| NSF Org: |
ITE Innovation and Technology Ecosystems |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | September 20, 2021 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | September 20, 2021 |
| Award Number: | 2137882 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Aurali Dade
adade@nsf.gov (703)292-7468 ITE Innovation and Technology Ecosystems TIP Dir for Tech, Innovation, & Partnerships |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2021 |
| End Date: | September 30, 2022 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $747,606.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $747,606.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
266 WOODS HOLE RD WOODS HOLE MA US 02543-1535 (508)289-3542 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
266 Woods Hole Rd Woods Hole MA US 02543-1535 |
| Primary Place of Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | Convergence Accelerator Resrch |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): | |
| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.083 |
ABSTRACT
OIA - 2137882 NSF Convergence Accelerator Track E: A Globally Coordinated, Universally-Accessible Digital Twin Network for the Coral Reef Blue EconomyThis project proposes to develop a ?digital twin? technology to improve stewardship of coral reef ecosystems. Digital twins are virtual replicas and the use of this technology is growing in many sectors, providing opportunities to collaborate virtually, visualize entire systems, intake sensor data and update system status in real time, design what-if scenarios, predict results of proposed interventions, and create strategies to improve the real-world features that the twin represents virtually. This technology has not yet been applied to analysis and stewardship of coral reefs but has the potential to facilitate the collaboration among diverse interest groups that is needed to preserve these crucial ecosystems. The team has identified three critical gaps that limit the utility of scientific knowledge in the management, conservation, and restoration of coral reef ecosystems which they are confident can be addressed by the digital twin approach: i) lack of a whole systems approach, ii) absence of a global platform for data integration, analysis and visualization, and iii) lack of universal access to data and knowledge, which in turn prohibits sharing and collaboration. The end goal of the effort is a global-scale, interconnected network of digital reefs with the potential to transform the management, conservation, restoration, and sustainable harvest of coral ecosystems for the 21st century blue economy.
Coral reef ecosystems play a central role in the global blue economy. In the US, coral reefs contribute billions of dollars to the blue economy each year, create jobs, and protect coastal infrastructure. However, coral reefs everywhere are declining at a pace and scale unprecedented in human history. This project incorporates valuable diversity and expertise, including includes the University of Guam, an accredited Asian American, native American, Pacific Islander-serving institution; the Marshall Islands Conservation Society (MICS), with strong stakeholder interests in coral reef sustainability; and the Nature Conservancy, whose coral reef program is established in over thirty countries around the world. All products generated as part of this research will be made publicly available via a project-specific website and existing portals as well as other media such as film, gamification, and collaborations with large public aquariums in the US. This strong network will help ensure co-development with a broad range of stakeholders and global utilization of the tools developed.
The team will develop the prototype Coral Reef digital twin on Palmyra Atoll, a US territory in the Pacific, and then during Phase 2 will expand the digital twin model to priority sites identified by collaborators from federal agencies and conservation organizations. The 3-dimensional virtual replica of a living reef will facilitate the integration, analysis and accessibility of a diversity of geological, physical, chemical, biological and socio-economic data and models from anywhere in the world. The data will be incorporated into a holistic representation of the living reef that can be visualized in 3-D, analyzed at any point in space and time, and simulated under different, future scenarios. Connection between the physical reef and its digital replica, via sensors, robotics and satellites, will allow the digital twin to receive and integrate updates on coral reef status in near-real time, providing critical information to managers, restoration practitioners, and stakeholders, including tourism operators, fishermen and coastal communities.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Coral reefs support the livelihoods of 1 billion people globally, and hundreds of thousands of jobs in the United States alone. Yet these valuable ecosystems are threatened by climate change, fueling an urgent, world-wide push for novel ways to ensure their survival. Here, a unique team of ocean scientists, software engineers, conservation organizations and stakeholders, drawing on use inspired research, laid the groundwork for the first Coral Reef Digital Twin, a novel software platform delivering state-of-the-art scientific data to decision-makers everywhere, as intuitive, immersive, interactive 4-dimensional visualizations. Digital Reefs? empowers users to test the efficacy of various management scenarios before they are enacted, to easily share visualizations with stakeholders and investors, and to continually update, upload and geo-locate new information into each digital reef twin.
Academic scientists, post-doctoral researchers and graduate students gained critical new skills in convergence research, prototype development, logo design, marketing, communication and storytelling, pitching and use inspired research while partners in the technology industry found unique opportunities in collaborating with scientists and ocean conservationists to develop solutions to environmental challenges. A low-fidelity prototype was developed, based on the hydrodynamic model of Palmyra Atoll, a US coral reef territory in the central Pacific, managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW). Scenarios based on actual USFW management decisions for Palmyra were developed and tested in the prototype and shared with USFW personnel. A Digital Reefs? logo and tagline was designed and copyrighted, and a website was established.
Digital Reefs? received enthusiastic support and valuable input from a wide range of potential users including NOAA?s Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Office, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Academy for Marine Resources in Taiwan and The Nature Conservancy. Digital Reefs? also garnered substantial media attention, featuring in Curiosity Stream?s ?Reefs of Hope? and The Monocle Companions ?50 Essays for a Brighter Future?. Finally, Digital Reefs? was nominated to Fast Companies? annual list of World Changing Ideas (outcome pending).
Last Modified: 03/09/2023
Modified by: Anne Cohen
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The project logo and tagline developed by the teamKatherine Joyce WHOICopyrightedAnne CohenDigital Reefs Logo and Tagline -
One pager developed for the projectAnne Cohen WHOICopyrightedAnne CohenDigital Reefs Flyer -
Digital Reefs team gather for first in person workshop after launching the project during COVIDJoe PollockCopyrightedAnne CohenDigital Reefs Team
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