GainForest is a global non-profit and XPRIZE finalist with the mission to halt and reverse global deforestation by 2030. Learn more at links.gainforest.earth

Conservation Basic Income for the Global South

If tropical deforestation would be a country, it would be the third largest emitter in the world (after China and the US). To adhere to the 1.5-degree target set by the Paris Agreement, we need to halt global deforestation immediately. GainForest has built a global and trusted network of conservation organisations (23 and counting) that protect and reforest critical ecosystems. Explore our green globe at maps.gainforest.app.

Rather than relying on donations, we are developing a Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN) that employs community-operated conservation drones to employ local communities to gather vast amounts of machine learning-ready forest data. Local communities are rewarded for their efforts in digital Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (dMRV). In previous trial runs, we compensated individuals 50 cents for every tree measured, with a daily income cap of 10 USD per community member.

Our objective is to scale these efforts, providing additionally low-cost conservation drones on loan and compensate local communities 5-10 USD for each drone mapping mission they undertake.

Why paying for data is the way forward in nature conservation

Carbon credits often lack transparency and are susceptible to exploitation. Similarly, donations can be challenging to maintain consistently. At GainForest, we are convinced that data payments are the key to creating a reliable income source for local communities.

Data regarding biodiversity in the Global South is scarce. Many species of plants and animals in these regions remain undiscovered and not documented. A conservation-focused data collection initiative would create a global data commons, propelling the advancement of AI and biodiversity research in these areas. There's an immediate need and a broad consensus to compensate local data collectors for their contributions.

In our DePIN system, drone-captured images are validated through similarity analysis with publicly accessible satellite imagery (read our https://www.climatechange.ai/papers/iclr2020/23). In addition, a network of neighboring local communities serves as a verifier for the authenticity of the data.

Conservation Basic Income Payments are then distributed for every drone-composed mosaic and tree image contributed by community members.

NFTrees: Dynamic Hypercerts for Forest Conservation

Data gatherers and financiers receive NFTree hypercerts, interactive digital NFT replicas of the collected data, which monitor a holder's credibility, data integrity, and contribution to Decentralized Science (DeSci). This system opens up opportunities for data licensing, collective action, and retrospective funding."

Showcasing ReFi's potential at the $10M XPRIZE Rainforest Finals

We're thrilled to announce that our technology has helped us reach the finals of the prestigious $10M XPRIZE Rainforest competition! Yet, we don't want to stop there. We're calling upon the unparalleled power of the #ReFi community, inviting each of you to be a part of an exceptional global endeavor.

Our mission is to supercharge our existing AI algorithms, pushing their capabilities to new heights in detecting species and unravelling the intricate tapestry of biodiversity. Together, we can construct the world's largest, most valuable drone imagery dataset of forests, a tool that will revolutionize our understanding and preservation of our planet and provide sustainable income for its data collectors for many years to come.

Read our full impact report

Read our non-profit's full (web2-friendly) impact report to learn about all our impact areas