Kent Wildlife Trust, a leading UK-based conservation organisation, in collaboration with Buglife, Europe’s largest invertebrate conservation charity, today announced it has been selected as a winner of the 2024 Amazon Web Services (AWS) Imagine Grant, a public grant opportunity open to registered charities in the United Kingdom and Ireland and registered 501(c) nonprofit organisations in the United States who are using technology to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. 

The grant will support Kent Wildlife Trust to roll out the ‘Bugs Matter’ app, a citizen science study monitoring insect populations, on an international scale. New and existing partnerships will be developed to support launches in the US, Australia, France, the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland.

Now in its seventh year and inaugural year in Ireland, the AWS IMAGINE Grant provides vital resources to nonprofit organisations looking to deploy cloud technology as a central tool to achieve mission goals. As part of the program, AWS seeks proposals for big ideas on how to leverage cloud technology in new and innovative ways to accelerate impact in local and global communities. 

Kent Wildlife Trust was named a winner in the Go Further, Faster category which recognises highly innovative projects using advanced cloud services. The charities will receive a combination of unrestricted funding, cloud computing credits, and engagement with AWS technical specialists. Proposals were judged on several factors including the innovative and unique nature of the project, impact on mission critical goals, and clearly defined outcomes and milestones. 

The Bugs Matter study has been running annually in the UK since 2021, following the initial baseline survey in 2004, and involves participants counting the bug splats on their vehicle number plate at the end of each journey and logging their findings on the purpose-built Bugs Matter app. The splat data is then analysed by experts at the end of each season with an annual report published. 

The results have already identified worrying decreases in UK flying insect abundance with recent data showing that insect populations have decreased by 78% between 2004 and 2023.  

Insects are critical components of a healthy environment - they pollinate most of the world’s crops, provide natural pest control, decompose organic matter and recycle nutrients in the soil. Without them, life on Earth would collapse. 

The Bugs Matter survey is unique in being the only existing method that can provide data on flying insect abundance from multiple years, over long time periods, and over large spatial scales, which is required to draw robust conclusions that will inform effective insect conservation, policy and practice. Since its launch, the survey user base has grown significantly in the UK and now, thanks to generous funding from AWS IMAGINE Grant, the app will now be rolled out to a global audience creating international data to help conservationists fight insect declines.  

Dr Lawrence Ball of Kent Wildlife Trust says: “We are incredibly grateful to Amazon Web Services for their generous funding and technical support which will help create an international dataset to shine a light on insect abundance across the planet.  

“This move is ground-breaking and will put insect population data in the spotlight across the world. From what we have seen in the UK, we know we are faced with concerning declines in flying insect abundance and the figures produced give us the tools we need to challenge the use of insect-killing pesticides, advocate for more wild green spaces and highlight that more must be done to reverse insect declines and bolster food security.” 

Since the launch of the AWS IMAGINE Grant program in 2018, AWS has awarded over $9M in unrestricted funds, AWS Promotional Credits, and expert technical guidance to over 100 nonprofit organizations in support of their technology-driven goals. Previous winners are currently using AWS services to tackle critical challenges such as eliminating barriers to food security, improving maternal health outcomes, helping millions access clean and safe drinking water globally, tackling rare disease research, and more. 

"At AWS, we're inspired by the nonprofit sector's unwavering commitment to preserving the dignity and health of people and our planet," said Allyson Fryhoff, managing director of nonprofit and nonprofit health at AWS.

 "Our IMAGINE Grant winners are pioneering groundbreaking, technology-driven approaches that will amplify their mission impact and build a more equitable and compassionate world. We are thrilled to work alongside these organizations, helping them leverage the transformative capabilities of the AWS Cloud to bring these projects to life.” 

Over 85,000 nonprofit organisations worldwide use AWS to increase their impact and advance mission goals. Through multiple programs tailored specifically to the nonprofit community, AWS can enable nonprofits of all sizes to overcome barriers to technology adoption, while enhancing the scale, performance, and capabilities of mission operations. 

For more information on the AWS Imagine Grant, visit aws.amazon.com/imagine-grant