In the Field. Pantropical Scholars Newsletter (november 2011)

The workshop sessions are aimed at providing methodologies for measuring and monitoring forestcarbon, thereby providing countries with the confidence and technical autonomy necessary toadministertheirown,successfulprojects.Thegoalofthescholarprogramistoexpandthereachofoursciencebytransformingthestudentsintoteachers,givingthemtheconfidenceandtechnicalexper>setheyneedtobeeffec>veleaderswhentheyreturnhome.

ThescholarprogramrepresentsauniqueSouth‐SouthnetworkoftechniciansfromNGOs, indigenousgroups, and government agencies. Technical workshops are a forum for exchanging informa>on onforestmonitoringtoolsandtechniqueswhilediscussingtheirrelevanceforimprovedforestandcarbonmanagementinthecontextofinterna>onalclimatepolicies.AGerseveralyearsoftrainingwithWHRCstaff, themost advanced scholars are teaching their ownworkshops, joiningWHRCas instructors alloverthetropics,andmee>ngwithna>onalandinterna>onalpolicy‐makerstoadvisethemonthemostadvancedapproachesforcarbonmeasurementandmonitoring.

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Scholar News November 2011

Photo: Pantropical scholars, WoodsHoleResearchCenterStaff,andVisi>ngInstructors from September, 2011workshopatWHRC.

Updates from!• Bolivia!• Zambia!• Colombia!• Indonesia!

Scholar Biographies!

November2011

BoliviaEricArmijo

The past weeks I have focused my aSen>on onapplying the “image segmenta>on & randomforest(IS&RF)”approachtodetectforestchangesin theBolivianAmazon.Alongthis line, twomainac>vi>es were developed: a one‐day course totrain FAN‐Bolivia staff and the assessment of thetechniquetoproduceadeforesta>onmap.

ImageshowsmaterialdevelopedtotrainFAN‐BoliviastaffintheIS&RFapproachtodetectforestchange

The courseprovidedanopportunity toadapt theexis>ngtrainingmaterial(presenta>on,scriptanddataset) to a Spanish‐speaking audience. A studyarea inBoliviawaspickedtoexemplifytheuseoftoolsandmethods.HavingperformedaseriesofassessmentstotheIS&RFtechnique,itwasfoundsuitabletoupdatealand cover changemap for a 2.8millionhectaresarea in theBolivianAmazon.Thenew2008‐2010deforesta>on map is currently being refined andwillsupportmonitoringac>vi>esforaREDD+PilotProgramproject.

ZambiaAbelSiample&SitwalaWamunyima

On27thSeptember2011(adayaGerarrivingfromWHRC–USA),IwasrequestedbytheDirectorateof Environment and Natural Resources in theMinistry of Tourism, Environment and NaturalResources to aSend a technical commiSeemee>ng for the West Lunga Carbon Projectspearheaded by the Zambia Wildlife Authority(ZAWA). My main role in this mee>ng was toproviding technical guidance in planning andexecu>ngofa forest resourceassessmentmeantto collect data and generate informa>on on thecarbon storage and sequestra>on poten>al fortheprojectarea.Theprojectareacoversanareaof 600,000 ha in extent and lies in theNorthwestern province of Zambia with rela>velyhigh biomass content due to high forest coverdensity(above70%canopycover).

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On3rdOctober2011,Iconductedatechnicalpresenta>onbeforeseniormanagement in the Ministry includingrepresenta>vesfromthecoopera>ngpartners(i.e.United Na>ons Development Program, Food andAgriculture Organiza>on, Finnish Embassy andEuropeanunion).Mypresenta>on(cont.p.3)…

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Zambia(con=nued)AbelSiample&SitwalaWamunyima

wasbasedon lessons learntatWHRCspecificallyonmappingofbiomass(forcarbonaccoun>ng)andforestcoverchange.

On7thOctober2011,Iled3fieldteamsofForestEcologists,SoilScien>stsandWildlifeScoutsintothefieldtoconductaforestinventoryfor5weeks.Thetargetwascollectdata(fieldtrainingdata)from300plotsincludingsomeestablishedfollowingGLASshotfootprints.WehavejustcompletedtheexerciseandIwillbegekngtotheofficenextMonday14thNovember2011.

IndonesiaVirniBudiArifan=

AGer my return from the Woods Hole ResearchCenter, I have done some field works for myrou>ne research ac>vity in my ins>tu>on, inForest Research and Development Agency,Ministry of Forestry of Indonesia. I went toBangka island for conduc>ng research to analyzethedriverof landcoverand landuse changeonavery degraded watershed due to vast miningexplora>on. The objec>ve of this research is toanalyze how the watershed should be managedby considering the local community’s livelihoodwhich was benefited by the presence of themining companies and how this landcover/landusechangecanbemodeledinthefutureto

ensure the sustainabilityof theenvironment andthepeople’swelfare. ForthispurposeIintendtouseDinamicaEGOsoGwarefor landcoverchangemodeling which I have learned in WHRC.Con=nuedp.4...

