The first stakeholder workshop was held on Wednesday 26th October 2016. The aim was to find out how the smart bat monitor system could work for different groups of potential end users including ecologists, site managers and even visitors to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park who might come across a smart bat box while exploring the park.

The workshop was very well attended by over 30 individuals including industry experts and enthusiasts. A series of group activities explored how people currently engage with understanding nature and biodiversity, the challenges they face, and how a new system could provide support. One recurring theme was how current practices struggle to provide evidence of bat activity at a sufficient granularity, and that made decision making extremely difficult – especially for site management and mitigation. Another recurring theme was the request for more impactful visualisations of bat activity displayed both spacially and temporally.

Overall the workshop generated a positive and forward-looking atmosphere, and implied that the smart bat devices being developed have much potential to benefit a variety of stakeholders. The outcomes from the workshop are now feeding into the development process and helping to shape the first working prototype of the smart bat monitor.

Many thanks to all workshop attendees for your time and very useful insights!