The forests they are among the greatest allies in the fight against climate change, absorbing about 30% of the global CO2 emissions every year. However, their large -scale monitoring remains a complex challenge, due to logistical difficulties and the extension of the forest territories. For this reason a team of the Free University of Bolzano (Unibz) has decided to exploit the most advanced technologies to observe nature from a perspective ever seen before. Through drones, zoomorphic robots and artificial intelligencescholars are experimenting with new methods to collect detailed data and optimize the management of forest resources.
“We need an innovative and multidisciplinary approach to face today’s environmental challenges,” explained the professor Enrico Tomelleri of Unibz. The idea is clear: to use technology to better understand forests and encourage sustainable management.
Three projects in one
Behind this revolution there are three key initiatives: Digiforest, inest And Form. Each of them contributes to bringing technology to the heart of nature.
How technology is changing forests management
All these projects have an element in common: the use of Lidar technology, which Take advantage of laser pulses to create ultra detailed three -dimensional maps. This system allows you to digitally reconstruct the forest environment with unpublished precision, accurately measuring the height of the trees, the density of the vegetation and the conformation of the soil.
The data collected are processed by artificial intelligence algorithms, capable of generating predictive models on the development of forests and their ability to absorb CO2.
Towards a digital ecology
In the coming months, field tests will give the measure of the effectiveness of these technologies. What is certain is that digital monitoring of forests represents a turning point for environmental sustainability. With the support of universities such as the Polytechnic of Monaco, the University of Oxford and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Zurich, the project has an international scope and could become a model for other countries.
Thanks to a mix of robots, drones and advanced algorithms, Unibz is tracing the way for a future in which technology is not a threat to nature, but its greatest ally. If the forecasts are made, in the next decade we could see increasingly monitored, protected and enhanced forests thanks to artificial intelligence and automation.
