IBM and WWF-Germany to Build New AI Solution to Support Conservation of Keystone Species
IBM and WWF-Germany have announced a collaboration to develop an AI-powered solution for monitoring critically endangered African forest elephants. The project aims to enhance elephant tracking and support conservation efforts using IBM's Maximo Visual Inspection software. This technology will analyze camera trap images to identify individual elephants accurately.
The solution may also help assess the financial value of nature's contributions provided by these elephants, such as carbon sequestration. African forest elephants have experienced an 80% population decrease due to habitat loss and poaching. By leveraging technology to track and value natural capital, organizations can support climate change mitigation and identify sustainable finance investments.
The collaboration combines IBM's expertise in technology and sustainability with WWF's conservation knowledge to create innovative ways to accelerate sustainability efforts.
IBM e WWF-Germania hanno annunciato una collaborazione per sviluppare una soluzione basata sull'IA per il monitoraggio degli elefanti delle foreste africane in pericolo critico. Il progetto si propone di migliorare il tracciamento degli elefanti e di sostenere gli sforzi di conservazione utilizzando il software Maximo Visual Inspection di IBM. Questa tecnologia analizzerà le immagini delle trappole fotografiche per identificare accuratamente i singoli elefanti.
La soluzione potrebbe inoltre aiutare a valutare il valore finanziario dei contributi della natura forniti da questi elefanti, come il sequestro del carbonio. Gli elefanti delle foreste africane hanno subito una decremento del 80% della popolazione a causa della perdita dell'habitat e del bracconaggio. Sfruttando la tecnologia per tracciare e valutare il capitale naturale, le organizzazioni possono sostenere la mitigazione del cambiamento climatico e identificare investimenti finanziari sostenibili.
La collaborazione unisce l'expertise tecnologica e di sostenibilità di IBM con le conoscenze di conservazione del WWF per creare modi innovativi per accelerare gli sforzi di sostenibilità.
IBM y WWF-Alemania han anunciado una colaboración para desarrollar una solución impulsada por IA para el monitoreo de elefantes de bosque africanos en peligro crítico. El proyecto tiene como objetivo mejorar el seguimiento de los elefantes y apoyar los esfuerzos de conservación utilizando el software Maximo Visual Inspection de IBM. Esta tecnología analizará las imágenes de las trampas fotográficas para identificar con precisión a los elefantes individuales.
La solución también podría ayudar a evaluar el valor financiero de las contribuciones de la naturaleza que proporcionan estos elefantes, como la captura de carbono. Los elefantes de bosque africanos han experimentado una disminución del 80% en la población debido a la pérdida de hábitat y la caza furtiva. Al aprovechar la tecnología para rastrear y valorar el capital natural, las organizaciones pueden apoyar la mitigación del cambio climático e identificar inversiones en finanzas sostenibles.
La colaboración combina la experiencia de IBM en tecnología y sostenibilidad con el conocimiento de conservación del WWF para crear maneras innovadoras de acelerar los esfuerzos de sostenibilidad.
IBM과 WWF-독일은 AI 기반 솔루션을 개발하기 위해 협력한다고 발표했습니다. 이 솔루션은 위험에 처한 아프리카 숲 코끼리를 모니터링하는 데 목적이 있습니다. 이 프로젝트는 IBM의 Maximo Visual Inspection 소프트웨어를 사용하여 코끼리 추적을 개선하고 보존 노력을 지원하는 것을 목표로 하고 있습니다. 이 기술은 카메라 트랩 이미지 분석을 통해 개별 코끼리를 정확하게 식별하게 됩니다.
이 솔루션은 또한 이러한 코끼리들이 제공하는 자연의 기여에 대한 재정적 가치를 평가하는 데 도움을 줄 수 있으며, 예를 들어 탄소 격리와 같은 것입니다. 아프리카 숲 코끼리는 서식지 손실과 밀렵으로 인하여 80% 개체 수 감소를 경험했습니다. 자연 자본을 추적하고 가치 평가를 위해 기술을 활용함으로써, 조직들은 기후 변화 완화를 지원하고 지속 가능한 금융 투자 기회를 식별할 수 있습니다.
