Leveraging an Innovative “Insurance + Technology” Approach to Safeguard 55,000 Ancient Trees and Promote Biodiversity Conservation
Ping An Insurance Company of China, Ltd. presented its biodiversity protection project, “Ancient Tree Guardian Action”, at the 30th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), held in Belém, Brazil. This initiative deeply integrates insurance coverage, technology, and social welfare to establish a sustainable protection system for ancient and notable trees in China, demonstrating the innovative efforts of a Chinese enterprise in tackling climate change and preserving biodiversity.
Innovative Approaches to Overcome Challenges in Ancient Tree Conservation
China harbors a rich heritage of ancient trees, with around 5.08 million specimens recognized for their ecological, historical, and scientific significance. These venerable trees, however, face serious threats from climate change, pest infestations, and insufficient maintenance funding. Since ancient trees are widely scattered and their value is difficult to quantify, insurance companies must dedicate extensive resources to individual inspections and ongoing monitoring. This demand places a heavy burden on underwriting capabilities, making it hard for traditional commercial insurance models to offer comprehensive protection.
To tackle this challenge, Ping An introduced an innovative “Insurance + Technology” model, integrating cutting-edge technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things (IoT). This model combines assessments of ancient tree growth, geographical location, and historical risk data to enable multidimensional evaluation. Building on this, Ping An launched Guangdong’s first ancient-tree insurance in 2023, creating a full-chain model “pre-disaster prevention, in-disaster emergency response, and post-disaster compensation” mechanism. As of October 2025, the project has provided over RMB 700 million (approximately USD 98 million) in risk protection for more than 55,000 ancient and notable trees nationwide.
Shifting From Post-Disaster Compensation to Pre-Disaster Prevention through Technology-Enabled Protection
The application of technology is a key characteristic of Ping An’s ancient tree protection program. Ping An uses IoT, environmental sensors, and wireless communications to monitor crucial indicators such as soil moisture, air quality, and tree health, 24/7. All data is uploaded to the cloud in real time, where an intelligent management system enables visualization and dynamic alerts, providing caretakers with precise, science-based guidance for tree maintenance.
Ping An has also developed its proprietary “EagleX” system, which integrates remote sensing, meteorological monitoring, big data, and AI analytics to track extreme weather, floods, typhoons, and other natural hazards in real time. The system issues timely alerts when major risks are detected, extending insurance services from post-disaster compensation to pre-disaster prevention and significantly reducing the likelihood of damage to ancient trees.
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