Story | 09 May, 2022

New report released on Governance of High Seas Ecosystems: Big Data & AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) analytics and data visualization technologies can help practitioners to access, utilize and disseminate information in a strategic and cost effective way for management and conservation in remote areas.  The new report reviews the existing state-of-the-art on remote sensing, data services and systems, including hybrid and cloud-based platforms, and use of machine learning.

content hero image

Sargassum in blue water

Photo: Philippe Rouja

Big data and AI provide significant opportunities for high seas governance – vast and varied datasets can be brought together through Big Data infrastructure, data sharing, and standardisation, and understood at scale using machine learning and artificial intelligence. The outputs of this, from trends to deep models of ocean ecosystem evolution, can form the evidence base to justify balanced, cost-effective, conservation measures and policy. The ubiquity of a Big Data and AI approach will especially benefit small organisations (such as the Sargasso Sea Commission) and SIDS, who have limited resources for traditional ecosystem analysis. The underpinning technology is today's 'art of the possible'; however, the prevailing challenge is effective data access, making sharing and standardisation a priority.

The report was the fruit of a collaboration between IUCN, the Sargasso Sea Commission and NLA International Ltd with financial support from the Swedish Ministry of Environment.