27 February 2023
For Immediate Release
SASSCAL’ s WeMAST Phase II Project to host its first training on Earth Observation for 2023
The Southern African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL) ‘s WeMAST project, will be hosting a Two (2) days training on Earth Observation (EO) Applications in Wetland Monitoring and Assessment from 02-03 March 2023 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
TheWetland Monitoring and Assessment Platform for Transboundary River Basins in Southern Africa (WeMAST) Phase II, with its technical partner Midlands State University in Zimbabwe and University of Western Cape in South Africa will conduct an EO training for its end users that will enable a deeper understanding on the use of geospatial tools and their application in wetland mapping and assessment, explain the role of EO in wetland mapping and assessment, delineate wetland extents and their temporal variability in sub watersheds within river basins using EO data and how to assess wetland condition changes using EO data.
The training will be hosted under the theme “Towards enhancing the utilization of Earth Observation in wetlands management and restoration”.
The call for participants has attracted close to 200 applicants within the African continent of which only 40 were selected to attend the physical classes in at the Bulawayo Rainbow Hotel, Bulawayo in Zimbabwe.
Due to the interest shown in the training by the number of applicants, WeMAST will make provision for online attendees. The link will be communicated on SASSCAL Social Media Platforms.
The EO training targets participants from river basin organizations, national water or environmental authorities, academic and research institutions, private sector, local communities’ representations, non-governmental organizations and women and men in natural and water resources management.
This initiative is under the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security and Africa (GMES & Africa) and jointly funded by the African Union and European Union. Earth Observation training is an initiative in response to the global need to manage the environment, understand and mitigate the effects of Climate change and ensure civil security by providing information to policy makers, scientists, the private sector, and the public in general.
The training is designed to provide individuals, institutions and decision makers with cutting-edge knowledge and skills in the use of EO data and geospatial techniques in wetland mapping and vulnerability assessment.
The training will be facilitated by Dr Thomas Marambanyika , from Midlands State University, Zimbabwe and Dr Thomas Dube from the University of Western Cape, South Africa.
The next EO training will be on “Google Earth Engine Cloud-Computing and Earth Observation Applications in Wetland Monitoring and Assessment” which is scheduled to take place from 16-17 March 2023 in Cape Town South Africa.
Applications are open and women’s participation is strongly encouraged.
To apply, visit the WeMAST website: http://gmes-wemast.sasscal.org/2023/02/22/wemast-phase-ii-training-ii/
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For Furter Information
Contact: Tulimekondjo Pandeni
Communications and Marketing Officer for WeMAST
