Last year, Canada suffered through a record-breaking wildfire season. In an effort to have a less damaging season this summer, Tentree, an eco-friendly lifestyle brand with the goal of planting one billion trees by 2030, is launching Following Wildfire, an AI-powered tool to help report fires before they get out of control.

Developed in partnership with Denstsu Canada and built by Reflektor, Following Wildfire uses a proprietary algorithm to scan major social media platforms for images that have been tagged #FollowingWildfire. Then, it uses AI to detect smoke or flames with a high degree of accuracy in these publicly shared images.

“This cutting-edge technology provides extensive and critical coverage of the activities and areas where human-caused fires ignite,” the brand explains in a statement.

“The inspiration came from urgency,” Jordan Doucette, president and chief creative officer of Dentsu Creative Canada tells Media in Canada. “Every year is the worst wildfire year on record unfortunately, which affects nature, communities and businesses in a devastating way. The advent of AI and computer vision in recent years made us wonder if it could be used to help with this global problem most feel completely powerless towards.”

Doucette says that Dentsu will launch a cross-Canada media campaign in the coming weeks designed to encourage every Canadian to use the hashtag to take action. Specifically, the campaign will be aimed at Canadian residents, particularly those in wildfire-prone areas, as well as environmental and conservation advocates, local authorities, technology enthusiasts, wildlife protection groups, Canadians who use social media and individuals who enjoy camping and hiking.

“Following Wildfire leverages the collective strengths of transformative creativity, data and technology, delivering a tool that we hope will make every Canadian feel they can contribute to helping manage wildfires this season,” Doucette says. “Our hope this fire season is that every Canadian feels empowered to actively participate in protecting their communities.”

“We plant trees all across the globe, and one of our focuses is planting trees here in Canada that have been lost to wildfires. Our Following Wildfire tool is a way people can help protect our forests and communities by getting outside to enjoy nature and sharing photos using our #FollowingWildfire hashtag,” says Derrick Emsley, Tentree co-founder and CEO.