Photo:Abandonedminingarea

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Visit our Pantropical Education and Capacity Building Web Page: http://www.whrc.org/education/capacitybldg.html!

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Indonesia(con=nued)VirniBudiArifan=

In theupcomingmonths, Iamaskedbymysupervisor todobiomassandemissionmapping inMeruBe>ri Na>onal Park. At this >me we are s>ll searching on the best satellite imageries with highresolu>onandlowcloudcoveroverthearea. IintendtousethemethodthatIhavelearnedinWHRConbiomassandemissionmapping. I alsohope to s>llbeget in touchwith theWHRC team foranyques>onsoradviseregardingthemappingtechniques.ThankyouWHRC!

Photo:Virniandcolleaguesinthefield

ColombiaEderssonCabrera,PaolaGiraldo,&

DianaVargasIn the context of the project "Enabling theTechnical Ins>tu>onal Capacity to Support REDDprojects in Colombia", the Hydrology,Meteorology and Environmental Studies Ins>tuteofColombia‐IDEAM,inpartnerswithTheWoodsHole Research Center ‐WHRC, has worked thistwo last years in ac>vi>es to support Colombiacapaci>es in the monitoring of forest cover,including deforesta>on quan>fica>on andes>ma>on of Carbon stocks with digitalprocessing of satellite Op>cal images and Radarimages.

Both ins>tu>ons have developed together thefollowingac>vi>es:  Par>cipa>on of the IDEAM professional

research team in theWHRC capacity annualprograms.

  Pre processing of RADAR images, using theWHRC'sWHIPScapacity.

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  Semi automa>c algorithms test in order toclassify op>cal and RADAR images withRandomForest

  Semi automa>c algorithms test in order toes>mateCarbonstocksusingcoarseresolu>onimages(eg.MODIS)cont.p.5…

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Colombia(Con=nued)EderssonCabrera,PaolaGiraldo,&

DianaVargasSpecifically, the IDEAM has been benefited fromWHRC's technical capacity throughout theirtechnical developments to improve themappingof forest ‐ non forest in the Pacific region ofColombia. There is frequent the presence ofclouds, shades,mistand/orhaze,whichcannotberecognizedinop>calsensors.Inthisway,in2011wereimplementedtheuseofALOSPALSARimages(FBSandFBDmodes)inthePacificregioninordertomapthisarea.Incomparison,itwaspossibletocoverthe99.08percentofthisareain2010whilein2005onlya75percentofitwascovered.

Workingtogetherhasletafeedbackoftechnicalexperiencesforbothteams,iden>fyingnewtechnicalpossibili>es of work collabora>on. For IDEAM, this kind of inves>ga>on alliances has shown theusefulnesstoimprovethetechnicalcapaci>esandwehopetocon>nuewiththissortofac>vi>es.

VirniBudiAifan=Mrs.Arifan>isaremotesensingscien>statResearchCenterforClimateChangeandForestPolicy,MinistryofForestryofIndonesia.Herresearchinterestsfocusonmonitoringlandcover,landcoverchange,forestcarbon,landscapeanalysis, andadapta>on strategiesof forest communi>es to climate changeat several ecosystems.SheholdsherBachelordegreeinForestManagementfromBogorAgriculturalIns>tuteinBogor,Indonesia,andherMSc inForestrymajoringSpa>al Informa>onTechniques inGhentUniversity,Belgium. Before joiningtheMinistryofForestry,sheworkedatCenterforInterna>onalForestryResearch(CIFOR)inBogor, Indonesia,theEuropeanUnionforForest InventoryandMonitoringProject inJakarta,andPT.Surveyor Indonesia inJakarta,Indonesia.

EricArmijoMr.Armijo,landchangeanalystatFAN‐Bolivia,isinterestedintheuseofgeospa>altechniquestocharacterizeandmodel landusean landchangeprocesses in tropical regionsofBolivia,SouthAmerica.He is currently inchargeofbuildingdeforesta>onbaselinesforaREDDprogramintheBolivianAmazon.Mr.ArmijoholdsaB.S.incomputer science fromUPSAUniversity inBolivia and aM.A. in geography from theUniversity ofMaryland,CollegePark(US).

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PaolaGiraldoMs.Giraldo isaForestEngineerwhose interestes focuson theuseof remotesensing for themappingof landcover, land cover change, mul>temporal analyse, and zonifica>on of protected areas applying mul>criteriaanalyses.ShehasbeenworkingattheIns>tuteofHydrology,MeteorologyandEnviromentalStudies,Colombiasince June2010andbefore Sheworkedon land cover classifica>on fornatural strategic areas in someof theNaturaFunda>on–Colombiaprojects.

