Mongabay’s Bay Area Tropical Forest Network (BATFN) is holding an event in Palo Alto, CA on May 24th. Patagonia, the outdoor apparel and equipment company, is graciously hosting the event at the Palo Alto store from 6-8 pm.

The event will feature a conversation between Mongabay founder Rhett A. Butler and Greg Asner and Robin Martin of the Carnegie Airborne Observatory. Asner and Martin will talk about their use of airplane-mounted hyperspectral sensors to map rainforests in unprecedented detail as well as their latest initiative: an effort to create a comprehensive global reef monitoring system by tying field data collected during underwater surveys to Planet’s constellation of satellites.

Event description: Robin Martin and Greg Asner have pioneered the use of advanced LiDAR and spectrometer sensors to study tropical forest ecosystems, revealing information about biodiversity, habitat function and health, and ecosystem services. Their work has been widely profiled by the likes of Science Magazine, National Geographic, and hundreds of other outlets. They’ve now turned their system to coral reefs, which may support the development of the first comprehensive global reef monitoring system in an era when the world’s corals are deeply threatened by rising temperatures, growing carbon emissions, and unsustainable fishing and extraction. Rhett Butler, founder of conservation news web site Mongabay.com, will talk with Robin and Greg about how technology can help protect an conserve these critical ecosystems.

The event is free and open to the public, but space is limited, so please RVSP here if you’d like to attend.

Video footage