In an instant, climate shocks like floods and storms can devastate communities, damaging farmland and infrastructure and wiping out years of hard-won progress.
One of the best tools to confront this global challenge is satellite data. That is why USAID partnered with NASA in 2005 to create SERVIR. The project combines data from Earth-observing satellites, ground-based systems and geospatial technology to provide weather forecasts and analysis to local farmers, enabling them to take action before a crisis strikes.
In West Africa, SERVIR uses satellite data to inform pastoralists through local radio where to locate water for livestock during the dry season. In Nepal, a 48-hour flash-flood bulletin affords a potentially lifesaving early warning system. In Honduras, water flow forecasts from SERVIR mitigated the devastating impact of back-to-back Hurricanes Iota and Eta in 2020 by providing real-time information so a major hydroelectric dam could safely manage stormwater, preventing even greater flood damage in the region.
Hundreds of women farmers have improved their yields, as well as their family diets. In the Intibucá department of Honduras, more than a quarter of residents currently face crisis levels…
Read MoreEarth observation data supported Cyclone Amphan damage and loss assessment / Illustration Credit: Sudip Maharjan/ICIMOD) Satellites and digital technologies have improved how we understand and respond to impacts of climate…
Read MoreIn 2004, Mira DC opened her first agricultural tools store, Janata Agrovet, where she sells vegetables, maize, and rice seeds as well as rice, insecticides, fertilizers and other farming equipment. At first, sales were slow, in part because she had few relationships with farmers, wholesalers, traders, other organizations and the local municipality – and many were men. Mira partnered with a Feed the Future project called USAID Knowledge-based Integrated Sustainable Agriculture in Nepal II (KISAN II). USAID KISAN II aims to increase resilience, inclusiveness and sustainability for more than 200,000 agribusiness owners like Mira.
Read MoreAlthough 70 percent of its population generates income through agriculture, Nepal struggles to produce an adequate, affordable supply of safe, nutritious food, especially for women and other disadvantaged groups. Nepal…
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