이 협력은 IBM의 기술 및 지속 가능성 전문성과 WWF의 보존 지식을 결합하여 지속 가능성 노력을 가속화할 혁신적인 방법을 창출합니다.
IBM et WWF-Allemagne ont annoncé une collaboration pour développer une solution alimentée par l'IA pour surveiller les éléphants des forêts africaines en danger critique. Ce projet vise à améliorer le suivi des éléphants et à soutenir les efforts de conservation grâce au logiciel Maximo Visual Inspection d'IBM. Cette technologie analysera les images des pièges photographiques pour identifier précisément les éléphants individuels.
La solution pourrait également aider à évaluer la valeur financière des contributions de la nature fournies par ces éléphants, telles que la séquestration du carbone. Les éléphants de forêt africains ont connu une diminution de 80 % de leur population en raison de la perte de leur habitat et du braconnage. En tirant parti de la technologie pour suivre et évaluer le capital naturel, les organisations peuvent soutenir la lutte contre le changement climatique et identifier des investissements financiers durables.
La collaboration associe l'expertise d'IBM en technologie et en durabilité avec le savoir-faire conservatoire du WWF pour créer des moyens innovants d'accélérer les efforts de durabilité.
IBM und WWF-Deutschland haben eine Zusammenarbeit angekündigt, um eine KI-gesteuerte Lösung zur Überwachung von kritisch gefährdeten afrikanischen Waldelefanten zu entwickeln. Das Projekt zielt darauf ab, die Verfolgung der Elefanten zu verbessern und die Naturschutzmaßnahmen mit Hilfe der Maximo Visual Inspection-Software von IBM zu unterstützen. Diese Technologie wird Kamerafallenbilder analysieren, um einzelne Elefanten genau zu identifizieren.
Die Lösung könnte auch helfen, den finanziellen Wert der von diesen Elefanten bereitgestellten natürlichen Beiträge zu bewerten, wie z. B. Kohlenstoffbindung. Afrikanische Waldelefanten haben aufgrund von Habitatverlust und Wilderei einen Populationsrückgang von 80% erlebt. Durch den Einsatz von Technologie zur Verfolgung und Bewertung von Naturkapital können Organisationen die Minderung des Klimawandels unterstützen und nachhaltige Finanzinvestitionen identifizieren.
Die Zusammenarbeit verbindet IBMs Fachwissen in Technologie und Nachhaltigkeit mit dem Naturschutzwissen des WWF, um innovative Wege zur Beschleunigung der Nachhaltigkeitsbemühungen zu schaffen.
- Development of AI-powered solution for monitoring critically endangered African forest elephants
- Potential to assess financial value of nature's contributions, including carbon sequestration services
- Utilization of IBM Maximo Visual Inspection software for accurate elephant identification
- Collaboration between IBM's technology expertise and WWF's conservation knowledge
- 80% decrease in African forest elephant population due to habitat loss and poaching
Insights
IBM's collaboration with WWF leverages cutting-edge AI technology to address a critical environmental challenge. The use of IBM Maximo Visual Inspection (MVI) for elephant identification is innovative, applying industrial visual inspection techniques to wildlife conservation. This demonstrates the versatility and potential of AI in solving complex real-world problems.
The integration of IBM Environmental Intelligence for biomass detection adds another layer of sophistication, enabling predictive analysis of elephant movements. This multi-faceted approach showcases IBM's commitment to leveraging its diverse technological portfolio for sustainability efforts.
While promising, the success of this project will depend on the accuracy and scalability of the AI models in challenging field conditions. The potential for applying this technology to other species and ecosystems could significantly impact global conservation efforts.
This initiative represents a significant step towards quantifying the economic value of ecosystem services provided by keystone species. The concept of valuing an African forest elephant at
The potential for tokenizing these services could create new financial instruments and markets centered around biodiversity conservation. This aligns with the growing trend of integrating natural capital into economic decision-making processes. However, it's important to ensure that such valuation doesn't oversimplify complex ecological relationships or lead to unintended consequences in conservation strategies.
If successful, this model could be expanded to other species and ecosystems, potentially revolutionizing how we value and protect biodiversity globally.
