The Annual Invasive Species Forum, hosted by the Invasive Species Centre, is a key event. It brings together professionals, researchers, organizations, and policymakers dedicated to combating invasive species in Canada. This forum provides a vital platform for sharing innovative solutions, best practices, and the latest research focused on preventing and managing invasive species that threaten Canada's environment, economy, and society.
The 2025 edition of the event was held virtually, making it accessible to a wider audience and allowing for the participation of experts from across the country. A key highlight of the Forum is the Innovation Award, recognizing projects that transform creative ideas into impactful solutions for invasive species prevention and management.
The 2025 Innovation Award: Identifying European Water Chestnuts through AI and Aerial Imaging
We are thrilled to announce that Saiwa and Ducks Unlimited Canada received the prestigious 2025 Innovation Award for their client project: "Identifying European Water Chestnuts through Machine Learning Using Aerial Image Processing from Drones."
This collaborative project addresses the growing concern of European water chestnut, an invasive aquatic plant that disrupts ecosystems, limits biodiversity, and affects water recreation. By combining drone technology for aerial image collection and machine learning algorithms for precise identification, the project offers an advanced solution for early detection and rapid response.
The AI-powered system developed by Saiwa processes drone imagery to automatically detect new occurrences of European water chestnut. The tool provides exact coordinates for plant locations, significantly reducing the number of field days required for data collection. Initial results have demonstrated that this approach is not only effective for European water chestnut but is also transferable to the detection of other invasive species, opening new frontiers in environmental monitoring.
Award Announcement at the Forum
During the virtual event, the Innovation Award category recognized projects that brought transformative ideas into practice with meaningful outcomes. The award announcement included: “The winners of the Innovation Award have been the driving force behind a new tool that uses drone image collection and AI training to automate the detection of European water chestnut. This approach reduces fieldwork requirements and has the potential to be applied to other invasive species, enhancing early detection and rapid response efforts across Canada.”
Peyman Saidi of Saiwa and Mallory Carpenter of Ducks Unlimited Canada accepted the award, expressing their gratitude: “At Saiwa, our mission is to integrate AI to solve complex environmental challenges. Innovation thrives on interdisciplinary collaboration, and this award is a testament to that.”
Mallory Carpenter also extended appreciation to the broader team, including Matt Bolding from Ducks Unlimited Canada and Kyle Borrowman from Nature Conservancy, whose contributions were pivotal to the project's success.
Saiwa’s Role in Environmental Stewardship
Saiwa is committed to leveraging artificial intelligence to tackle complex environmental challenges. With a focus on precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, and sustainable land management, Saiwa’s AI-powered platforms (Sairone) enable early detection, efficient monitoring, and data-driven decision-making. Our innovative solutions empower organizations to protect ecosystems while optimizing resources and reducing operational costs.
