Google Cloud inks sustainability agreement with Saudi government authorities

Google Cloud has collaborated with the Saudi Data & Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA), Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MEWA) and Climate Engine to launch the Earth Observation and Science Programme.

The programme will help address environmental, water and agricultural challenges resulting from climate change and paves the way for SDAIA and MEWA to lead climate action using artificial intelligence. The programme relies on earth observation technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to provide sustainability solutions that will address climate change risks, and enhance the protection of the environment in the kingdom and the region. It focuses on five key areas to create a more sustainable environment, and will address these areas in phases – environment preservation, pollution monitoring, sustainable agriculture, climate and nature protection, water and food security.

In the first phase of the programme, scientists from SDAIA and MEWA are relying on the earth observation data and climate insights provided through Google Earth Engine to help measure the impact of water on vegetation and agriculture at field, country and regional levels.

Meanwhile, SDAIA and MEWA in collaboration with Google Cloud and Climate Engine are launching the first sustainability research centre in the kingdom and the Middle East. The centre will use AI technologies to develop impactful use cases and knowledge transfer through a series of trainings and workshops. Google Cloud and Climate Engine are developing a platform for the centre with user interfaces that will showcase former environmental case studies in water and agriculture, and will enable scientists from SDAIA and MEWA to develop more use cases utilising data sets and AI tools via the platform.

The centre will also use AI technologies and solutions such as Google Climate Insights for Natural Resources, which leverages the scale and power of Google Earth Engine and Climate Engine, to study the long term impact of current agricultural practices on natural resources and water and food security.

Vice minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Mansour Almushaiti expressed his pleasure to partner with SDAIA and Google Cloud to deliver high-performance services. This will support the implementation of the digital transformation strategy, environmental initiatives and the ministry’s strategy to leverage artificial intelligence in all sectors, including services and initiatives to achieve sustainable development goals in Saudi.

Dr Abdullah Bin Sharaf Al Ghamdi, president of SDAIA said: “We are launching the Earth observation programme as part of the AI centre for environment, water and agriculture that will be led by the National Center for AI and MEWA. The programme will propel climate change action in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and beyond, with insights based on latest advancements in data and machine learning. Under Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia is becoming the place where the best of data-driven innovation and AI is made possible. We partnered with Google Cloud as the trusted technology partner for the programme, due to its most innovative and cutting edge technologies that leverage AI”.

“We are at a time where sustainability and climate action are at the top of many governments’ agendas,” said Elie Tabchouri, head of Public Sector, Middle East, Turkey and Africa at Google Cloud. “The scientific research around climate change is highly data-intensive and increasingly cloud-based. Google Cloud’s sustainability solutions can help governments better understand climate risk, reporting and help communicate environmental impact authentically. We are optimistic that our collaboration with SDAIA will encourage more organisations to leverage technology in their climate action roadmap”.

The Earth Observation and Science Programme leverages Google Earth Engine, a planetary scale platform for earth science data and analysis, and will support NCAI and MEWA in assessing climate-related risks and increasing climate resilience by applying technology to key climate challenges in the Kingdom.

Access to this type of data will help facilitate identifying the current impact of water on agriculture productivity, drought monitoring, water usage, soil moisture, evaporation and precipitation in the Kingdom. NCAI and MEWA will leverage these insights to showcase to planners and policy makers the current environmental status in the Kingdom, highlighting historical trends and potential risks on the climate and the economy.

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