If you want to know where a river might flood next, or how land use is changing around a growing city, you need maps and people who can read them. That is the work of Jahangirnagar's Institute of Remote Sensing and GIS, which uses satellite data and spatial analysis to track land use, map flood risk and monitor climate change in Bangladesh.
Training as much as research
The institute provides skills development training, undertakes research and facilitates knowledge sharing on the social, economic and ecological challenges that come with disasters and climate change. Its list of past activities is long: certificate courses on remote sensing, GIS, GNSS and drone technology; training for professionals; a course on geospatial applications for women; and workshops on Google Earth Engine, spatial analysis using R and OpenStreetMap.
GIS Day 2024
To mark GIS Day on 19 November 2024 the institute organised "Building Geospatial Skills: A Beginner Guide to QGIS and OpenStreetMap", a workshop run as a YouthMappers initiative. A few weeks later, on 8 December 2024, it welcomed students entering its MSc in Remote Sensing and GIS programme.
Maps for farmers and planners
The same tools support agriculture and planning. Through the Department of Geography and Environment, the university reported a training workshop on building a complete agricultural block model using GIS and remote sensing, relevant to agricultural mapping and planning. Elsewhere the institute has held a disaster apps development workshop, a seminar on geospatial technologies in community risk assessment, and an international conference on geospatial applications in disaster management.
The common thread is practical: give communities and decision-makers the tools to plan ahead, rather than react after the water has already risen.