Dr. Muhammad Kamal, a distinguished member of the UGM Faculty of Geography, ascended to the rank of professor in the domain of remote sensing of vegetation.
His elevation followed his inaugural address, “The Role of Remote Sensing in Nurturing Mangrove Ecosystems Amidst Climate Variability,” delivered Tuesday (Feb. 13) at the UGM Senate Hall.
During his address, Professor Kamal underscored the pivotal role of remote sensing technology in furnishing diverse thematic insights concerning the status and vitality of mangroves locally, nationally, and globally.
Referring to the national mangrove map of 2019, he highlighted that approximately 2.6 million hectares of mangrove forests in Indonesia thrive, while 637,624 hectares, equivalent to 19.26 percent, are in a precarious state, necessitating systematic and integrative endeavors to bolster more effective mangrove stewardship.
Professor Kamal lauded the growing awareness regarding the significance of conserving and revitalizing mangrove ecosystems, attributable to a slew of governmental policies and collaborative efforts from private entities, non-governmental organizations, and local communities.
He emphasized that efforts to safeguard and rehabilitate mangrove habitats must harness the power of remote sensing technology to monitor their health over time, delineate species composition, gauge productivity, and ascertain carbon stock.
However, it is imperative to validate these approaches on the ground to devise standardized, reproducible, efficient, and precise methodologies for mangrove mapping and monitoring using remote sensing imagery.
Given that remote sensing data is acquired from altitudes ranging from tens to hundreds of kilometers above the earth’s surface, Professor Kamal stressed the meticulous formulation of methodologies to maximize the utility of remote sensing images for mangrove studies.
“To optimize the use of remote sensing images for mangrove studies, they need to be formulated properly,” he urged.
Advancements in sensor technology and remote sensing platforms have diversified the spectrum of available remote sensing imagery, encompassing varied stem sensors, pixel dimensions, spectral channels, and temporal resolutions.
This array of remote sensing imagery opens opportunities for exploring diverse image data types and processing techniques or their amalgamation for mangrove mapping and monitoring.
Professor Kamal underscored that leveraging remote sensing imagery has the potential to underpin decision-making processes and policy formulation, highlighting the imperative for collaborative synergy among academia, practitioners, and policymakers to harness this technology for safeguarding Indonesia’s mangrove ecosystems.
Author: Gusti Grehenson
Photographer: Donnie