AgriSound Expands Global Reach with Canadian Partnership

AgriSound has announced a landmark collaboration with Niagara College in Ontario, Canada. This international partnership will drive forward pollinator conservation while creating exciting new opportunities for student research and learning.

The year-long pilot will see AgriSound deploy its innovative Polly™ bioacoustic monitoring technology across three distinct biodiversity sites at the college to leverage real-time acoustic data to understand and protect local pollinator populations.

Niagara College is renowned for integrating sustainability into its environmental programming, including habitat restoration and student-led biodiversity research. 

The partnership with AgriSound will provide the college with critical, data-driven insights into pollinator health; a global issue of increasing urgency, given that 35 per cent of pollinator species are at risk of extinction.

Pollinators, such as bees, support an estimated $500 billion of the world’s agricultural economy and are crucial for the production of around 75 per cent of global food crops. The deployment of AgriSound’s Polly™ units will give Niagara College and its students a sophisticated, non-invasive method for monitoring these vital species.

The Polly™ units will continuously record and analyse acoustic data to monitor bumblebee activity across multiple habitats. The findings will allow researchers and students to gain precise insights into seasonal trends, pollinator habitats and behaviour patterns to inform targeted improvements to restoration methods. 

It will also allow the college to integrate real-world research into student learning, providing hands-on experience with advanced ecological monitoring tools.

Calum Pheby, Product Manager at AgriSound commented: “This collaboration represents a powerful fusion of technology and education. 

“By combining our real-time monitoring capabilities with Niagara College’s ‘living laboratory’ approach, we’re empowering the next generation of environmental scientists to make data-driven decisions for biodiversity conservation that can be used to support crop decisions worldwide.”

Trish Haynes, Technical Support at Niagara College, added: “This partnership allows our students to work directly with truly cutting-edge environmental technology. Not only are we strengthening our sustainability goals, but we’re also building the skills and data literacy needed for the green careers of the future.”

The pilot is scheduled to run until October 2026. Following a comprehensive review of the collected data, AgriSound will provide site-specific recommendations for habitat enhancement. The insights gathered are intended to contribute to Niagara College’s broader biodiversity monitoring framework and inform scalable models for pollinator conservation across academic and agricultural landscapes worldwide.