News

Agricultural and hydrological drought monitoring and early warning systems; drought impacts and climate risk financing; land use practice and policies; and crop mapping and yield estimation are key areas related to agriculture and climate services. These and the emerging potential of Earth observation information and climate modelling in reducing climate related vulnerabilities in the agriculture sector in South and Southeast Asia were discussed at a forum held in Kathmandu recently. The Regional Knowledge Forum on Drought was held at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development Centre (ICIMOD) from 8–10 October.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL), Afghanistan, organized a consultation workshop to develop a system for characterizing watersheds and monitoring rangelands in Afghanistan. The activity was carried out under its SERVIR Hindu Kush Himalaya (SERVIR-HKH) initiative.

The monitoring of glaciers and glacial lakes in Afghanistan is at a nascent stage. While a few studies on glaciers in Afghanistan based on topographic maps do exist, analysing glacier outlines from such maps is difficult and has its fair share of uncertainties.

SERVIR Hindu Kush Himalaya (SERVIR–HKH) initiative at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is currently developing a number of applications on GEE, which are being used by scientists, researchers, governments, and non-profits to quantify environmental changes.

Forests play a vital role in combating climate change and mitigating its effects. In Nepal, they are a source of livelihood for the country’s growing population. With impacts on forests growing due to climate change, forest degradation, and deforestation...

Miss Tech Nepal is an annual national competition designed by women to engage women in technology.

The American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting is the largest earth and space science meeting that brings together science communities from across the globe in the pursuit of high quality science and knowledge, working to ensure a sustainable future.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) recently launched a new online Food Security Information System to map and visualize patterns of food security, poverty and malnutrition in Nepal.

Floods are a common and often major disaster event in the Hindu Kush Himalaya during the monsoon season. The advent of the monsoon in June and over the next three months brings with it floods and landslides in the region. The Daily Star in Bangladesh reports that 20 districts in Bangladesh have been flooded, with an additional nine in danger of inundation.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) hosted a meeting to facilitate the implementation of the Himalayan Global Earth Observation System of Systems (Himalayan GEOSS) at its headquarters in Kathmandu, Nepal in August 2017.