IDEAL is a Franco-Brazilian research network formed by 11 institutions and about 50 researchers working with local communities to face the common challenge of transforming socially vulnerable and environmentally degraded territories into sustainable and inclusive bioencomies. We combine cutting-edge tools in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence with participatory reserach methods to foster adaptive transformation patwhays in territories of the Brazilian Northeast (Paraíba, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte e Pernambuco). In doing so, we adopt an agroecological perspective as the cornerstone of projects facing the common challenge of shaping integrative strategies for biodiversity restoration, social inclusion and bioeconomic development.

Besides local projects of adaptive transformation in our four study cases, the IDEAL IJL is developing data synthesis tools supporting governance at multiple scales, inclusing dashboard and interactive maps. We also have a focus on environmental education, which we see as one of the most structuring actions towards socio-ecological resilience, in the long-term.

Objetives of the International Joint Laboratory IDEAL:

Promote transdisciplinary research, knowledge synthesis, and applications linking concepts, methods, and data in agroecology, biodiversity, hydrology, and society. To do so, we use Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Science (DS) to diagnose the socio-ecological conditions of territories based on large datasets. These diagnoses are used for the co-construction of models of adaptive transformation towards sustainable agroecological landscapes in northeastern Brazil.

Offer academic training and scientific exchanges in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science programs applied to Sustainability, with seminars, thematic schools, and training via ITAN, the IDEAL Transformative Adaptation Network that will connect institutions and territories facing similar challenges. The training activities of DATAPB are part of ITAN – the IDEAL Transformative Adaptation Network.

Strengthen the international visibility of Brazilian teams with high-level publications, open-source demonstrators, and FAIR data supporting different actors, including public managers, educators, community leaders, and entrepreneurs,  thus supporting territories in the process of socioecological transition.