Verna

Data and software for
sustainable land
management

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Solutions

Verna is a mission-driven business, using geospatial data science to address the climate and nature crises.

We help landowners, investors, and policymakers to use land in ways that draw down carbon, enhance biodiversity and generate sustainable returns – e.g. through woodland creation, habitat creation and enhancement, and regenerative agriculture.

Using the latest data science techniques and the power of cloud computing, our tools cut through the complexity of science, economics, and regulation to identify the best answers to crucial questions – like how to use land, what land to buy, or which landowners to engage with.

If you have challenges connected to land use and environmental goals – e.g. Net Zero, Biodiversity Net Gain, or nutrient neutrality – we have the tools to help.

Get in touch

ForestFounder

partial screenshot of the ForestFounder application One of our tools is ForestFounder, which assesses unlimited land areas and produces a map showing where tree-planting will be feasible, beneficial, and – if desired – profitable.

ForestFounder provides estimates of the carbon, biodiversity, and financial outcomes of planting in the locations found.

This helps landowners with carbon, biodiversity, and financial planning, investors to find optimal sites for forest investment, and policymakers to assess regional potential and identify key landowners.

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Some of our customers and partners

  • Defra logo Defra
  • BEIS logo BEIS
  • Ministry of Justice logo Ministry of Justice
  • WSP logo WSP
  • St Johns College logo St Johns College
  • National Highways logo National Highways
  • Environment Agency logo Environment Agency
  • Forest Research logo Forest Research
  • Forestry England logo Forestry England
  • National Trust logo National Trust
  • Verna's unique data and mapping capability gave us invaluable input in helping to understand how to achieve the UK's climate and food goals, and they were a pleasure to work with throughout the project. I hope we can work together again in the future.

    Dustin Benton, Chief Analytical Adviser, National Food Strategy (Defra)

  • Verna were able to very quickly identify potential new tree-planting areas across our client's substantial, England-wide land holdings - allowing us to provide a better view on options for their journey to net-zero carbon and biodiversity net gain.

    James Peet, Principal Consultant, WSP

  • We are backing UK innovators to ensure we have a homegrown supply of biomass materials, which is part of our wider plans to continue driving down carbon emissions as we build back greener.

    Energy Minister Lord Callanan, announcing the UK Government's funding for Verna

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In the press …

Team

Executive team

Dr Matthew Brown

Co-founder

Photo of Matthew Brown

Matthew led the climate change mitigation teams at the UK Environment Department and the Confederation of British Industry. Before Verna he co-founded Think Ahead, a health social enterprise which has raised over £50m. He holds a Cambridge PhD in computational physics.

Rafi Cohen

Co-founder

Photo of Rafi Cohen

Rafi has created sustainability strategies for businesses, governments, and non-profits at Boston Consulting Group and Quadrature Climate Foundation. He founded TalentEd, an education social enterprise. He is a Chartered Accountant, and holds a degree in neuroscience from the University of Oxford.

Dr Ian Dickinson

CTO

Photo of Ian Dickinson

Ian has over 30 years' experience as an engineering leader and software developer. He worked for Hewlett-Packard research, and was a co-founder of Epimorphics Ltd, where he led development of a variety of data-centric web applications. He holds a PhD in computer science from the University of Liverpool.

Advisory board

David Singleton

CTO, Stripe

Photo of David Singleton

Gi Fernando

Chair, Climate Subak

Photo of Gi Fernando

Tom Butterworth

Head of Ecology, WSP

Photo of Tom Butterworth

Tom Hill

Director of Impact Economics,
Savills

Photo of Tom Hill

Peter Whitfield

Former Director of Operations,
Tilhill Forestry

Photo of Peter Whitfield

We are always on the lookout for new team members. If you are passionate about addressing the climate and nature crises, please get in touch.

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