Monitoring Sustainability of Tree Planting and Biodiversity Net Gain Compliance as Key Drivers to Net Zero Targets - A human and planet-centred design approach to developing new digital tools

为了实现我们雄心勃勃但非常必要的净零目标，有两件事是最重要的(我们认为它们经常被忽视)：我们必须a)保护、增加和维持生物多样性，以及b)确保我们的树木(成熟的和新种植的)真正存活下来。从2023年11月起，每一份提交给英格兰地方当局的规划许可申请都将被要求证明该项目将创造至少10%的生物多样性净收益(BNG)。他们还必须提交一份计划，以确保BNG的增长将持续至少30年。是否有必要的工具来证明这一点？地方当局和开发商将如何评估提案？他们将如何提议监督这些计划的成功？地方当局将如何应对处理申请的额外负担？他们有这样做的准备吗？公众有没有办法追究利益相关者的责任？迫切需要以人为中心、易于使用的数字工具来帮助我们测量和监控生物多样性--尤其是我们的树木和树篱对BNG的贡献。此外，除了前所未有的悬而未决的BNG命令所产生的需求之外，我们需要公共可访问的数字工具来能够监控种植在英国各地公共空间的树木的存活情况。每年，新种植的树木数量惊人，根本无法存活。他们不仅种植方法不正确，缺乏种植后护理，而且存活率的公共透明度也很低。我们的项目还试图确切地了解什么工具可以为树木保护和种植带来清晰度和责任感--在有价值的追求树木生存、生物多样性净收益和最终实现我们雄心勃勃的净零目标的过程中。我们将平衡人和以地球为中心的设计方法，并在生态、生物多样性和规划程序领域聘请专家顾问团队。我们将寻求了解生物多样性如何直接影响净零目标。我们将了解地方当局的工作流程和痛点。我们将听取开发商、环保官员和土地所有者的意见，了解他们需要什么工具，以及这些工具应该如何工作。然后，使用设计思维原则，我们将构建数字解决方案的原型，帮助我们克服这些尚不为人所知的障碍。我们将向利益相关者提供工具，帮助他们实现净零。我们将支持所有利益相关者中最脆弱的人：我们的树木。

To achieve our ambitious but very necessary Net Zero targets, there are two matters that are paramount (and we think they're often overlooked): we must a) protect, increase and sustain biodiversity and b) ensure that our trees (mature and newly planted) actually survive.From November 2023, every planning permission application submitted to local authorities in England will be required to demonstrate that the project will create a Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) of at least 10%. They will also have to submit a plan to ensure that that BNG increase will be sustained for at least 30 years.Do the necessary tools exist to evidence that? How will local authorities and developers appraise proposals? How will they propose to monitor the success of the plans? How will local authorities cope with the extra burden of processing applications? Are they equipped to do so? Are there ways for the public to hold stakeholders accountable? There is an urgent need for people-centered, easy-to-use digital tools that help us measure and monitor biodiversity -- and _particularly_ the contribution of our trees and hedgerows to BNG.Also, quite apart from the needs arising from pending BNG mandates, like never before, we _need_ public-accessible digital tools to be able to monitor the survival of trees that are planted in our public spaces across the UK. Every year, an astonishing number of newly planted trees simply do not survive. Not only do they suffer from incorrect planting approaches and lack of after-planting care, there is also very little public transparency on survival rates.Our project also sets out to understand exactly what tools might bring clarity and accountability to tree preservation and planting -- in the worthy pursuit of tree survival, Biodiversity Net Gain and ultimately towards achieving our ambitious Net Zero targets.We'll balance people and planet-centred design approaches and engage an advisory team of experts in the fields of ecology, biodiversity and planning procedures. We'll seek to understand how biodiversity directly affects Net Zero targets. We'll learn about local authority workflows and pain points. We'll listen to developers, conservation officers and landowners to learn what tools they need and how they should work. Then, using design thinking principles, we'll prototype digital solutions that help us overcome these as-yet poorly understood obstacles. We'll provide tools to stakeholders to help in the race towards Net Zero. And we'll champion the most vulnerable stakeholders of all: our trees.