Danish researcher Ida Theilade has been granted the University of Copenhagen’s Innovation Award 2018 for a Smartphone app that helps preventing illegal logging in the Prey Lang Forest in Cambodia.
Senior Researcher at the Section for Global Development at the University of Copenhagen, Ida Theilade, is granted the award for the project ‘It’s Our Forest Too’ that aims to preserve forest resources in the forest Prey Lang Forest in Cambodia.
The project includes the app “Prey Lang App”, that makes it easy for local forest patrols in Cambodia to geo-reference, document, and upload data about forest resources and illegal logging.
Furthermore, the project also includes a social media campaign that has led to broad media coverage of the situation in the forest.
“The Committee was impressed with the initiative, “It’s Our Forest Too”. The initiative has a multidisciplinary approach and a large student involvement from a variety of countries. The project has demonstrated important social impact on a local level in Cambodia through an open and innovative use of the new technology and social media,” the Award Committee argued.
Ida Theilade will receive the award on Friday 16 November 2018.
The Prey Lang Forest houses at least 27 endangered animal and 20 endangered plant species, but suffers badly from illegal logging.
Great