About
Conservation is about people.
Conservation exists where people and wild places meet. So we work on the human element: we develop the rangers, leaders, instructors and analysts who protect them, and we work alongside the communities who share them.
Who we are
Small by design. Serious by nature.
Founded in 2016. A small Dutch foundation of field trainers, instructional designers, analysts and researchers, building the standard alongside the people who use it.
People
The team behind the standard.
Dominique Noome
Executive DirectorKeeps us honest — she checks whether our training actually works, publishes what we find, and answers most of the email.
Boris Vos
TRAINING & DOCTRINEWrites the training and walks the ground. Happiest at a field camp with a whiteboard and a hard question.
Dr. Andrew M. Lemieux
ANALYSIS & RESEARCHOur scientist. Brings crime science to conservation, so teams solve problems at the root instead of chasing them.
Stani Groeneweg
MASTER TRAINER RANGERPROKeeps every course to the same standard, from the first lesson to the final assessment, wherever it runs.
Our trainers
Every trainer was a ranger first.
Our trainers deliver LEAD's field courses across Africa and Asia. Every one is African; every one served as a ranger before qualifying as an instructor. The drills they teach are drills they have run for real.
Chikumbutso Paul
Senior Trainer RangerProMalawi · Former ranger
Kizito Lomongin
Senior Trainer RangerProUganda · Former ranger
Henry Isaac
Senior Trainer RangerProKenya · Former ranger
Myles M. Lyne
Senior Trainer AnalysisKenya · Former field ops trainer
We have recently completed a regional recruitment: seven junior trainers, all former rangers, join on 1 January 2027. Details follow when they start.
The backbone
Independent by charter, deep by partnership.
Most organisations our size spend a large share of their energy securing their own existence. LEAD's core — the team, salaries and overhead — is underwritten by a committed long-term funder. So when we ask for funding, we ask for programme: seats for rangers through the Seat Fund, and institutional funding that scales delivery.
Depth comes through partnership: Orchard, our UK specialist capacity partner, gives a compact team its specialist bench — with the boundaries kept deliberately clear.
For everyone who funds us, the arithmetic is simple: programme funding buys programme.
What the Orchard partnership gives us
Specialist experts. A standing network of instructors, analysts and technical specialists, called on for specific needs.
Depth without size. Specialist capacity on demand, so a compact team can take on specific requests.
Real involvement. Orchard works alongside us in the programmes — and has from early on.
Clear boundaries. LEAD remains an independent Dutch foundation: own board, own doctrine, own governance.
OUR COMMITMENTS
Signed before anyone teaches.
Every LEAD educator signs and works under our Code of Ethics and Practice. Four of its commitments:
Safe training, always
Risk assessments and medical evacuation plans for every event, qualified medical cover, and zero tolerance for harassment of any kind.
Lawful, everywhere
Full compliance with national and international law — accreditation, permits, and educators qualified within their scope of practice.
Professional boundaries
Educators are in positions of trust. Relationships with learners stay clear and professional — and the code defines exactly where the boundaries sit.
Inclusion without exception
Non-discrimination and equity irrespective of race, origin, nationality, education, language, belief, or sex — with safeguarding for vulnerable learners.
The full Code of Ethics and Practice is available on request: ask us for it
Partners
Few, deliberate, and strategic.
Every partnership adds one thing the standard needs.
The Thin Green Line Foundation
AUSTRALIA · CO-FOUNDER & PRIMARY PARTNER
The global ranger-welfare organisation that helped bring LEAD into being — and stands behind it still.
Orchard
UNITED KINGDOM · SPECIALIST CAPACITY PARTNER
Specialist experts on call — instructors, analysts, technical specialists — for specific needs.
Southern African Wildlife College
SOUTH AFRICA · FIVE-YEAR PARTNERSHIP
Co-developed curricula and aligned certification — Foundations of Problem Solving already runs in SAWC’s own programmes.
Panthera
GLOBAL
The global authority on wild cat conservation: together we implement Problem-Oriented Wildlife Protection and co-develop the Little Guides.
UF PRO
SLOVENIA · FIVE-YEAR PARTNERSHIP
Every LEAD trainer is issued UF PRO field clothing. Hard use across extreme environments feeds directly into their design cycle.
Re:wild
UNITED STATES · FISCAL SPONSOR
A 501(c)(3) public charity: American donors give through Re:wild, whose network reaches far beyond our own.
SERCA
INTERNATIONAL · DEPLOYMENT PARTNER
The real-time platform behind modern protected-area operations — we help teams turn live field data into decisions.
Governance
Check the paperwork.
Dutch foundation
Stichting based in Wageningen, The Netherlands — Plataanlaan 19, 6708 PT. Statutes and annual reports available on request.
ANBI status
Recognised public-benefit organisation under Dutch law. Donations are tax-deductible for Dutch and many EU donors. RSIN 856 268 781.
A person answers.
Questions, ideas, or just want to understand what we do? Write to us.