FAO launches new technical solutions to help countries report changes in mountain ecosystems
Rome – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) today launched two new solutions for countries to monitor and report progress towards the conservation and sustainable management of mountain ecosystems.
The user-friendly solutions are designed to help countries analyse Earth Observation data for their territories and extract information on changes in the extent of mountain ecosystems. This information is needed to assess global progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15, Life on Land.
Although a wealth of high-quality Earth Observation data are regularly produced at national level, to date countries have faced challenges to use this data to calculate indicator 15.4.2 on mountain green cover and the proportion of degraded mountain area. As the UN agency tracking progress towards SDG 15, FAO has previously calculated these indicators itself, using globally available satellite images and data.
“For the first time, a comprehensive set of easy-to-use platforms are available for countries to easily calculate and report indicators on mountain ecosystems by themselves using nationally relevant data,” said Senior FAO Forestry Officer Anssi Pekkarinen. “Over time, this will result in a better understanding of what is happening in mountains.”
Free, user-friendly platforms and tutorials
Mountain ecosystems have important ecological, social and economic value, and mapping and monitoring changes in mountains is crucial for achieving many SDGs.
The new monitoring and reporting solutions were developed by FAO in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre with input from 10 countries. They provide a free and open-source geographic information system compatible with leading operating systems.
The first solution, based on FAO’s platform SEPAL (System for Earth Observation Data Access, Processing and Analysis for Land Monitoring), and funded by Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative, uses custom land cover data through an easy-to-use interface in a cloud-based environment. The second solution, based on open-source Geographic Information System software QGIS, instead allows users to access the same type of geospatial operations through the main desktop operating systems (Windows, Mac, Linux) using local computer resources.
These solutions, combined, are intended to broaden the capacity of FAO to support country needs, helping them adhere to global standards while taking end-to-end ownership of the process, even when technical capacity for analysis may be limited.
“We are excited to expand the SEPAL platform to include reporting on the progress of mountain ecosystem conservation,” said Senior FAO Forestry Officer Julian Fox. “This enables more accurate, timely and comprehensive assessments of ecosystem health and biodiversity.”
Online tutorials provide step by step guidance for technicians on how to set up and use the tools, complementing a free e-learning course on the use of land cover information to monitor progress on Sustainable Development Goal 15 launched earlier this year.