Beyond paper forms — built for the forest.

Approach

A clear, community-friendly path to modernize data collection — without losing what works in the field.

Overstory partnered with the Mother Tree Network (MTN) to strengthen forest field data collection, supporting community-led stewardship, research, and long-term learning. The project focused on moving beyond paper forms toward a scalable, offline-capable digital system suited to remote forest environments.

Through conversations with MTN members and collaborators, Overstory conducted a needs assessment, reviewed a wide range of commercial and open-source data collection tools, and developed a transparent comparison to evaluate trade-offs. Key requirements included offline mobile data capture, geospatial plot mapping, customizable smart forms, and tools for analysis, mapping, and reporting — alongside strong data stewardship, access controls, and support for sensitive cultural and traditional knowledge.

The project provided MTN with a path to modernize data collection while protecting sensitive information and reducing reporting burden, laying a strong foundation for long-term forest stewardship.