MikeChirwaMr.ChirwaworksforForestryResearchIns>tuteofMalawi(FRIM),Malawi,asaresourcemonitoringofficer.Heis currently working on various programs withinMalawi, one of which is Lake Chilwa Basin Climate ChangeAdapta>on Programme (LCBCCAP) in Southern Malawi where his responsibility is to monitor forest cover,biomass,andcarbonstockchange.Hehasalsobeenengaged in in‐country simula>onandpilo>ngofcarbonfinancingprogrammessuchasREDD(e.gNkuwaziinNorthernMalawi).InhisMSc.,helookedatanimportantmul>‐purpose fruit tree species in SouthernAfrica, Uapacakirkiana, some its provenances and families, andtheir poten>al to sequester carbon.His research areas of interest includeallometry, policy‐resource scenariosimula>onandlandcoverchange.

AndreanaPaolaMekuiBiyogoMs.MekuiBiyogoworks currently like researchofficer in chargeofREDD+andCDMatForestdepartment inGabon.WithadegreeinforestsciencesfromENEF,aDiplomainGeoma>csfromOmarBongoUniversityandaMaster degree in remote sensing of forest resources from University of Moncton. She is Forest Engineer,specialistofremotesensing(small‐footprintairborneLIDAR,Op>cal).SheusedtoworkwithWWF,forseveralyearslikeGISOfficeroftheMinkebeprogram.Herlastposi>onatWWFhasbeentheRegionalCoordinatorofthefirstpilotprojectofcommunityforestryinhercountry(Gabon).Ms.MekuiBiyogodoesconsul>ngfrom>meto>mewithFAOandWHRC, respec>velybymanaginghuman‐wildlifeconflictandbeingpartof the teamoftrainersforfieldmeasurementsprotocolonabovegroundbiomassdatacollec>onandcarbonstockes>ma>on.

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GiangNguyenVuMr.NguyenVuisaresearcherinDepartmentofRemoteSensingTechnology,GISandGPS,atSpaceTechnologyIns>tute (STI) in Vietnam. He is responsible for developing applica>ons of remote sensing and GIS forinves>ga>on,monitoring andmanagement of sustainable use of natural resources.He has beenworking astechnicalconsultantforNGOssuchasAsianDevelopmentBank(ADB),Interna>onalUnionforConserva>onofNature(IUCN),andNetherlandsDevelopmentOrganiza>on(SNV)wherehecarriedcapacitybuildingtrainingson landuseplanningandrural livelihooddevelopment;crea>ng landuse, landcovermaps;and forestcoverchange analysis.Giang’s interests are inmodeling landuse and land cover change, es>ma>ngbiomass, andcrea>ngemissionmapsfrommul>‐sourcesremotesensingdata.Healsowouldliketodevelophisresearchonurbaniza>on,importanceofopenspacesinurbanandtheireffectsonlandsurfacetemperaturepaSern.

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GraceNangendoDr. Nangendo graduated from Makerere University, Uganda, with a bachelor degree in Forestry, from theInterna>onalIns>tuteforGeo‐informa>onScienceandearthobserva>on(ITC),theNetherlands,withaMasterof Sciencedegree inGeo‐informa>on for ForestandTreeResourceManagementand,WageningenUniversityandITC,theNetherlands,withaDoctorateofPhilosophyfocusingonconserva>onofforest‐woodland‐savannahmosaics.Gracehasexperienceinthegeospa>alindustryandinnaturalresourcemanagement.Herinterestisinapplying a spa>al component to forest dynamics and to other natural resources, in biodiversity and plantecology, and in local people’s use of forest resources. She has worked with WCS since June 2006 as theGeographicalInforma>onSystems(GIS)Manager.

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PeterNdundaMr.NdundaistheGeographicalInforma>onSystems(GIS)SpecialistattheGreenBeltMovement.Hedirectstheac>vi>es of a GIS lab for the Green Belt Movement to support the re‐afforesta>on, climate change andcommunitydevelopmenteffortsinKenya. Inaddi>on,hemanagesthemeasurementandmonitoringac>vi>esof the Green Belt Movement’s community carbon projects in Kenya. He is a member of the CarbonMeasurementCollabora>veteamthatiscoordinatedbytheClintonClimateInia>vetosupportthedevelopmentofNa>onalCarbonAccoun>ngSystem(NCAS)inKenya,UgandaandTanzania,amongothercountries.Priortohisposi>onattheGreenBeltMovement,PeterworkedasaGeoInforma>onConsultantwiththeWorldBankinWashingtonDC.HeisagraduateofMoiUniversity,Kenya,andtheUniversityofRedlands,CA.

