Earth Observation for Natural Capital Investment: Treeconomy & Octopus Investments Partner, Awarded Funding from the UK Space Agency
Leveraging satellite-based analytics to streamline investment in nature-based carbon projects
Company News
Science & Tech
Aug 28, 2024
Rob Godfrey
Treeconomy and Octopus can today announce the formation of a new partnership, together having signed an MOU and been awarded an “Unlocking Space for Business” grant from the UK Space Agency.
Octopus Investments, part of the Octopus Group, is a B Corp-certified investment manager. With £13.5B AUM, Octopus Investments backs the people, ideas, and industries poised to make a global impact.
Octopus Investments recently announced the launch of its natural capital strategy, aiming to generate high-integrity carbon removal credits through investment in conservation, nature restoration, and sustainable land management. The team is committed to embracing technology to achieve efficiency and impact for the new strategy, partnering with Treeconomy to embed a data-driven approach to investing in nature .
The Unlocking Space for Business programme is delivered by the UK Space Agency to foster innovation by combining satellite data and services with other data sources and technology, to drive benefits for businesses in financial services and transport & logistics, as well as the wider UK economy.
The project aims to pilot and incorporate satellite-based analytics and data tools to inform and enhance Octopus’s investment decisions in nature-based carbon projects. A number of satellite-based Earth observation data sources, together with AI and drone-derived data, will be used to assess specific metrics within nature restoration projects. Building upon Treeconomy’s Sherwood platform and core dMRV offerings, the project will work to develop, refine, and embed the use of earth observation into Octopus’s standard project due diligence, evaluation, and reporting processes.
Working together, Treeconomy and Octopus aim to support more streamlined, confident, and impactful allocation of private finance towards high-quality nature restoration efforts across carbon and natural capital markets. Treeconomy’s capabilities will serve to increase the speed, efficiency, and transparency with which high quality nature restoration projects are financed, and inform best practices and frameworks within the broader natural capital investment space globally.
Ultimately, the project will serve as a precedent for conducting cost-effective due diligence for nature-based projects, in turn instilling confidence in the market and increasing private capital flows to address the $700B annual global nature funding gap. In embracing Treeconomy’s innovative technology, Octopus aims to set the bar of best practice for nature investment.
Alex Godfrey, Investment Director at Octopus Investments:
“We’re really excited about this project, and with the help of a rising star in Treeconomy, we will be able to help streamline investment into our natural capital projects. By integrating earth observation technology into the due diligence process, we will gain unique insights that will allow our strategy to become increasingly robust and data driven. We strongly believe that satellite-based insight, pioneered in the UK, can bring vital speed, trust, traceability, and transparency that has historically been missing from carbon markets.”
Robert Godfrey, Co-Founder at Treeconomy:
“We’re delighted to be collaborating with Octopus Investments in this first-of-a-kind partnership that combines our organisations’ respective strengths in finance, technology, and ecology. With a shared commitment to innovation and impact, Octopus is an ideal partner with which to propel a nascent market in natural capital. We are thankful to the UK Space Agency for supercharging our efforts with their funding, which will allow us to embed space technology into Octopus’s natural capital due diligence process.
That UKSA awarded our proposal the highest overall score is a valuable recognition of the importance of this partnership and what we aim to achieve together. The planet can’t wait and neither can we: we’re all looking forward to getting started.”
Dr Craig Brown, Investment Director at the UK Space Agency:
“We’re looking forward to working with Octopus and Treeconomy on this project, which will trial how satellite data can help with the allocation of private finance towards nature and conservation efforts. This is a great example of how satellite data can be used to grow our green economy.
The Unlocking Space for Business grants and contracts are just some of the ways the UK Space Agency is kickstarting growth and creating high quality jobs to position the UK as a leading space economy. It’s vital we help tackle barriers facing organisations that have not traditionally used satellite data or services, or considered how space can benefit their bottom line.”
Serving project developers, nature investors, and corporate carbon buyers, Treeconomy exists at the nexus of technology, ecology, and finance to combat climate change, enhance biodiversity, and improve rural livelihoods.
Interested in collaborating?
Reach out to us via email at hello@treeconomy.co.
