Suivi de la dégradation des forêts d’Afrique centrale et de la cartographie des routes dans la région

Un atelier a eu lieu au Centre Commun de Recherche (CCR), à Ispra (Italie), du 27 au 31 Mars 2017. Les activités de cet atelier se sont appuyées sur le projet ReCaREDD financé par la DG DEVCO et le Projet Roadless financé par DG CLIMA. L'atelier a réuni un groupe d'experts des pays partenaires du bassin du Congo en provenance du Cameroun, de la République Démocratique du Congo, et de la République du CongoJRC.D.1-Bio-econom

Refractory chronic GVHD emerging after splenectomy in a marrow transplant recipient with accelerated phase CML

We report a 39-year-old female patient who underwent HLA-identical sibling allogeneic BMT for CML in accelerated phase. Severe pancytopenia refractory to G-CSF associated with progressive splenomegaly and RBC/ platelet transfusion dependency were present from day + 60 after BMT. MRD assessed by FISH and RT-PCR multiplex for BCR-ABL rearrangement was negative, and complete chimerism was documented by VNTR on days + 100, + 180, + 360 and 2 years after BMT. Splenectomy was performed on day + 225 and pancytopenia resolved but chronic extensive graft-versus-host disease developed, with hepatic cholestasis, diffuse scleroderma and sicca-like syndrome. She was sequentially and progressively treated with different immunosuppressive therapy combinations with no clear benefit. On day + 940, she presented with infection over the previously present ulcers on both limbs, which culminated in septic shock and death on day + 1041. We conclude that, although splenectomy may reverse poor graft function after allogeneic BMT, hyposplenism may trigger or worsen chronic extensive GVHD leading to increased morbidity and mortality.Hosp São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilHosp São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc

ACP Fire Monitoring Tool for protected area management

This report documents the context and the objectives of a new Fire Monitoring Tool developed in the framework of the JRC activity in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Countries. Vegetation fires are widespread in Africa and are a key component of many ecosystems. They can be a cause of threat and damage for ecosystems not adapted to them, but for many African habi-tats fires are just as important as rain. As a consequence of this, dedicated fire programs are often included in the protected areas conservation plans to maintain or improve the ecosystem structure and the landscape diversity that are essential to biodiversity. Information on fire activity becomes therefore critical for the implementation of conservation programs and the man-agement of protected areas. With the support of Earth Observation (EO), fire monitoring is possible, at global level, over long time periods. However, EO products require technological know-how which is often limited for many ecologists and park managers. In this study we present a new tool for fire monitoring that we developed especially for people working in conservation and park management. The tool is a web client that provides historical and near-real time indicators of the fire activity derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) burned area and active fire products. The MODIS products are dis-tributed by NASA-FIRMS and the University of Maryland and cover more than a decade going from late 2000 to present. The web client is available on-line and produces, on the fly, graphs, tables and maps of the fire activity, for a selected protected area and period of time. The content and its graphical represen-tation have been designed to provide a synthesis of the fire activity with no need of additional softwares to visualize or use the data.JRC.H.5-Land Resources Managemen

eHabitat: A Contribution to the Model Web for Habitat Assessments and Ecological Forecasting

In striving to improve the predictive capabilities of ecological forecasting we face three basic choices ¿ develop new models, improve existing ones or increase the connectivity of models so they can work together. The latter approach of chaining different interoperable models is of particular interest, as technical developments have made it increasingly viable to combine models that can answer more questions than the individual models alone, allowing users to address complex questions, often of a multi-disciplinary nature. This concept of a Model Web encourages the setting up of a dynamic network of interoperating models, communicating with each other using standardized web services. It is the purpose of this paper to introduce the potential contribution of e-Habitat to the Model Web. e-Habitat is conceived as a Web Processing Service for computing the likelihood of finding ecosystems with equal properties. By developing e-Habitat according to Model Web principles, end-users can define the thematic layers for input to the model from various sources. These input layers are discovered using standards-based catalogues, which are a fundamental component of Model Web and generic Spatial Data Infrastructures. e-Habitat integrates data ranging from remote sensing data to socio-economical indicators, thus offering a huge potential for multi-disciplinary modelling. We will show that e-Habitat can be used for the identification of habitats that are most vulnerable or of the optimal locations for monitoring stations or, when coupled with climate change model services, for ecological forecasting. As such, it is an excellent example of the Model Web in practice.JRC.H.3-Global environement monitorin

