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DOWN TO EARTH Geographic Information for Sustainable Development in Africa Committee on the Geographic Foundation for Agenda 21 Committee on Geography Mapping Science Committee Board on Earth Sciences and Resources Division on Earth and Life Studies THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS Washington, D.C. www.nap.edu THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS • 500 Fifth Street, N.W. • Washington, DC 20001 NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appro- priate balance. This study was jointly sponsored by the Environmental Systems Research Institute, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Imagery and Mapping Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Depart- ment of State, and U.S. Geological Survey. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the orga- nizations or agencies that provided support for this project. International Standard Book Number: 0-309-08478-4 Library of Congress Control Number: 2002110505 Front cover: Left—a GeoCover-Ortho image of Mount Kilimanjaro originally obtained at 30 × 30 m spatial resolution. It has a positional accuracy of better than 50 m (root mean square error). Landsat TM bands 7,4,2 (mid-infrared, near-infrared, and green) are displayed (courtesy of Earth Satellite Corpora- tion). Each color or shade is unique and depends on the vegetation type, health, and growth stage. The bright greens are dense vegetation. The purples and pinks are sparse to no vegetation. The bottom third center of the image along Mount Kilimanjaro’s lower slopes contains areas of clear cuts (in pinks) sur- rounded by uncut verdant forest (bright greens). The top of the mountain is snow-covered (blue) and the white areas are clouds. Upper Right—artist’s rendition of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission 60-m (200-ft) mast being deployed from the space shuttle Endeavor (courtesy NASA Jet Propulsion Labora- tory). Radar images are collected from the end of the mast and from the shuttle payload bay. Lower Right—paper maps used in decision support in Namibia (courtesy of Jo Tagg, Namibia Nature Founda- tion). Cover designed by Van Nguyen Copies of this report are available from: The National Academies Press 500 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20055 Lockbox 285 800-624-6242 202-334-3313 (in the Washington metropolitan area) http://www.nap.edu Copyright 2002 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished schol- ars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Acad- emy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering pro- grams aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Acad- emy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. www.national-academies.org COMMITTEE ON THE GEOGRAPHIC FOUNDATION FOR AGENDA 21 JOHN R. JENSEN, Chair, University of South Carolina, Columbia KWESI BOTCHWEY, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts ELLEN BRENNAN-GALVIN, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C. CHRISTIAN J. JOHANNSEN, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana CALESTOUS JUMA, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts AKINLAWON L. MABOGUNJE, Development Policy Center, Ibadan, Nigeria ROBERTA BALSTAD MILLER, Columbia University, Palisades, New York KEVIN P. PRICE, University of Kansas, Lawrence PRISCILLA A. C. REINING (Retired), International Office of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C. DAVID L. SKOLE, Michigan State University, East Lansing ANDREW STANCIOFF, Stone Environmental, Inc., Washington, D.C. D. R. FRASER TAYLOR, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada NRC Staff ANTHONY R. de SOUZA, Director, Board on Earth Sciences and Resources PAUL M. CUTLER, Study Director LISA M. VANDEMARK, Study Director KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer EILEEN M. McTAGUE, Research Assistant TERESIA K. WILMORE, Project Assistant iv COMMITTEE ON GEOGRAPHY BILLIE L. TURNER II, Chair, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts BERNARD O. BAUER, University of Southern California, Los Angeles RUTH S. DEFRIES, University of Maryland, College Park ROGER M. DOWNS, Pennsylvania State University, University Park MICHAEL F. GOODCHILD, University of California, Santa Barbara SUSAN HANSON, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts SARA L. MCLAFFERTY, University of Illinois, Urbana ELLEN S. MOSLEY-THOMPSON, The Ohio State University, Columbus ERIC S. SHEPPARD, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis NRC Staff KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer MONICA R. LIPSCOMB, Research Assistant VERNA J. BOWEN, Administrative Associate v MAPPING SCIENCE COMMITTEE DAVID J. COWEN, Chair, University of South Carolina, Columbia ANNETTE J. KRYGIEL, Vice-Chair, Independent Consultant, Integro, Great Falls, Virginia ERIC A. ANDERSON, City of Des Moines, Iowa WILLIAM J. CRAIG, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis MARK MONMONIER, Syracuse University, New York JOEL MORRISON, Ohio State University, Columbus SHERYL G. OLIVER, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Springfield HARLAN J. ONSRUD, University of Maine, Orono C. STEPHEN SMYTH, MobileGIS, Ltd., Bellevue, Washington JAMES V. TARANIK, University of Nevada, Reno REX W. TRACY, BAE Systems, San Diego, California A. KEITH TURNER, Colorado School of Mines, Golden NRC Staff PAUL M. CUTLER, Program Officer RADHIKA S. CHARI, Senior Project Assistant vi BOARD ON EARTH SCIENCES AND RESOURCES RAYMOND JEANLOZ, Chair, University of California, Berkeley JILL BANFIELD, University of California, Berkeley STEVEN R. BOHLEN, Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Washington, D.C. VICKI J. COWART, Colorado Geological Survey, Denver DAVID L. DILCHER, University of Florida, Gainesville ADAM M. DZIEWONSKI, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts WILLIAM L. GRAF, University of South Carolina, Columbia RHEA GRAHAM, New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, Albuquerque GEORGE M. HORNBERGER, University of Virginia, Charlottesville DIANNE R. NIELSON, Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Salt Lake City MARK SCHAEFER, NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia BILLIE L. TURNER II, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts THOMAS J. WILBANKS, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee NRC Staff ANTHONY R. de SOUZA, Director TAMARA L. DICKINSON, Senior Program Officer DAVID A. FEARY, Senior Program Officer ANNE M. LINN, Senior Program Officer PAUL M. CUTLER, Program Officer KRISTEN L. KRAPF, Program Officer KERI H. MOORE, Program Officer LISA M. VANDEMARK, Program Officer YVONNE P. FORSBERGH, Research Assistant MONICA R. LIPSCOMB, Research Assistant EILEEN M. McTAGUE, Research Assistant JENNIFER T. ESTEP, Administrative Associate VERNA J. BOWEN, Administrative Associate RADHIKA S. CHARI, Senior Project Assistant KAREN L. IMHOF, Senior Project Assistant SHANNON L. RUDDY, Senior Project Assistant TERESIA K. WILMORE, Project Assistant WINFIELD SWANSON, Editorial Consultant vii Acknowledgments This report has been reviewed in draft form by individu- Dr. Barry N. Haack als chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical exper- George Mason University tise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Fairfax, Virginia Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical Dr. David Kaplan comments that will assist the institution in making its pub- Department of Trade and Industry lished report as sound as possible and to ensure that the re- Cape Town, South Africa port meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review com- Dr. Pamela A. Matson ments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect Stanford University the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank California the following individuals for their review of this report: Dr. John Mugabe Dr. André Bassolé African Centre for Technology Studies Environmental Information Systems in sub-Saharan Africa Nairobi, Kenya (EIS-AFRICA) Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Dr. Marilyn Silberfein Temple University Dr. Ruth S. Defries Philadelphia, Pennsylvania University of Maryland College Park Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked Dr. Paul V. Desanker to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they University of Virginia see the final draft of the report before its release. The review Charlottesville of this report was overseen by Dr. Thomas J. Wilbanks, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Dr. Brian J. L. Berry, Uni- Dr. Michael F. Goodchild versity of Texas. Appointed by the National Research Coun- University of California cil, they were responsible for making certain that an inde- Santa Barbara pendent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review Dr. James Guseh comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the North Carolina Central University final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring Durham committee and the institution. ix
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