Empowering & engaging communities
This field deals with bringing geo-information into “business” and for societal benefits by empowering and engaging communities. Our communities, with agro-environmental focus, range from local communities, national decision makers to global policy stakeholders such as UN Conventions and the general public. We increase the role of earth observation by its application in large-area land change assessments. We engage societal actors in community-based monitoring and geo-information product development. We contribute to competence development for improved spatial awareness.
This field is best described by highlighting our ongoing activities:
- Chairing the activities of the land cover team of Global Observations of Forest Cover and Land Dynamics (GOFC-GOLD) panel of the Global Terrestrial Observing System of the UN (GTOS) and the CEOS Working Group on Calibration and Validation (land cover subgroup)
- Implementation of work plan for user assessments and the development of standardization documents for the Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) required by the UNFCCC (focus: land cover and biomass)
- Lead the further development of the GOFC-GOLD Sourcebook on REDD MRV
- Participate in the Worldbank Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (Technical Advisory Panel) and review of Country REDD MRV activities
- Contribution to the historical degradation monitoring part of FAO’s global Forest Resources Assessment special study and remote sensing survey
- Advising of countries’ technical bodies and governments on REDD monitoring, reporting and verification with particular emphasis on the role of capacity building and remote sensing
- Contribution to spatial data infrastructure development, both nationally and internationally
- Participation in national geo-information curriculum development (SAGEO)
- Empowering arable farmers with precision geo-information support (GAOS)
PhD projects:
- Ximena Tagle Casapia: Integration of high resolution imagery from UAVs for Mapping of Provisioning Ecosystem Services in the tropics
- Christopher Agyekumhene: Enhancing Farmer Credit Access: Facilitating Network Collaboration through Digital Information System
- Nyamwaya Munthali: ICT-based Extension Services: Shifting Institutional and Knowledge Paradigms towards Sustainable Intensificatio
- Hedwig van Delden: Development and use of integrated land use models for policy support
- Watse Castelein: Assessment of spatial data infrastructures developments
- Marije Louwsma: E-governance in spatial planning
- Renée de Waal: Shaping sustainable energy landscapes: the need for and elaboration of a narrative design approach
- Cristina Rozales Sanchez: Social web as urban sensors: feasibility of user-generated internet-based data as a source for quality of life indicators
Post-doc projects:
- Sarah Carter: GOFC-GOLD project office
- Romina Rodela: INVALUABLE
- Jessica de Koning: REDD
Recently finished PhDs:
-
Towards performance assessment of subnational forest-based climate change mitigation initiatives
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): M. Herold, co-promotor(en): V. De Sy; A.E. Duchelle. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789463952149 - p. -
Emerging technologies for biodiversity assessment of changing tropical forests
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): M. Herold, co-promotor(en): L. Kooistra; B. Mora. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789463950879 - p. -
Citizen science and remote sensing for crop yield gap analysis
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): M. Herold, co-promotor(en): L. Kooistra; P. Reidsma. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789463436410 - p. -
What policy says and practice does : gender, household and community in rural water provision in Tanzania
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Anke Niehof, co-promotor(en): Hilje van der Horst; Ron van Lammeren. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462571334 - p. -
REDD+ and Climate Smart Agriculture in landscapes : from national design to local implementation
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Arnold Bregt; Martin Herold, co-promotor(en): Arend Ligtenberg. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462578371 - p. -
Remote sensing of land use and carbon losses following tropical deforestation
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Martin Herold, co-promotor(en): Jan Clevers; L. Verchot. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462578036 - p. -
Global land cover map validation, comparison and integration for different user communities
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Martin Herold, co-promotor(en): Sytze de Bruin. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462577817 - p. -
Interactive community-based tropical forest monitoring using emerging technologies
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Martin Herold, co-promotor(en): L. Ribbe; Sytze de Bruin; Valerio Avitabile. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462574786 - p. -
Spatial information in public consultation within environmental impact assessments
Wageningen University. Promotor(en): Arnold Bregt, co-promotor(en): Arend Ligtenberg; T.N. Kibutu. - Wageningen : Wageningen University - ISBN 9789462573314 - p.
Key publications:
-
The feasibility of local participation in Measuring, Reporting and Verification (PMRV) for REDD+
PLoS ONE 12 (2017)5. - ISSN 1932-6203 -
Characterizing Forest Change Using Community-Based Monitoring Data and Landsat Time Series
PLoS ONE 11 (2016)3. - ISSN 1932-6203 -
Design and implementation of an interactive web-based near real-time forest monitoring system
PLoS ONE 11 (2016)3. - ISSN 1932-6203 -
REDD+ and climate smart agriculture in landscapes: A case study in Vietnam using companion modelling
Journal of Environmental Management 172 (2016). - ISSN 0301-4797 - p. 58 - 70. -
Climate adaptation services for the Netherlands: An operational approach to support spatial adaptation planning
Regional Environmental Change 14 (2014)3. - ISSN 1436-3798 - p. 1035 - 1048. -
Climate proofing of the Zuidplaspolder: a guiding model approach to climate adaptation
Regional Environmental Change 14 (2014)3. - ISSN 1436-3798 - p. 909 - 918. -
How countries link REDD+ interventions to drivers in their readiness plans: implications for monitoring systems
Environmental Research Letters 9 (2014)7. - ISSN 1748-9326 - 12 p. -
Options for a national framework for benefit distribution and their relation to community-based and national REDD+ monitoring
Forests 5 (2014)7. - ISSN 1999-4907 - p. 1596 - 1617. -
REDD+ readiness: early insights on monitoring, reporting and verification systems of project developers
Environmental Research Letters 8 (2013)3. - ISSN 1748-9326 - 15 p. -
Mobile devices for community-based REDD+ monitoring: A case study for Central Vietnam
Sensors 13 (2013)1. - ISSN 1424-8220 - p. 21 - 38.