Google LLC

Objective(s) of the engagement

This partnership aims at leveraging Google’s technical expertise in geospatial products (such as the Google Earth Engine) to enhance FAO-led initiatives for the monitoring of natural resources, livelihoods and the environment. This includes promoting the application of these tools through trainings and events such as conferences and fora.


Thematic area of partnership
Environment
GEOGRAPHIC FOCUS
Global, North America, Global or Regional
Engagement Mechanisms
Technical cooperation, Knowledge and research, Innovation, Data sharing and dissemination
Progress to date
  • Launch of a training programme in the forestry sector in to support the establishment National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMS) in 19 countries, including training of 19 teams of experts on the use of Remote Sensing and GIS techniques for forest monitoring undertaken
  • Explored the various uses of the Google Earth Engine that include facilitating data collection, analysis and access in addressing specific problems, namely desert locusts, greenhouse gases, deforestation and forest degradation, and vessel registration
  • Google Engine adopted by FAO’s Emergency Center for Locust Operations as a tool to improve the forecasting and control of outbreaks of this pest
  • 25 FAO Member States have reported land-use data to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
  • Assistance provided for the development of the FAO Atlas of Automatic Identification System (AIS)-based Fishing Footprint and Effort in partnership with Global Fishing Watch
  • Google Earth Engine (GEE) is used by FAOSTAT to process geospatial data for multiple datasets in the Agri-environment domain. 
  • Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) uses GEE to support the development of the FRA 2020 Remote Sensing Survey and a side study on mangroves. 
  • The forestry data team uses GEE for various projects including Drivers of Deforestation and Degradation in Central Africa and Forest Data Partnership. 
  • SEPAL is a free, open-source online platform that uses GEE to enable autonomous processing of geospatial data for customized land and forest monitoring. 
  • A web-based Rift Valley fever Early Warning Decision Support Tool has been developed with the support of GEE. 
  • Agricultural Stress Index System (ASIS) monitors agricultural drought across the globe using satellite technology and GEE. 
  • Earth Map is an innovative, free and open-source tool developed by FAO in partnership with Google that uses GEE to monitor land in an easy, integrated and multi-temporal manner. 
  • The IT division has published the Hand in Hand initiative geospatial platform which provides geospatial data visual service and support data download and zonal analysis using GEE. 
  • The CSI Geospatial Analysis team performs extractions of zonal statistics from global raster data on the Earth Engine platform while utilizing specific country boundaries. 
  • GEE has been used to develop several Decision Support System (DSS) at both regional and national/subnational levels for Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN). 

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Related SDGs

Country of registry
United States of America
Partner Website
https://about.google/
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