Data science for remote sensing and tree modelling

We're enabling more robust, data-driven decision-making in green city spaces, by studying the management of trees and their impact on the urban environment.

Managing trees and their socio-economic impacts in the urban environment is the focus of a three-year MBIE-funded project. Our team is working with researchers across Aotearoa and Singapore to enable more robust, data-driven decision making for green urban spaces.

Creating a health living environment through biodiversity

MBIE is funding a New Zealand and Singaporean collaborative research project aimed towards the sustenance and strengthening of biodiversity in order to provide a healthy living environment.

Management of green spaces within urban areas and forestry requires attentive planning and ongoing evaluation. A proof-of-concept methodology will integrate the researcher’s combined expertise in data science, remote sensing, and 3D modelling to provide more robust analysis about particular tree species, and how they interact with their environment.

Find out more about this project on the Manaaki Whenua—Landcare Research website.

Using data science to improve planning and decision making

Both high and low resolution remote-sensing data will be used, enabling faster and automatic tree species recognition and classification. Understanding and collecting better data, and the socio-economic impacts of different types of trees in urban spaces, will allow for better planning and decision making.

The project will also provide the foundation for ongoing research collaborations using data science for analysis for modelling and analysis.

New Zealand–Singapore partnership

This is one of eight projects under a broader, government-level partnership between New Zealand and Singapore. MBIE has established jointly funded Data Science Research Programme with the Singapore Data Science Consortium (SDSC) on behalf of the National Research Foundation of Singapore.

Data science is a rapidly growing field that uses a range of tools to manipulate real-time data and enable better decision making and strategic planning. The insights gained using data science tools such as AI, computer programming, statistical analysis, and machine learning can produce models giving recommended actions to provide better outcomes.