Digital Opportunities Topic Advisory Group
Digital technology is a key enabler in achieving net zero targets. The evolution of digital technology has enabled more insights and in many cases data in real-time, than ever before. Key disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and augmented and virtual reality have enabled complex data to be automatically analysed and also visualised to extract knowledge, previously only available to the elite professionals. A key challenge is how to best exploit such disruptive technologies within land use, climate change, energy, and business development to offer new opportunities in developing a strong evidence base for informing new policies and understanding their implementation. The Digital Opportunities TEG targets these emerging areas for review with the aim to feed into the hub WPs for developing clear guidance and a consensus view on opportunities and ways forward. This group has the focus of synthesising knowledge via experimentation and reviews, and in sharing the opportunities and challenges in utilising digital technologies.
Key challenges:
- Foster understanding of capabilities and mitigated risks for stakeholders in employing Artificial Intelligence, decision-support tools and emergent digital opportunities.
- Horizon gazing on how multiple disruptive technologies (digital and others) can address net-zero challenges from effective land-use, e.g. how AI can be used to optimise novel energy storage, e.g. sand batteries for storage of energy (as heat) when on-farm wind or solar produces excessive levels above rates of live consumption.
- Establish the challenges that are barriers to adoption or implementing policy.
- Scope foot-hill projects on the journey to collecting evidence/data in mitigating barriers to adoption; barriers from landowners, farmers, policy makers.
- Establish/curate datasets to encourage the ‘AI/digital’ community and SMEs in engaging with LUNZ challenges.
- Develop training material on how to interpret data, how to use tools for analysis, visualisation; business intelligence; add to the Net Zero literacy developments.
- Identifying candidates for secondments across multidisciplinary areas (e.g. digital, policy).
Key activities:
- The Digital opportunities TEG will initiate planning for the LUNZ Metadata for Machines Workshop which will establish metadata schema. This is a key activity as it defines how data should be collected, sufficiently labelled, from sensor to survey data.
- Open data challenges will be hosted to engage with the academic and SME digital communities and raise LUNZ awareness; e.g. encourage ‘digital’ ECRs to pivot to LUNZ challenges and assist in developing capacity and capability.
- Speed-dating between stakeholders to assist in matching challenges with digital solutions; scoping foothill projects.
- Practical training modules on applying business intelligence; via lunch and learn or seminar series.
- Podcasts on demystifying digital technologies for stakeholders; e.g. AI, explainable AI and ethics.
- Encouraging hub members to support data gathering to establish, to an extent, a data lake; support anonymised open-data challenges.
- Develop evidence reviews, position papers and technology roadmaps for LUNZ.

Professor Jim Harkin
Digital Opportunities
Related resources
View all resources
Lego Land Use at the ClimateXChange Climate Horizon 2040 Conference

The Dangers of Focussing!

Farming at a crossroads: how farmers are navigating the agricultural transition

Shaping the Future of Sustainable Farming in Wales

The Land Use Framework for England - How can it deliver for soils?

Observations from the farming front line. What can LUNZ learn from the Oxford Real Farming Conference?

UK Pension Reform, Investing in Nature and the Fall of the Berlin Wall – What can we Learn from History?

Eight Facts about Biochar with Professor Colin Snape and Dr Tom Bott

Land: The Hidden Unknown of Food Waste

Nine Facts about Enhanced Rock Weathering with Professor David Beerling

One thing I Wished Everyone Knew: Farmers are not Resistant to Change!

Major English Landowners & Net Zero: Challenges, Opportunities & Government Support

Land Use and Net Zero: Land Manager's Perspectives

About the Soil TAG

Community Update: In Conversation With the Soil TAG

How Science can Support Policy Making: Thoughts From a Chief Scientific Advisor

Ten Facts about Soil Biodiversity with Professor Richard Bardgett

Six Facts about UK Soil Policy with Ellen Fay

How the Four Nations Monitor their Soils - an Overview From the Soil TAG

The Role of Land Use Change in Meeting Net Zero

How to Prioritise Land Use in the Midst of a Climate and Nature Emergency

Eleven Facts about Soil Carbon with Professor Pete Smith

Greenhouse Gas Emissions & Conservation Grazing: What We Don’t Know

Introduction to the LUNZ Hub: Priorities and Objectives
Related news
View all news
Save the date: Resonance Tree circle plantings

Save the date: Webinar - Digital Technologies in Land-Use Net Zero

New Role: Research Associate Position in Green Finance & Land Use for Net Zero (University of Leicester)

Resonance: The Big Dig Day Take Outs

Save the date: Webinar - Farm planning horizons and the transition to net zero

Save the Date: Resonance ‘Uplands and Protected Landscapes’ event (Cumbria)

New Role: Technician in Ruminant Nutrition and Methane Mitigation (University of Reading)

LUNZ Hub Celebrates First Year of Groundbreaking Work Towards Net Zero Land Use Transition

Art, Discussions about Land Use, Peatland Restoration and Tree Planting Brought Together through Resonance

LUNZ Projects Announced

LUNZ Hub Newsletter 2: October 2024

First LUNZ Hub Big Tent Event: Key Themes

LUNZ Hub Consortium Meeting in Edinburgh: 10 Takeaways

Workshop on Enabling Transitions to Net Zero in Land Use – What Works?

Professor Heiko Balzter named top innovator for net zero

Interactive stakeholder meeting held by LUNZ Wales National Team in partnership with AICCF

LUNZ Hub Newsletter 1: June 2024

LUNZ Hub In-Kind Partners Workshop

Workshop on UK Land Use for Net Zero, Nature and People

Workshop Exploring Land Use Sector Knowledge Gaps in Green Finance

Examining Approaches to National Soil Monitoring Across the UK

Inaugural LUNZ Hub Full Consortium Meeting in Leicester
