Episode Description:
In this episode of Location Matters, host Nick Chai sits down with Aditi Kale, who works on sustainability strategy for Google's consumer electronics division and its Nature & Biodiversity pillar. Aditi walks us through a case study from the industrial Red River Delta area of northern Vietnam, developed alongside NGIS's TraceMark™ platform, which shows that factories and industrial sites can be genuine, thriving habitats for local wildlife.
A note on the regulations: At around 6:30–7:30 we refer to the EU regulations discussed as having been pushed back. To clarify: those delays apply to the CSRD and CSDDD. The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) has not been pushed out and remains on its current timeline.
From the EU's evolving deforestation and sustainability regulations, to the species ecologists have found living at “purely industrial” sites, to simple, low-cost “no regrets” actions any company can take today, this conversation makes the case that protecting biodiversity and running a resilient, cost-effective supply chain can go hand in hand.
Key Topics Covered:
- [0:56] Meet Aditi Kale and the Red River Delta case study
- [1:05] Aditi's path to sustainability, from national security to Google's Nature & Biodiversity team
- [2:17] How the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) sparked Google's partnership with NGIS on TraceMark™
- [5:04] EUDR, CSRD, and the growing “alphabet soup” of EU sustainability regulation
- [7:22] Why getting started is easier than most businesses expect (Correction: the delays discussed here apply to CSRD/CSDDD. EUDR has not been pushed back.)
- [10:30] Reframing biodiversity as supply chain risk management
- [12:12] How TraceMark’s geospatial data pairs with on-the-ground species monitoring
- [13:52] Nature at work: the impact of green landscaping on factory worker wellbeing
- [16:31] Second-order wins: pollinators, local farmers, and surrounding communities
- [17:01] The proof: over a decade of native landscaping data from Google's own campuses
- [19:54] How industrial sites become accidental habitats, from marine jetties to factory floors
- [21:10] Getting started with TraceMark™, its new API, and licensing options for suppliers
- [22:11] “No regrets” actions: simple, low-cost wins any company can implement today
- [23:10] A new, free ecological-planning tool, and why it works for backyards too
- [25:55] Inside the biodiversity monitoring manual: affordable, privacy-first acoustic and eDNA sensors
- [28:25] Aditi's closing message: move past the doom and gloom, and take small action
Resources Mentioned:
- TraceMark™, NGIS's geospatial sustainable sourcing platform, built on Google Cloud
- NGIS
- Google's Biodiversity White Paper: the Red River Delta, Vietnam case study referenced throughout the episode
- Google's Biodiversity Monitoring Manual: an overview of affordable, privacy-centred monitoring devices (including passive acoustic and eDNA sampling)
- Second Nature Ecology and Design, ecology partner on the case study
- EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR)
- Google Earth Engine
About the Guest: Aditi Kale leads sustainability strategy for Google's consumer electronics division, covering environmental and social responsibility for products and platforms including Pixel, Nest, Android OS, Chrome OS, Google Play, and Google Photos. She leads Google's Nature & Biodiversity pillar within its supply chain, working with partners like NGIS and Second Nature Ecology and Design to bring the same native-landscaping approach used at Google's own campuses to manufacturing sites around the world. Aditi has been at Google for over 15 years across a range of teams, and previously worked in the national security sector.
Know someone working in sustainability, supply chain, or geospatial technology? Share this episode with them.
