Decentralized Internet of Things-Networks for environmental data pipelines: Opportunities and challenges in a community-based urban green space restoration project in Nairobi, Kenya

Decentralized IoT-networks are part of a broader class of decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN), which use blockchain to decentralize, incentivize, and reward the operation and maintenance of technical infrastructure. This study examines how decentralized IoT-networks can address challenges in the design and governance of environmental data streams, drawing on a community-based urban restoration project in Nairobi, Kenya. IoT sensors were deployed on the blockchain-based Helium Network to monitor regulating urban ecosystem services. The paper discusses technical features and presents observations on network reliability and community participation. The findings suggest that decentralized IoT systems hold promise for distributed environmental data collection and transparent governance, particularly in low-resource settings. However, purpose-built architectures may help enhance the effectiveness and deployment of community-based environmental monitoring efforts.