GainForest
GainForest is a Smart Contract aimed at fighting deforestation in the Amazon. Leveraging artificial intelligence and blockchain, GainForest allows virtual caretakers to stake funds on the health of a forest patch in the Amazon rainforest, helping support local caretakers on the ground in protecting and restoring their forests. Thereby entering into a ‘contract’, the funds staked are utilized by locals as they see fit (although the contract does not stipulate the precise terms of fund usage). The value of the forest patch increases if satellite imagery validates the conservation efforts (showing the patch untouched) several months from when the funds were staked. Risks and outcomes are assessed by machine learning algorithms trained on remote sensing data, to ensure that logging is not happening in the GainForest protected areas. The algorithms also predict changes in land use along with carbon stocks. GainForest was founded in 2017 and is now operated by a highly international team, speaking to the pervasiveness of their mission. They were recently awarded the Microsoft AI for Earth Award, and have been featured in the past three United Nations Climate Change Conferences (COP23- COP25).
Categories
Artificial Intelligence, Biodiversity, Blockchain, Climate Change, Data, Industry/Natural Commodities
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