Detecting cropland changes is critical to understanding land use patterns, food security and conflict. Agriculture is a powerful proxy indicator of security (or the lack thereof) and as a result quick changes in cropland can often be indicative of large population movements or people fleeing conflicts. These changes may not be immediately visible from field data and In hard to reach areas adversely affected by conflict, this data is often difficult or impossible to collect. Satellite imagery can play a role in filling that gap.
Our team specializes in mapping cropland changes from satellite imagery. We combine years of experience working in agriculture across Africa alongside the use of cutting-edge remote sensing tools to map cropland, more specifically in hard-to-reach areas.
Some of the key features of our work on cropland change:
- The methodology of cropland change detection is outlined in this paper
- This application made with Google Earth Engine allows users to easily visualize changes in cropland themselves, with no coding.
Use of cutting edge technology:
- We use open source technologies and data. This reduces the cost of producing maps and also ensures that clients are free to use the data with no restrictions.
- By using high resolution images, our methods of cropland detection produce accurate and precise results.
Some of our results:
- Our team has mapped cropland changes across the West African Sahel for NGOs and government actors.
- Cropland change maps provide new evidence and highlight vulnerability hotspots in hard-to-reach areas, where traditional survey data could not be collected. This data is presented to partners as “decision-ready”, allowing for easy integration into their planning processes.