Lemu, founded in 2018, is a data-driven; digital platform that brings together a global community that’s committed to acting for the benefit of nature, including environmental enthusiasts and stewards. We’re dedicated to conserving the world’s ecosystems and to fight the environmental crisis by sharing a collective intelligence database.
We’re inspired by nature and driven by science. The team is curious, action-oriented and a bit nerdy – coming from diverse backgrounds. We’re unified to improve the world’s terrestrial ecosystems by bringing nature online.
How did you come up with the idea for the company?
For most sustainability is a trending topic, for me it’s a passion. We have to think towards the future preservation of our planet. Lemu was founded on this principle. People are visual learners and I wanted to give them a look into what’s happening around the world to our rainforests. Sometimes it’s difficult to understand something if you don’t see it happening.
So Lemu was born as a biosphere atlas that uses geospatial data sources and ethical AI to help understand the value of the nature-based solutions that our ecosystems generate.
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What do you think makes this company unique?
Since we support and encourage collective intelligence, we not only rely on our data, but also crowdsourced, open, and third-party data. Next to this, we combine satellite data and hyperspectral imagery to produce a collection of maps, geospatial information, data layers and 3D models of terrestrial ecosystems.
Part of what we do relies on pilot test technologies for environmental conservation through in-situ data, such as environmental DNA to learn about the biodiversity and health of a habitat’s life forms. We also incorporate LiDAR remote sensing technology to scan hundreds of hectares of rainforest, at very high resolution, from aircraft and drones to understand ecosystem architecture, biomass and topography.
How has the company evolved over the last couple of years?
We’ve taken Lemu from being a satellite company to one that provides technological solutions for nature’s problems. We’ve hit a milestone of launching the first great product of the venture – the Atlas of the Biosphere, a geospatial platform, similar to Google Maps, which shows what species, parks and environmental problems are around you – offering the possibility of adopting ecosystems to help protect them.
What can we hope to see from Lemu in the future?
By the end of 2022, we’re aiming to grow a community of active and engaged Lemurs via our app. When we launch the app to the general public, we want to become more than just pioneers working on behalf of nature! We’re looking to load our communication platforms with as much educational information about conservation as possible.
Additionally, in 2023, we’ll be launching our first – very own – nanosatellite, Lemu Nge (aka “Eye of the Forest”) dedicated to biodiversity observation. With this, we will be able to observe biodiversity from another perspective, adding more data to what already exists. There are in fact several solutions regarding the climate crisis – data coupled with ethical technology is one of them.