In a groundbreaking achievement, a Brazilian research project has successfully used drones and artificial intelligence to map Brazil nut trees and other species in the Amazon, marking a significant advancement in forest conservation.

In a groundbreaking achievement, a Brazilian research project has successfully used drones and artificial intelligence to map Brazil nut trees and other species in the Amazon, marking a significant advancement in forest conservation.

The innovative project, led by Embrapa (The Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation), utilized the Netflora methodology to identify 604 Brazil nut trees and over 14,000 other trees in just two hours of aerial surveying over the Uatumã Sustainable Development Reserve in Brazil. This achievement is a major breakthrough compared to traditional techniques, which require around 73 days of work and a team of five people to survey the same territory.

According to researcher Evandro Orfanó, the application of AI bridges scientific knowledge with traditional practices of extractivist communities, making forest management more sustainable and efficient. The project is part of the Geoflora Project, a partnership between Embrapa Western Amazon and the Amazonas State Secretariat for the Environment, supported financially by the JBS Fund for the Amazon.

A Mobile App for Extractivists

To make this innovation accessible to residents of the Uatumã Sustainable Development Reserve, a mobile app is being developed with detailed data from the digital inventory. The tool includes spreadsheets, maps, and precise tree locations, allowing extractivists to navigate the forest with ease, just like urban map applications.

Each mapped tree has an ‘address’ with geographic coordinates, making data collection work easier and reducing physical effort for workers. The system also optimizes time and contributes to environmental conservation.

The Brazil nut is a key economic pillar for Amazonian communities, and Embrapa Western Amazon is leading a project to optimize extractivist collection. With the data generated by Netflora, it is possible to precisely plan where these cables should be installed, expanding collection areas and reducing health risks for extractivists.

The introduction of these technologies also seeks to attract young people to extractivism, an activity that many avoid due to the physical effort required. Netflora’s advancement enables automatic species recognition based on regional patterns, even in areas never mapped before.

Netflora is available for free on the GitHub repository and can be used via the Google Colab platform. Embrapa also offers a free course on the e-Campo platform, providing step-by-step guidance on how to use the tool.

Through this initiative, science advances alongside traditional communities, promoting sustainable development and the intelligent use of the Amazon’s natural resources.