Last month’s COP27 conference on climate change called, among other things, for “a giant leap on climate ambition”. As we know, humans are not big on giant leaps to protect their planet. Perhaps it is time for non-humans to show the way.
The good news is artificial intelligence (AI) is making massive leaps in managing environmental risk. Combine that with a commitment from most major information technology companies to embrace sustainable manufacturing and operations, and the tech tools for tackling climate change should be ubiquitous.
If it hasn’t seemed that way, it is largely due to numerous disparate efforts, platforms and applications that, in themselves, don’t make a significant impact. However, more and more of the dots are being joined to paint a big picture.
A year ago IBM launched an Environmental Intelligence Suite that brought together AI, weather data, climate risk analytics and carbon accounting capabilities.
The intention was to help companies streamline and automate the management of environmental risks and operationalise underlying processes, including carbon accounting and reduction, to meet environmental goals.
However, COP27, which took place in Egypt, showed that even all these tech tools in combination were only part of the solution, said Solomon Assefa, vice-president of IBM Research Africa. An Ethiopian with 45 patents to his name, he heads the IBM research lab in Wits University’s Tshimologong Precinct in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.
“The efforts to solve climate change challenges in Africa are too big for one country or organisation to tackle,” he said. “Partnerships underpinned by green IT technology solutions are key to helping African countries address the effects of climate change and meet their sustainable development goals (SDGs), including access to clean sustainable energy.
We're using AI and hybrid cloud to accelerate discovery of climate mitigation and adaptation solutions. We're improving carbon emission performance through optimisation and capture, and preparing enterprises for the impact of climate change.
— Solomon Assefa, vice-president, IBM Research Africa
“It will take all of us working together and supplementing each other’s strengths to overcome these challenges.”
At COP27, IBM announced a number of organisations that would join its Sustainability Accelerator, which brings together advanced technologies and an “ecosystem of experts”. These included the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Environment Without Borders Foundation.
One of the UNDP projects aims to increase access to sustainable, affordable and reliable energy in African countries, focusing on “those furthest left behind”. It aims to forecast electricity access to better guide policy and investment decisions using UNDP’s technical knowledge and access to IBM technologies.
In Malawi, an IBM collaboration with Heifer International is developing scalable and affordable digital solutions to equip farmers’ co-operatives with weather and crop yield forecasts.
Even natural disasters can be brought under the ambit of AI, said Assefa.
“Floods are a major climate hazard on the continent. To help countries be better prepared to address them, IBM’s flood risk modelling capabilities — that include AI models and AI-enhanced physical simulations — leverage geospatial data layers such as soil type, land use and elevation, along with rainfall data, to predict areas at risk of flooding using physical simulations.
“Through our partnership with (African Union agency) African Risk Capacity, we are using these AI-powered weather generator models to help African countries enhance their capability to plan, prepare and respond to extreme weather events and natural disasters.”
These initiatives appear to be only the beginning of a relentless cycle of innovation to address climate change. Assefa says IBM is not standing still.
“We’re using AI and hybrid cloud to accelerate discovery of climate mitigation and adaptation solutions. We’re improving carbon emission performance through optimisation and capture, and preparing enterprises for the impact of climate change.
“We believe our technology and expertise can help companies identify and better understand how their work impacts nature, with the steps they can take to mitigate their carbon footprint.”
That brings climate change full circle to the business world. It is not only the tech tools that count, but a willingness to use them.
• Goldstuck is founder of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of Gadget.co.za
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