SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGIES
Three pillars for progress The report identifies three critical areas requiring investment to realise AI’ s potential for nature conservation.
First, it calls for significant expansion of primary biodiversity data collection globally, alongside data infrastructure for open access sharing through initiatives such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
Second, it emphasises developing open and transparent AI systems that can quickly fill critical information gaps in species and ecosystem monitoring, supporting better policy, enforcement and financing.
Third, it stresses capacity and knowledge sharing to ensure practitioners can benefit from existing AI capabilities and that developers incorporate feedback from those working in conservation.
“ People spend a lot of time trying to sell models [ but ] models are only as good as the data,” reflects Sara Beery, Assistant Professor of AI and Decision- Making at MIT.
“ Data is never a bad investment, and data that can be open-sourced and have mutual and diverse downstream uses; that is the no-regret investment.”
86 February 2026