Globally, it’s no secret that we face existential challenges around climate change and the depletion of resources. Alongside the worsening climate crisis, the rapid growth of AI has become a particular point of concern. It is driving a massive increase in the number of data centers worldwide, significantly raising global energy consumption. At the same time, AI and digital tools offer the potential to change how we approach sustainability at every level.
From large-scale monitoring to empowering local communities, technology is unlocking new ways to help us address these issues more effectively. Part of the challenge lies in using such tools in harmony with traditional practices and local knowledge.
Digital tools are transforming our approach to sustainability
Digital tools are giving us better insights into how to protect the environment. GPS mapping and satellite imagery allow us to track deforestation, monitor soil health, and measure the impact of restoration efforts in real time. These tools help to pinpoint areas with the highest potential for interventions, enabling resources to be used efficiently and effectively.
AI-powered suitability maps and remote sensing with satellite imagery take this even further. The technology could allow us to take a more proactive approach to landscape restoration and farming. By analysing factors such as climate patterns, water availability and soil dryness, these models can give advanced warning of drought and soil degradation. This will enable farmers to take action before matters escalate and damage takes hold.
Looking to a more local level, digital tools are also empowering frontline farmers and making sustainable practices more accessible. The massive adoption of smartphones makes it much easier to deliver all these benefits to individual farmers wherever they are.
Our digital regreening app, Kijani, equips farmers with practical, data-driven insights to improve soil health and boost productivity. Satellite data, in combination with land topography and rainfall patterns, for example, can determine the best location for regreening techniques such as bunds (semi-circular wells that capture rainwater and prevent erosion – we like to call them ‘Earth Smiles’) – then, our app can provide farmers with personalised recommendations on where and how to dig these Earth Smiles, maximising their impact.
The continued importance of community and knowledge-sharing
Of course, technology alone isn’t enough: sustainability efforts are most effective when local communities have the knowledge and support to drive change themselves. The Kijani app provides farmers with digital courses on proven methods to improve their yields, soil health and resilience, which can be shared with peers and local networks. While mobile internet coverage can unlock precision farming possibilities, it is frontline farmers themselves that ensure that sustainable practices are shared, adapted and scaled.
This is where digital technology will have enormous impact: bridging the gap between local communities on the one hand, and NGO’s, governments and knowledge institutions on the other. There is an abundance of data about the sustainable land management practices and where they can be applied.
Now, all this knowledge can be put into the hands of the people who can actually use it. This will directly impact livelihoods of local communities and in the mean time it will cool down the planet.
Technology is a means, not an end
While digital innovation is accelerating sustainability efforts, it should complement, not replace, traditional expertise and on-the-ground action. Sustainability solutions are not a one-size-fits-all solution. Rather, they need to be adapted to the unique challenges and opportunities of each community.
Real impact comes from using technology to complement nature-based solutions, not replace them. Technologies like remote sensing and AI are essential for scaling and monitoring these solutions, but they should be used to enhance natural processes, not overshadow them. The key is to work with the environment: innovation should always be supporting what nature already does best.
- Data & AI
- Sustainability Technology
