Sass Klaassen and Driessen: Sensing Movements of Trees and Snails

In this Smart Forests Radio episode, we are in conversation with tree-ring researcher Ute Sass Klaassen at Van Hall Larenstein and Wageningen University & Research, and multi-species geographer Clemens Driessen at Wageningen University & Research. Their research illustrates different more-than-human approaches to engaging with seemingly slower entities like trees and snails by using digital technology. Ute discusses how sensors enable the analysis of the interaction between tree vitality and climate change, such as rate of growth and water transport in stems. To obtain a fuller picture of how trees react to extreme climate events, she explores ways to combine remotely sensed data from drones and satellites with data from tree sensors. Clemens shares an artistic design research project, Unwhorl, developed in collaboration with Mari Bastashevski and Sam Lavinge, which visualises the traces snails leave as they interact with an iPad.

Interviewer: Michelle Westerlaken

Producer: Harry Murdoch

For more on Tweeting Trees and tree-ring research by DendroLab, head to Smart Forests Atlas

Image: Wageningen University & Research, https://www.wur.nl