Figure 2.

The conservation we have (a) and the conservation we want (b). Current pathways to success systematically favour some groups over others. Each step in the academic process represents a successive impediment to aspiring BIPOC conservationists, from the resources to pursue such a career, to the attentiveness of supervision received, to the degree of welcome that recent graduates of different skin colours receive in the industry. Consequently, conservation practice is designed and communicated to local people by outsiders who may fail to understand local context or are beholden to predominant western approaches to conservation. We must strive to bring about a system that is more attractive and more accessible to BIPOC aspirants. The academic system should only represent one valid entry point to conservation. By enabling the sharing of expertise from local conservationists and increasing career mobility between field conservation, academia and the non-profit sector, multiple stakeholder viewpoints can be prioritized in the process of moving towards more holistic, novel models of conservation. Illustration by Barkha Lohia. (Online version in colour.)