Earth Genome
Model & Strategy
Earth Genome improves decisions made by corporations, investors, and governments by enabling them to envision solutions that fully account for the value of nature (water, climate, air, and biodiversity). They utilize data, science, and visualization tools to provide actionable insights relevant to their clients and their bottom line. To date, Earth Genome has developed over 30 breakthrough environmental tools that are impacting 35,000 lives.
The Problem
Everyone in the world depends on nature to provide the conditions for a decent, healthy, and secure life. However, decisions about natural resource use by public institutions and private enterprises rarely account for the actual value of such ecosystem services and “natural capital.” The resulting environmental costs are borne by other parties or society at large. Never has this miscalculation been more perilous than now. The accumulation of negative externalities undermines global food security, human health, and other critical natural resources while disproportionately shifting the burden of climate impact to developing economies.
The consequences are global and systemic. According to the World Economic Forum, half of the 10 most serious global risks connect to the environment and declining natural systems. These risks include climate action failure, extreme weather events, and natural resource crises. Today, billions of people face energy and water poverty, along with the resulting environmental justice issues. Society has developed sophisticated data analytic capabilities for all other sectors, yet we lack the ability to translate the massive available environmental data into actionable insights for responsible decision-making.
The Solution
Earth Genome integrates innovative earth data, science, and visualization to create breakthrough tools for corporations, governments, and investors. Earth Genome is creating a technology solutions platform with a modular suite of easy-to-use, map-based decision-making tools designed for end-users. These tools are supported by localized scientific models and curated data on natural resources. Earth Genome focuses on applying “big data” toward signature global issues facing people and the planet. Their focus is driving better decision-making on water, food, and climate-related issues and overall environmental data analytics via satellite imagery and earth observation.
Earth Genome’s data, science, visualization, and tools have been repeatedly deployed across multiple impact areas. They have developed world-leading expertise in subject matter areas (e.g., water) and groundbreaking technology solutions (e.g., AI/machine learning analytics on imagery). Earth Genome is working to exponentially lower the cost and time needed for corporations and governments to access environmental data, allowing them to make real-time decisions that benefit people and the planet.
Co-Founder Steve McCormick has dedicated his career to environmental conservation. After many years at The Nature Conservancy, he realized that his actions to date had been essential, but lacked the cumulative effect that was needed. Too often the pressing needs of people were felt to be at odds with those of the environment. What was needed was greater understanding and insight into this tradeoff. While at The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Steve tested and refined this theory and shifted the Foundation’s efforts toward sustainability.
Meanwhile, co-founder Glen Low was engaged with some of the world’s largest corporations creating breakthrough solutions on environmental sustainability. While at Blu Skye, Glen worked with some of the most innovative Fortune 100 companies on optimizing their actions related to food, energy, climate, waste, water and human well-being. He saw firsthand the tremendous impacts that major corporations have on the planet and the need to create more sustainable outcomes.
Both Steve and Glen are now working to use the Earth Genome to fundamentally inform and change influential market decisions to better align our economic system with the planet’s ecological system.
Steve is the former CEO and President of The Nature Conservancy. He is also the former President of The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
Glen is a former Principal at both Bain & Company and Blu Skye. He is also a frequent lecturer at U.C. Berkeley, where he has taught corporate sustainability at the Executive Education, MBA, and undergraduate levels.
IMPACT
Earth Genome’s tools have influenced drought response and water resilience for leading corporations and governments.
In California, Earth Genome completed a data strategy for drinking water and is working on multiple sophisticated climate change/watershed studies. They also facilitate California’s drought task force.
Earth Genome’s earth observation work includes providing the technical back-end for Climate TRACE (led by Al Gore) and tools such as Amazon Mining Watch and Global Plastics Watch. They recently launched the alpha of Earth Index.
