool), and delivers analytical frameworks for federal land management, species recovery, and environmental equity under grants and contracts with government agencies and NGOs.

Product overview

Conservation Science Partners (CSP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that serves as a global leader in advanced quantitative analysis and planning services for conservation. CSP operates through five interconnected 'Labs' programs: the Analytics Lab (technology and modeling), Changing Landscapes Lab (global change impacts), Freshwater Solutions Lab (freshwater conservation), T&E Lab (threatened and endangered species recovery), and Innovation Lab (new approaches). The organization offers a portfolio of interactive web-based decision support tools including The Climate Atlas for federal land conservation planning, the Protected Rivers Explorer for river protection assessment, the Vegetation Futures Tool for vegetation management, the Boreal Toad Dashboard for amphibian conservation, and the Wildfire Mitigation Priority Web App for proactive fire management. CSP also developed the proprietary Anthropogenic Impact Metric (AIM) and provides analytical frameworks for species recovery, wildlife crossings planning, and ecological assessments. Services include advanced geospatial and Earth observation analyses, ecosystem and population modeling, multi-scale conservation planning and design, and training and education programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Analytics Lab: Enhancing conservation science through advancements in technology
• Changing Landscapes Lab
• Freshwater Solutions Lab
• T&E Lab
• Innovation Lab

Products and services

• The Climate Atlas

Quantifiable outcome

• National Protected Rivers Assessment reveals only 11.7% of river length in contiguous US and 19.3% nationwide are protected at a viable level.
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability10 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• American RiverscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSP partnered with American Rivers to conduct the National Protected Rivers Assessment and develop the Protected Rivers Explorer interactive tool. This collaboration created a publicly accessible nationwide inventory of present-day river protection status.
• Center for American Progress (CAP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSP provides analysis powering CAP reports on environmental equity including The Nature Gap report documenting inequities in how Americans experience nature loss. CSP developed the Anthropogenic Impact Metric (AIM) for this collaboration.
• The Pew Charitable TrustscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing collaboration on wildlife crossings research, proactive wildfire management prioritization, sagebrush biome conservation, and other conservation science initiatives.
• bp and MicrosoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with bp and Microsoft to develop biodiversity monitoring solutions integrating ecological models and theory with data science to better measure, monitor, and steward biodiversity.
• Bureau of Land Management (BLM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-year collaboration with BLM on desert tortoise recovery efforts, including hosting workshops, developing monitoring methodologies, and supporting range-wide recovery planning.
• Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to identify and prioritize connectivity needs on Nevada's state highway system, integrating future climate conditions and projected land-use change into ecological flow connectivity models.
• Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with NDOT and NDOW to support Nevada's connectivity planning and wildlife crossing prioritization with climate-driven movements in mind.
• California Department of Fish and WildlifecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with CDFW's Cannabis Program ecologists to develop BirdNET confidence score thresholds for over 200 California bird species to improve efficiency of autonomous recording unit data processing.
• Conservation Lands Foundation, WildSpaces Foundation, Audubon Alaska, Campion FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of The Climate Atlas, a first-of-its-kind online mapping tool for mapping climate and conservation values of US lands. Developed in consultation with dozens of federal and NGO partners.
• Colorado Wildlands ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to identify high biodiversity value areas on unprotected public lands in Colorado to inform state-wide protection efforts and national monument designation.
• USGScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with USGS on amphibian conservation framework, boreal toad decision support tool, and other wildlife research initiatives.
• Southern Ute TribemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorking with Southern Ute Tribe wildlife biologists to apply climate-informed wildlife crossing recommendations in southwestern Colorado.
• Living Desert Zoo and GardensmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to analyze online conversations about desert tortoises using AI-based NLP techniques to evaluate public sentiment and dominant narratives.
• ECO-resolutionsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in wildlife crossings research, helping to convene expert working groups and develop consensus statements on climate-informed wildlife crossing planning.
• University of MontanaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on vegetation futures research and web-based decision support tool development.
• USFS Rocky Mountain Research StationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on vegetation futures research and climate adaptation science.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Environmental Defense Fund: Major science-driven environmental nonprofit that combines economic and ecological analysis to inform policy. Overlaps with CSP in producing rigorous environmental analysis that supports advocacy and policy outcomes.
• ICF International: Large consulting firm with substantial environmental and climate practices serving federal agencies (EPA, USGS, FWS). Competes with CSP for federal contracts and offers broader service scope but less domain specialization.
• Tetra Tech: Global consulting and engineering firm with a large environmental and natural resources practice serving federal/state clients. Competes for conservation-related RFPs at much larger scale, often as prime contractor.
• Defenders of Wildlife: Large national conservation organization that commissions and uses scientific analysis (including CSP-style geospatial work) to support species protection and policy advocacy. Operates broader portfolio (legal, lobbying, field programs) rather than specializing in quantitative analysis.
• The Nature Conservancy: Largest global conservation nonprofit with deep in-house science, geospatial, and decision-support capabilities. Often a peer or partner (rather than direct competitor) for high-end quantitative conservation analysis at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Center for Large Landscape Conservation: Small nonprofit focused on connectivity, corridors, and large-landscape conservation policy. Similar size and structure, with overlapping subject matter in wildlife crossings and connectivity planning.
• EcoAdapt: 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on climate adaptation science and planning, with similar consulting/services orientation toward agencies and resource managers. Comparable in scale and mission but with narrower climate adaptation focus.
• Conservation Biology Institute: Nonprofit conservation science organization delivering geospatial analysis, decision-support tools, and conservation planning services to agencies and NGOs. Overlaps directly with CSP's tool-building (e.g., DataBasin) and analytical services model.
• Wildlands Network: Conservation science and policy nonprofit working on landscape connectivity and wildlife corridors, including the climate-informed crossing work CSP also conducts. Direct overlap in connectivity science and policy translation.
• Point Blue Conservation Science: California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit conservation science organization with a similar profile to CSP: applied ecological research, geospatial analysis, partnerships with federal/state agencies, and a long publication track record. Closest comparable in mission, structure, and customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCZ7G7

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Conservation Science Partners