The application of AI to elephant tracking addresses a critical challenge in conservation biology. Accurate population monitoring is essential for effective conservation strategies, especially for critically endangered species like the African forest elephant. The ability to identify individual elephants from camera trap photos could significantly improve population estimates and tracking.
Moreover, the project's focus on quantifying the elephants' role in carbon sequestration highlights the interconnectedness of biodiversity and climate change mitigation. This holistic approach could help bridge the gap between wildlife conservation and climate action strategies.
However, it's important to note that technology alone cannot solve conservation challenges. This tool should be part of a broader strategy that includes habitat protection, anti-poaching efforts and community engagement. The success of this project could set a precedent for tech-driven conservation initiatives worldwide.
Combining IBM's expertise in sustainability and technology with WWF's extensive experience in wildlife conservation, the new solution will be designed to utilize AI-powered visual inspection to enhance elephant tracking, supporting the accurate identification of individual elephants from camera trap photos. The goal of this solution is to help support key conservation efforts of African forest elephants, which have been shown to increase carbon storage in their forest habitats .
In the future, this technology may also be used by organizations to assess the financial value of nature's contributions to people (NCP) provided by African forest elephants, such as carbon sequestration 'services', recognizing the important role they play in maintaining healthy ecosystems.
The African forest elephant has experienced an over
By harnessing the power of technology to track and value natural capital, organizations can unlock new opportunities to support climate change mitigation efforts, while also identifying new sustainable finance investments.
"At IBM, we strive to make a lasting, positive impact on the world in business, our environment, and the communities in which we work and live. Our collaboration with WWF marks a significant step forward in this effort. By combining our expertise in technology and sustainability with WWF's conservation expertise, we aim to leverage the power of technology to create a more sustainable future." - Oday Abbosh, Global Sustainability Services Leader, IBM Consulting
As part of this collaboration, IBM Consulting worked with WWF to explore opportunities for innovation, aligning WWF's conservation initiatives with IBM's sustainability and technology expertise. IBM's own software, IBM Maximo Visual Inspection (MVI), will be used in this collaboration. Leveraging MVI's AI-powered visual inspection and modeling capabilities, the solution aims to analyze images from camera traps and film to identify individual African forest elephants with greater accuracy. Currently, the use case focuses on head and tusk-related image recognition, similar to a fingerprint for humans.
"Our technology will play a crucial role in streamlining the process of identifying and accounting for the individual elephants. This is an exciting new use of IBM software, which in combination with our consulting services and WWF's deep knowledge of the natural world can help create new ways to accelerate organizations' sustainability efforts." - Kendra Dekeyrel, VP of ESG and Asset Management at IBM
In addition, the two organizations aim to leverage IBM Environmental Intelligence to detect above-ground biomass and vegetation levels in specific areas where the elephants are present. This will enable more accurate predictions of the elephants' future locations to better quantify the NCP services they provide. Ultimately,this will help the process of quantifying and tokenizing the value of carbon services provided by the African forest elephant, providing organizations with insights they can use to further drive sustainability efforts.
Harnessing the power of natural capital for sustainability
IBM and WWF are committed to exploring innovative products and services to help organizations harness natural capital to accelerate their sustainability progress.
The concept of natural capital refers to the world's stocks of natural assets, including geology, soil, air, water, and all wildlife. These natural assets provide a range of ecosystem services and NCP, which are the direct and indirect ways nature contributes to human well-being.
For instance, a single African forest elephant, roaming freely in its natural habitat, can increase the net carbon capture capacity of the forest by almost 250 acres. This is equivalent to removing from the atmosphere a year's worth of emissions from 2,047 cars. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), this can translate into a dollar value of up to
"Counting African forest elephants is both difficult and costly. The logistics are complex and the resulting population numbers are not precise. Being able to identify individual elephants from camera trap images with the help of AI has the potential to be a game-changer. With AI, we will be able to monitor individual animals in space and time, giving us more robust and detailed population estimates and allowing for performance-based conservation payments, such as wildlife credits. The spatial data will also show us where these elephants choose to move – thus enabling us to protect these wildlife corridors." - Dr. Thomas Breuer, WWF Germany - African Forest Elephant Coordinator
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Media Contact:
Lily O'Brien
IBM
lilyobrien@ibm.com
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FAQ
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