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The Frontier Tech Hub investigates the potential for innovative technologies to be deployed in global development contexts, then pilots and scales these ideas. The Frontier Tech Hub works with UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) staff and global partners.

A large proportion of Frontier Tech Hub’s pilots seek to use technologies to tackle environmental challenges. Initiatives include using blockchain to safeguard land-based climate investments in Ghana, developing early warning fire detection systems in India , harnessing sensor technologies to improve beekeeping productivity in South Africa, and supporting rainforest protection and agroforestry in Colombia.

Colombia

Protecting Colombian Rainforests on Smallholder Farms with Earth Observation and Ground Data

The UK-based Frontier Tech Hub are working with Colombian smallholder farmers to help them transition away from growing coca (the leaf used to produce the illegal drug cocaine) and towards cultivating cacao . At the same time, this transition will help farmers to protect rainforest . Unlike crops such as soybeans and corn, which need regular sunlight, both coca and cacao grow well in shaded forest areas.

The coca crop has led to conflict, loss and difficult challenges for many families. Transitioning to the so-called ‘peace crop’, cacao, could offer communities an alternative forest livelihood. Moreover, since cacao can grow in shade, agroforestry methods can enable farmers to protect rainforest while producing food.

However, this transition has encountered obstacles since international cacao buyers are legally required to only import goods from farmers with traceable crops that do not pose deforestation threats. The necessary Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance certificates which prove this traceability are prohibitively expensive for many of Colombia’s smallholder cacao farmers.

As such, Frontier Tech is piloting the use of Earth observation, DreamGIS/Earth Big Data to design a new traceability system for cacao production. It is hoped this technology will offer insights into farmer compliance with social, environmental, and quality standards, and provide international buyers with data on the deforestation risk associated with smallholder cacao farms.

Frontier Tech’s pilot is developing a platform that integrates Earth Observation data with data collected by farmers on the ground. The farmers would use mobile applications to accurately input the boundaries of their land. A report on the risk of deforestation associated with each smallholding could then be generated by uploading these location coordinates to a web application which uses Earth Observation data alongside cloud-based data analysis techniques. This should enable international cacao buyers to make informed purchasing decisions without needing to rely on certification schemes, and support sustainable land use on small-scale farms. 

It is hoped that improving the traceability of cacao and the accessibility of verification methods will enable smallholder farmers to secure fairer prices for their cocoa, transition away from coca and protect rainforest.

Screenshot of cacao farmers using digital technology from Frontier Tech Hub's website

Screenshot of cacao farmers using digital technology from Frontier Tech Hub's website