Connecting conservation communities: From social network analysis to practical application

This study explores how social network mapping and analysis can be applied to support community‐based conservation practice, and what benefits and challenges emerge in doing so, enlisting the Northern Rivers, New South Wales, Australia as a case study. We identified 273 local conservation groups, conducted 51 semi‐structured interviews and 50 meetings and open interviews, and created a publicly accessible, interactive network map using the Kumu platform based on desktop analysis and group members' contributions. We captured 1078 inter‐organizational connections and categorized them as funding , partnerships , memberships , collaborations , and supporting . Social network analysis (SNA) metrics of density, centrality, and reach defined a large but sparsely connected network with low density (0.029), revealing no groups with a central coordinating role yet more localized sub‐networks. Interviews highlighted widespread valuing of collaboration alongside constraints including limited volunteer time, short‐term funding, geographic distance, and persistent silos. Making the network map publicly accessible and facilitating targeted, co‐developed “network intervention” workshops supported collective identification of shared challenges and opportunities for collective action. The study's model extends established academic uses of SNA with actionable steps for translating analysis into practice. While acknowledging the study's limitations, findings indicate that further assessment of such applications may support conservation practice across different settings.