2 February 2015– A South-South knowledge sharing and training programme has been held in Brazil on data interpretation for forest monitoring systems, as part of the capacity development initiatives under Sri Lanka’s UN-REDD Programme.
In order to enter the second phase of REDD+, a satellite national forest monitoring system (NFMS) must be in place. Available satellite imagery must therefore be identified along with the appropriate methodology and tools for mapping forest cover and change.
The training session aimed to transfer knowledge developed by the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) to the Sri Lanka team in order to feed into the development of Sri satellite NFMS. Free access was also provided to the technology. The main aim was to present a common understanding of the tools which FAO, through the UN-REDD Programme, can make available to countries in order to develop their NFMS in the context of REDD+. The training used the geographic information system tool TerraAmazon to assess deforestation rates according to different national circumstances.
Participants found the training useful and several action points were identified for follow-up, including a half-day workshop for INPE training participants to present TerraAmazon to a wider audience via their respective department, and for the participants to take part in one month of work experience at the departmental level so as to identify any queries.
The training, organized by the UN-REDD Programme, throughFAO, and INPE was held in Belem, Brazil, and was attended by six national participants as part of Sri Lanka’s REDD+ readiness roadmap process.
For further information, please contact:Raushan Kumar in Sri Lanka ([email protected]) or Inge Jonckheere in FAO HQ ([email protected]
Source:UN-REDD
