Program

Outline
This workshop will provide participants with hands-on training on the use of Google Earth Engine (GEE) for remote sensing applications aimed at the ecology and conservation of steppe birds. Participants will learn how to pre-process imageries and calculate baseline ecological metrics like the NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index).      
Through guided exercises, participants will apply remote sensing techniques to quickly create NDVI time series and visualize them within GEE. Furthermore, the workshop will demonstrate how to match telemetry data from bird tracking studies with satellite-derived data at multiple scales, an essential step to explore relationships between bird movement patterns with environmental variables. This approach will offer research opportunities into habitat selection, movement ecology, and behavioral patterns, all essential for effective conservation strategies.      
The workshop will combine theoretical presentations with hands-on coding sessions, making it suitable for participants at a beginner/intermediate level of experience in remote sensing. Participants will also gain practical experience in customizing analysis workflows and applying them to real-world conservation challenges. This workshop will equip participants with essential skills to leverage remote sensing for more informed decision-making in the conservation of steppe bird habitats.

Overall and specific objectives
Equip participants with practical remote sensing skills to address conservation challenges for steppe birds.      
Specific Objectives:      
Understand the basics of GEE.      
Learn techniques for data pre-processing.      
Derive habitat quality metrics.      
Apply time-series analyses.      
Integrate telemetry data with remote sensing time series metrics.

Related topics
Dynamics and drivers of habitat change in steppe and pseudo-steppe ecosystems.      
Evolutionary and behavioral ecology of steppe birds.      
Conservation strategies and policy mechanisms.

Benefits for participants
Participants will gain hands-on experience in remote sensing techniques, with a focus on GEE, enabling them to process and analyze large-scale environmental datasets rapidly and match with telemetry data.

Workshop length
210 minutes

Number of participants
20

Target audience
Researchers, conservation practitioners, and students with an interest in steppe bird ecology and conservation.

Technical requirements     
Important preparation step for participants: Since the analyses will be conducted on the cloud computing platform Google Earth Engine (GEE), attendees must first subscribe to GEE and load the necessary materials as soon as possible. This is crucial, as the GEE account approval process can take some time, and participants will need access to the platform to follow the hands-on exercises. To facilitate this, I have prepared a detailed guide that outlines:

How to subscribe to Google Earth Engine for free using an academic account.
How to load the prepared materials, including shapefiles.
How to access and run the provided code for data extraction.

     
Link to download the guidelines and workshop materials:

https://osf.io/jwchx

Francesco Valerio

Biography not available