The positive impact of Artificial Intelligence has made its way to the laps of experts who are at the frontline in tackling one of the world’s important battles: climate change.
Over the years, AI has risen from the once complex software to an integral part of our daily lives. Among others, technology has been instrumental in improving manual labor, helping solve intricate problems, and providing solutions with the help of human intervention.
Today, AI is being used in fighting against climate change, a challenge that has yet to see a sustainable solution. According to the World Economic Forum, AI has a “transformational potential” to address the concerns of climate change due to its capacity to process large amounts of data and “help humans make decisions.”
In their February 2024 article, the WEF listed nine ways AI is helping combat climate change:
𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐞𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐬: According to the international nonprofit, AI can measure changes in icebergs 10,000 times faster than humans. In 2023, the University of Leeds unveiled a neural network that can precisely chart the expanse of icebergs in the Antarctic, uploading satellite images in as fast as 0.01 seconds.
𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: the WEF also included the ongoing efforts of Space Intelligence, a company founded in 2017 that uses cutting-edge technologies for forest conservation and restoration. Space Intelligence has been working with more than 30 countries, has mapped more than 1 million hectares using satellite data, and is using their technology to measure important data such as deforestation rate and carbon footprint.
𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚: As an initiative of the United Nations, the IKI Project is an international climate effort aimed at strengthening climate change adaptation in Burundi, Chad, and Sudan. The IKI Project uses AI to predict weather patterns for areas to adapt to these situations.
𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠: London-based startup Grayparrot, in their thrust to “recover more resources with waste intelligence,” incorporates AI to automate recovery and sorting facilities, as well as AI for packaging producers.
𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐧: Another international nonprofit the WEF mentioned is The Ocean Cleanup. Based in the Netherlands, the project uses AI and other scaling technologies to get rid of plastics in oceans.
𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞: Sipremo employs AI to empower organizations with “detailed information about climate events,” thereby improving their risk management and loss mitigation, among others. Sipremo also soldiers the technology for improved emergency support, clear data for accurate decision-making, and reducing the impact of climate change through proactive prevention.
𝐃𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝: Google’s AI is also making its presence felt with GraphCast, a one-of-a-kind model that delivers a 10-day weather forecast with “unprecedented accuracy in under one minute.” It can likewise predict the potential paths of cyclones.
𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧: Eugenie.ai promoted greener productivity for industries with their Industrial AI solution to help them track, trace, and reduce their carbon emissions. The technology uses real-time emission data from satellites “to detect anomalies and opportunities for optimization.”
𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐥: AI is being used alongside drones to speed up the reforesting efforts in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Startup outfit Morfo utilizes drones to drop seeds in hard-to-reach areas. These unmanned crafts can disperse 180 seed capsules per minute, making it 100 times faster than humans.
With the help of concerned individuals, groups, and companies, AI has the power to lead the ongoing battle against climate change. Nature is unpredictable, but with the use of technology and the brilliance of the human mind, the world can be prepared and can stand up against climate change.
