Old Persean provides inspiring insight into innovative eco project
Environmental entrepreneur Robert Fryers (2005) returned to The Perse to give an insightful 42 lecture on his revolutionary pest control system.
Together with fellow engineer Neil D’Souza-Mathew, Mr Fryers launched Spotta in 2017, to develop a way of detecting pests to lower the risk of infestation, and the subsequent damage to crops, while dramatically reducing the use of pesticides and the level of carbon dioxide produced.
After leaving The Perse, he explained that he studied at Cambridge University Department of Engineering, where he set up the Cambridge University Space Flight club, with the ambitious aim of creating a renewable rocket for under £1,000.
Mr Fryers went on to work at companies developing high-tech medical devices, sandwiching a spell with the Red Bull F1 team, before teaming up with Mr D’Souza-Mathew to consider industries where they could start trying to make a difference to the planet in a relatively short period of time.
They decided to focus on pest control by devising an early warning system for potential pest outbreaks that could save much more farmland or forest from being harmed.
He told students the Spotta device works through 24/7 smart monitoring. After being placed in areas at potential risk of infestation, data is captured in real time using AI to identify the types of insects crawling into the pods. From this, only patches of land where pests are detected might need to be treated with chemicals rather than the whole area.
Mr Fryers said the system had already been used as far afield as the Middle East and Brazil to reduce outbreaks of pests affecting the cultivation of date palms and cotton respectively.
From his experience of engineering, Mr Fryers outlined that he had learned ideas mean nothing unless they are developed and can ideally make an immediate difference.
He said that as Spotta continues to grow, it has a realistic chance of fixing 1% of carbon dioxide globally, adding: “You only need a few thousand people with the right ideas and the commitment to see those ideas through to make an impact, such as the way Tesla has changed the car industry.”