CASE STUDY 3 Radiant Earth’s “Fields of the World” Articulating the value proposition The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) has created an urgent need for reliable information on global agricultural production to confirm that products are not contributing to deforestation. While EO data may not be universally applicable for monitoring all agricultural activities, it has proven invaluable in creating a scalable and trustworthy data product that would otherwise be unaffordable. Bolstering strategic priorities To address this need, Radiant Earth set out to accelerate regulatory compliance by improving access to global field data, while leveraging open-source data instead of proprietary data or algorithms so that regulatory implications do not adversely affect farmers’ livelihoods or agricultural sectors. Charting the execution strategy This initiative has been bolstered by the formation of a consortium led by Radiant Earth and the Taylor Geospatial Engine, involving key stakeholders such as Bayer, Varda.ag, Microsoft, Planet, Arizona State University, Washington University in St. Louis and the World Resources Institute. This collaborative effort, characterized as a “focused research organization”13 has been instrumental in establishing shared metadata standards, open-source code and open data, thereby facilitating rapid progress and broad participation. A significant milestone achieved by the consortium is the creation of a metadata specification, fiboa (field boundaries for agriculture),14 which enhances the interoperability of field boundary data. Additionally, the publication of methodologies, models and data through the Fields of the World project15 has laid the groundwork for a foundational dataset, promoting further advancements in the application of EO data and ML in agriculture. It is designed to support the training of diverse models that can identify field boundaries in different geographical contexts. The Fields of the World data comprises 1.6 million parcel boundaries and over 70,000 samples spanning 27 countries across four continents and is available for anyone to use.16 The collaborative efforts and strategic initiatives undertaken by this consortium have not only addressed regulatory needs but also paved the way for a more sustainable and data- driven approach to global agricultural practices. As illustrated, EO presents opportunities across every aspect of an organization’s mission and can deliver a variety of benefits that align with various executives’ goals. And although each of these executives has their priorities and related functional targets, their roles and responsibilities often overlap and blend. A strategy executive should account for operational risks when determining a long-term vision, just as a sustainability executive should understand drivers for growth in the context of their own initiatives. To navigate these cross-cutting opportunities, EO champions can consider multiple approaches for the execution of an EO solution, dependent on the specific needs of each organization. The Executive’s Playbook on Earth Observation: Strategic Insights for a Changing Planet 20

The Executive%E2%80%99s Playbook on Earth Observation