Open Foris: Open Source Software Tools Launched. Press Release. FAO has launched free software tools that it hopes will improve the way many developing nations monitor the state of their forests to tackle deforestation and climate change.
The tools are designed to assist countries
through the entire lifecycle of a forest inventory - from assessment, design
and field data collection to analysis and reporting. The governments of Finland and Germany have supported the
development of the software called Open Foris.
Global knowledge sharing platform
The Forestry Department of the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization helps nations manage their forests in
a sustainable way. Accurate
information about forests is crucial for governments to manage their natural
resources sustainably, but nearly 80 percent of developing countries have
difficulty obtaining and using basic information about their forest resources.
At the same time, deforestation and forest
degradation - largely taking place in developing countries - are among the
largest sources of carbon emissions globally caused by humans.
"Many countries simply do not have a
full picture of what is happening in their forests, and without that knowledge
it is hard to develop effective forest policies to combat deforestation and
forest degradation or to advance national climate change strategies,"
Eduardo Rojas-Briales, Assistant Director-General for Forestry, explained.
"We hope that Open Foris will be a
game changer, as it is the first comprehensive open source tool that will not
only guide the countries through the whole process of data collection and
analysis but will also encourage and facilitate open knowledge sharing in an
innovative way. Increased transparency will help the policy makers obtain the
information they need to make informed decisions," he added.
The new FAO tools also simplify the
complex process of transforming raw data such as tree measurements and
satellite imagery into valuable information in the form of interactive web
pages with statistics, graphs, maps and reports.
In addition, the software includes
built-in tools to help countries meet international reporting requirements, for
example in the context of REDD+
activities related to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest
degradation and increasing the carbon stock in forests.
Piloting in more than 10 countries
Released at the 2014 International Union of
Forest Research Organizations' World Congress in Salt
Lake City, Open Foris tools are already being successfully tested in
more than 10 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
For example, earlier this year Ecuador and Tanzania
completed their first national forest inventories with the help of Open Foris
tools, and a number of experts from other countries, such as Argentina, Bhutan,
Papua New Guinea and Uruguay have
recently received training to use different components of the software.
Viet Nam carries out a national forest inventory every five
years, and for the first time has been piloting Open Foris in one region after
adapting the open source code to use the software in Vietnamese.
Forest rangers collect information on canopy cover and the number, size,
species and quality of trees as well as the use of forest resources by local
populations before entering the data into Open Foris software back at the
office.
"It enables us to calculate variables and changes to the forest and tree
resources within a certain period, as well as changes to other environmental
values of the forests such as carbon pools, biodiversity and non-timber forest
products," said Ho Manh Tuong of Viet Nam'sForest Inventory and Planning
Institute. "Through the program, the complete national forest stock can be
assessed."
The inventory will soon become even more efficient when rangers start using an
Open Foris tool that enables them to enter data directly with their smartphones
or tablets, eliminating the need to input information collected on paper
forms.
Open Foris tools in detail
Collect
EarthWorks with Google Earth
for a pre-assessment of forest resources
Collect
DesktopHelps design a survey
specifying all the types of data to be collected and produces a data entry
interface
Collect
MobileEnables data entry for
hand-held devices and tablets during collection in the field
CalcAnalyses data and helps
create results visualization
Geospatial
Toolkit
Processes remote sensing and other geospatial data
VIDEO:
Free forestry software in the battle against climate change
AUDIO:
David Morales, a Forestry Officer with FAO in Rome, explains more
about why these new tools are necessary
LEARN MORE:
Open Foris tools
FAO Forest Monitoring
and Assessment
Finland-FAO
Forestry Programme
Capacity
Building for REDD+
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ABOUT FAO
Achieving food security for
all is at the heart of FAO's efforts - to make sure people have regular access
to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. Our three main
goals are: the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition; the elimination
of poverty and the driving forward of economic and social progress for all;
and, the sustainable management and utilization of natural resources, including
land, water, air, climate and genetic resources for the benefit of present and
future generations.
FAO creates and shares
critical information about food, agriculture and natural resources in the
form of global public goods. But this is not a one-way flow. We play a
connector role, through identifying and working with different partners with
established expertise, and facilitating a dialogue between those who have the
knowledge and those who need it. By turning knowledge into action, FAO links
the field to national, regional and global initiatives in a mutually
reinforcing cycle. By joining forces, we facilitate partnerships for food and
nutrition security, agriculture and rural development between governments,
development partners, civil society and the private sector.
An intergovernmental
organization, FAO has 194 Member Nations, two associate members and one member
organization, the European Union. Headquartered in Rome, Italy,
FAO is present in over 130 countries. http://www.fao.org
CONTACT:
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(+39) 06 570 53625
FAO-Newsroom@fao.org
George Kourous
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Irina Utkina
Media Relations (Rome)
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irina.utkina@fao.org
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