The Promise of Digitalisation : Case study: social impact of a digital app for community-based deforestation monitoring in the Peruvian Amazon

Summary

Introducing new digital technologies in 'low-tech' environments can affect the dynamics between stakeholders, and the distribution of costs and benefits among them. As part of Peruvian forest conservation activities, forest monitoring (vigilance) committees have been formed, consisting of local community members who are responsible for patrolling the forest, verifying deforestation alerts, and reporting. In recent years, several government agencies and NGOs involved in forest conservation have started to use digital technologies for forest monitoring, such as smartphone apps and drones. The social impacts of such digital technologies are not well understood. A tool has been developed to assess the social impact of a digital innovation, and to serve as an entry point for discussion between stakeholders.