ASIACOVER

Towards the development and applications of a multi-purpose environmental and natural resources information base for food security and sustainable development

The renewable natural resources of many Asian countries have come under severe strain over the past two or three decades and most indicators point towards a continuation of this trend. Whilst a large amount of data related to land cover exist in Asia, most are not consistent over large geographic areas and therefore cannot be aggregated at regional and/or sub-regional scale, limiting the possibilities of proper planning, development and sustainable management of renewable natural resources in Asia.

Hence, the aim of the ASIACOVER Project is the preparation of a regional, standardized land cover map and database, and decision aid systems for the development of an integrated approach for environmental monitoring, food security, and sustainable development in South East Asia.

Furthermore, the aim of the ASIACOVER Project is to integrate this source of land cover data with socio-economic information to serve as a decision aid for environmental sound decision making. Future and follow-up activities will focus on the identification of areas and countries for which no recent and reliable land cover information exists and the definition of a strategy to fill these gaps in partnership with other interested organizations and institutions.

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