AkchousanhRasphoneMs.Rasphone isaGIS/Spa>alLandscapeEcologist interested incarbonand forestcover/changemappingandspecies habitat distribu>on modeling. Ms. Rasphone received her Bachelor of Technology in GIS from theUniversityofSouthernQueensland(Australia)andherM.S.inGeographicalSciencefromtheAustralianNa>onalUniversity.Ms.RasphoneiscurrentlyworkingwiththeWildlifeConserva>onSocietyLaoPDRonabiodiversityconserva>on project in the southern landscape of Laos as a project coordinator and GIS/Spa>al LandscapeEcologist.

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AbelSiampaleMr.SiampaleisaForesterwithsolidskillsinForestResourceAssessments(ForestInventoriesandGIS),currentlyworkingfortheForestryDepartment,MinistryofTourism,EnvironmentandNatural Resources inZambia.Hisinterestsfocusmainlyonsustainabilityandvulnerabilityassessments,forestrymapping,landuseandlandcoverchangewith17yearsofexperience inusingGIS.Beforebecominga scholarwithwoodshole research center(WHRC), he served as a Na>onal Consultant in Zambia for the integrated land‐use assessment (ILUA) projectunder FAO and helped generate the current deforesta>on rate (map) for Zambia. Holds an undergraduatediplomainforestrymanagement,andpostgraduatequalifica>oninGeo‐informa>cs.

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MukundSrivastavaMr.SrivastavaaprofessionalforesterandamemberoftheIndianForestService(IFS).Hehasnearly21yearsoffieldexperienceworkinginvariouscapaci>esincludingChiefConservatorofForests(Environment).HecurrentlyworksasJointDirector,ForestSurveyofIndiaandHeadofNa>onalForestDataManagementCentreatFSIHeadQuartersatDehradun,India.HereceivedhisMastersinPhysicsfromtheIndianIns>tuteofTechnology,KanpurandMasterofTechnology(M.Tech)inRSandGISfromtheIndianIns>tuteofRemoteSensing,Dehradun,India.HehaspublishedpapersonForestProduc>vityandForestFireMonitoringusingRSandhaswideexperienceinpublicpar>cipa>oninforestmanagement.HeisamemberofanumberofGovernmentofIndiacommiSeesandTechnical Advisory CommiSees of provinces. He is taking special ini>a>ves to factor in the latest technicalinterven>onstoimproveforestcovermappingandbiomassmapping.

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IsabelTrejoMs.Trejoisabiologist,workinginCONABIO(Na>onalCommissionfortheUseandKnowledgeofBiodiversity),in a project called Bio‐Decision Support System (SSD), which seeks to create a soGware toperformenvironmentalimpactanalysisandcanbeusedbyindividualsand/orins>tu>onsthatrequireguidanceon the environmental impactwould the construc>on of any infrastructure. She is currently developingwaystomeasure the impact of a pipeline that runs from Colima to Guadalajara. The goal is to develop tools forthe con>nued use of the system. She is personally interested in achieving her degree in mul>‐scaledistribu>onofspeciestoprovideatoolofthepoten>aldistribu>onofthesamewhileusingthistool inorderfortheSSDtogetfuturescenariosoftheimpactonthespecies.

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DianaVargasMs.Vargas is anagriculturalengineerwithpostgraduate studies inenvironmental impactassessment,MsC inenvironment and management of biodiversity. She has professional experience in geographic informa>onsystems and use of remote sensing formonitoring natural resources, with emphasis on the analysis of landcover.Sheisanexpertinclimatechange,especiallyinissuesrelatedtoaccoun>ngofemissionsfromlanduse,land use change and forestry (LULUCF) and the REDDmechanism. She is currently involved in the project"Building Technical and Scien>fic Capacity to support REDD Projects in Colombia" in IDEAM, as part of theworking team developing and implemen>ng protocols for digital processing of satellite images for thequan>fica>onofdeforesta>on.

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SitwalaWamunyimaMr.WamunyimareceivedaMasterofScienceDegreeinGeoinforma>onScienceandEarthObserva>on‐NaturalResourcesManagementspecializinginEnvironmentalSystemsAnalysisandManagementfollowedbystudiesatITC,TheNetherlands.Hehasbuilthiscareerinthefieldofforestresourcesmanagementsince1995whenhejoinedtheForestryDepartment,oneofthegovernmentdepartmentsintheMinistryofTourism,EnvironmentandNaturalResourcesinZambia.Hes>llservesintheForestryDepartmentandisinvolvedinforestinventories,applica>onofremotesensingforforestmonitoring,andlargescalemapping.HealsocontributestothedecisionpoolfortheForestryDepartmentonaspectsofbudge>ng,strategicplanning,andpolicydirec>on.

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