About the meeting Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDDRMA) and ICIMOD have begun collaborating on multi-hazard risk assessments in the country. As a part of the joint efforts, this workshop will provide a platform to introduce, discuss, and gather feedback on landslide and flood mapping and forecasting tools and their current and future capabilities, and provide training to relevant stakeholders in Nepal. The workshop will help foster collaboration among stakeholders to address the evolving needs in disaster management in the country. The workshop is also aimed at providing technical support to the task force on Multi Hazard Risk Assessment and Multi Hazard Early Warning System in Nepal. These tools are being developed under ICIMOD’s SERVIR-HKH (an initiative jointly undertaken by USAID and NASA), and with support from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Alaska Satellite Faculty, University of Alaska. Objectives Familiarise participants with the capabilities and effectiveness of available landslide risk mapping and forecasting tools for the Karnali River Basin. Share planned activities and methodology for the development of HydroSAR daily water extent forecasting. This innovative approach aims to provide reliable predictions of water levels on a daily basis. Seek feedback from participants regarding the performance of the forecasting models and gather suggestions for possible upgrades. This feedback will help refine the models to meet the specific needs of stakeholders. Bring together relevant stakeholders who are actively involved in landslide and flood disaster management, providing a platform for them to share their experiences, challenges, and current requirements. Background Weather-related hazards, such as floods and landslides, have a significant impact on the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region due to their high frequency, substantial financial costs, and adverse effects on the population and socioeconomic activities. During severe weather events, Earth observation data play a critical role in gathering information about past and current incidents, as well as the extent of landslides, unstable slopes, and surface inundation. This valuable information, along with weather forecast data, can be used to predict and prepare for future hazards. Additionally, integrating this data with other social and infrastructure information enables effective disaster response efforts and informed decision-making processes. In Nepal, landslides and floods are major natural hazards that result in the loss of lives, property damage, and significant infrastructure destruction each year. To enhance understanding and forecasting systems for these hazards, ICIMOD has been collaborating with NASA-GSFC to develop a landslide mapping and forecasting system for the Karnali River Basin, Nepal, and with the University of Alaska on developing daily flood water extent forecasting and ground slope motion analysis using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) data. With support and guidance from the NDRRMA, this joint activity has been commencing under ICIMOD’s SERVIR-HKH programme. Tentative agenda 7–10 August 2023 | Kailash Hall, ICIMOD, Kathmandu Nepal All time stamps are in Nepal Standard Time (NPT). DAY 1 – MONDAY, 7 AUGUST 2023 Time Programme Speaker/resource persons 09:30–10:00 Registration and tea/coffee Rajesh Shrestha, ICIMOD Session 1: Opening session 10:00–10:30 Welcome remarks by DG/DDG, ICIMOD Welcome remarks by Chief Executive, NDRRMA Introduction of participants Moderated by NDRRMA (TBC) 10:30–10:35 Introduction to SERVIR and objectives of the meeting (Birendra Bajracharya, Chief of Party, SERVIR-HKH, ICIMOD) 10:35–10:40 Introduction to landslide work in the Karnali Basin (NASA-GSFC) 10:40–10:45 Introduction to AST HydroSAR-NG (ASF, UAF ALASKA) 10:45–11:00 Group photograph and tea break Session 2: HydroSAR daily water extent forecasting 11:00–12:00 Background and status of HydroSAR-NG water mapping ASF, UAF ALASKA 12:00–12:30 Next steps in water mapping: Concepts towards daily flood extent information ASF, UAF ALASKA 12:30–13:30 Lunch break 13:30–14:30 Exercise 1: Prototype of daily flood inundation for the HKH using FIER ASF, UAF ALASKA 14:30–15:00 Product definition, timeline, future work ASF, UAF ALASKA 15:00–15:15 Tea break 15:15–16:30 Discussion and feedback on Use of data Hone requirements Feedback on initial plans Identify potential partners for co-development ASF, UAF ALASKA & ICIMOD 16:30–17:00 Wrap-up for HydroSAR-NG flood water mapping ASF, UAF ALASKA & ICIMOD DAY 2 – TUESDAY, 8 AUGUST 2023 Time Programme Speaker/resource persons Session 3: HydroSAR-NG slope motion detection 09:30–10:00 Introduction of HydroSAR-NG slope motion detection project ASF, UAF ALASKA 10:00–10:30 Introduction of SAR /InSAR and slope motion detection in Nepal (future products, capabilities, and limitations) ASF, UAF ALASKA 10:30–10:45 Tea break 10:45–11:30 Introduction of SAR /InSAR and slope motion detection in Nepal (future products, capabilities, and limitations) ASF, UAF ALASKA 11:30–12:30 Short exercise and discussions ASF, UAF ALASKA 12:30–13:30 Lunch break Session 4: Training on landslide mapping 13:30–14:00 Introduction of SALAD and SALAD-CD NASA-GSFC 14:00–15:00 Exercise 2: Landslide mapping using SALAD in Google Colab NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD 15:00–15:15 Tea break 15:15–16:00 Exercise 3: Landslide mapping using SALAD-CD in Google Colab NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD 16:00–17:00 Discussion and feedback ICIMOD, NASA-GSFC DAY 3 – WEDNESDAY, 9 AUGUST 2023 Time Programme Speaker/resource persons Session 4: Training on landslide forecasting system for the Karnali Basin (LHASA 2.0) 09:30–10:00 Introduction on LHASA 2.0 NASA-GSFC 10:00–10:30 System setup for the exercise NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD 10:30–10: 45 Tea break 10:45–11:30 Introduction on LHASA-Karnali model NASA-GSFC 11:30–12:30 Exercise 4: Walkthrough of LHASA-Karnali model NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD 12:30–13: 30 Lunch break 13:30–15:00 Continue Exercise 4 and demonstration of landslide forecast visualisation and HIWAT NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD 15:00–15:15 Tea break 15:15–17:00 Discussion on LHASA-Karnali model and feedback NASA-GSFC, ICIMOD DAY 4 – THURSDAY, 10 AUGUST 2023 Time Programme Speaker/resource persons Session 4: Stakeholder consultation and feedback 09:30–12:00 Reflections Recap of the training workshop – lessons and alignments from the participants Discussion on further plan and needs, and overall feedback for improvement Moderator: NDRRMA/ICIMOD 10:30–10:45 Tea break 12:00–12:30 Wrap up and closing 12:30–13:30 Lunch break