Ask an Analyst Remote Sensing for Agricultural Programming in Sudan
- Author: Alicia Morrison
- Full Title: Ask an Analyst: Remote Sensing for Agricultural Programming in Sudan
- Category: articles
- Document Tags: #geospatial
- URL: https://medium.com/mercy-corps-technology-for-development/ask-an-analyst-remote-sensing-for-agricultural-programming-in-sudan-f15be6f89bcb
Highlights
- Through discussions with the country staff and collaboration with the conflict analyst, we homed in on leveraging remotely sensed data to understand the environmental drivers of agricultural productivity in the region. Building upon the groundwork laid by the Sudan team’s previous remote sensing analyses, we aimed to extend our understanding beyond observation to predictive insights. (View Highlight)
- That’s right, by focusing our analysis on this specific aspect of the complex system, we hoped to provide practical support to implementing programs that target agricultural resilience in Sudan. This approach allowed us to navigate the vast array of challenges inherent in the humanitarian sector while staying true to the mission of leveraging data-driven insights to effect positive change in conflict-impacted communities. (View Highlight)
- Humanitarian operations in less resource-rich settings often depend on lower-resolution, generic datasets that need more specificity for accurate planning and intervention. In a scenario like Sudan, humanitarian access is already limited and it’s unlikely we can collect ground-based data for calibration and validation. (View Highlight)
- As a visualization tool, maps are highly accessible yet prone to overinterpretation. Despite their value in decision-making, the clarity of maps can lead users to attribute undue precision and certainty to forecasts, potentially overlooking the inherent uncertainties, the natural variability in environmental data, and complexity of the underlying models. (View Highlight)
- When considering the expansion of this analysis from Sudan to other regions I think it is essential to recognize that each area’s unique environmental, socio-economic, and political conditions play a significant role in the application and effectiveness of our methodologies. A strength of our approach in Sudan was our rigorous examination of the connections between environmental variables and agricultural productivity, including the impact of seasonal changes and lagged variables. (View Highlight)