On the Contribution of Remote Sensing to DOPA, a Digital Observatory for Protected Areas

The Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA) is a biodiversity information system currently developed as a set of interoperable web services at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission in collaboration with other international organizations, including GBIF, UNEP-WCMC, Birdlife International and RSPB. DOPA is not only designed to assess the state and pressure of Protected Areas (PAs) and to prioritize them accordingly, in order to support decision making and fund allocation processes, but it is also conceived as a monitoring and modeling service. To capture the dynamics of spatio-temporal changes in habitats and anthropogenic pressure on PAs, the automatic collection and processing of remote sensing data are processes at the heart of the system. In particular, DOPA uses information from EumetCAST and SpotVGT to compute environmental trends and detect anomalies every 10 days. Anthropogenic threats are also currently assessed through the analysis of agricultural pressure, population growth and habitat fragmentation around the protected areas. Fire activity in sub-Saharan protected areas which is derived from the MODIS fire products (active fires and burned areas) provide further support to park managers as well as to experts working for conservation and natural resource management. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the variety of uses of remote sensing data by the DOPA, the integration with other data sources, the practical implementation according to an architecture grounded in international initiatives such as GEOSS, GSDI and INSPIRE, and applications in monitoring and in ecological forecasting through e-Habitat, DOPAs¿ habitat modeling service.JRC.H.3-Global environement monitorin

A simple remote sensing based information system for monitoring sites of conservation importance

Monitoring is essential for conservation of sites, but capacity to undertake it in the field is often limited. Data collected by remote sensing has been identified as a partial solution to this problem, and is becoming a feasible option, since increasing quantities of satellite data in particular are becoming available to conservationists. When suitably classified, satellite imagery can be used to delineate land cover types such as forest, and to identify any changes over time. However, the conservation community lacks (a) a simple tool appropriate to the needs for monitoring change in all types of land cover (e.g. not just forest), and (b) an easily accessible information system which allows for simple land cover change analysis and data sharing to reduce duplication of effort. To meet these needs, we developed a web-based information system which allows users to assess land cover dynamics in and around protected areas (or other sites of conservation importance) from multi-temporal medium resolution satellite imagery. The system is based around an open access toolbox that pre-processes and classifies Landsat-type imagery, and then allows users to interactively verify the classification. These data are then open for others to utilize through the online information system. We first explain imagery processing and data accessibility features, and then demonstrate the toolbox and the value of user verification using a case study on Nakuru National Park, Kenya. Monitoring and detection of disturbances can support implementation of effective protection, assist the work of park managers and conservation scientists, and thus contribute to conservation planning, priority assessment and potentially to meeting monitoring needs for Aichi target 11

An introduction to the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA) and the DOPA Explorer (Beta)

The Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA) is conceived around a set of interacting Critical Biodiversity Informatics Infrastructures (databases, web modelling services, broadcasting services, ...) hosted at different institutions, including the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and BirdLife International. The current services of DOPA provide to a large variety of end-users, ranging from park managers, funding agencies to researchers, with means to assess, monitor and possibly forecast the state and pressure of protected areas at the local, national and global scales. With an introduction to the DOPA, the readers will find here a user manual of the beta version of DOPA Explorer, a first web based assessment tool where information on 9 000 protected areas covering almost 90% of the global protected surface has been processed automatically to generate a set of indicators on ecosystems, climate, phenology, species, ecosystem services and pressures. DOPA Explorer can so help identify the protected areas with most unique ecosystems and species and assess the pressures they are exposed to because of human development. Ecological data derived from and near real-time earth observations are also made available for the African continent. Inversely, DOPA Explorer indirectly highlights the protected areas for which the information is incomplete.JRC.H.5-Land Resources Managemen

An international expert survey on the indications and practice of radical thoracic reirradiation for non-small cell lung cancer

Purpose: Thoracic re-irradiation for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with curative intent is potentially associated with severe toxicity. There are limited prospective data on the best method to deliver this treatment. We sought to develop expert consensus guidance on the safe practice of treating NSCLC with radiotherapy in the setting of prior thoracic irradiation. Methods and materials: Twenty-one thoracic radiation oncologists were invited to participate in an international Delphi consensus process. Guideline statements were developed and refined over four rounds on the definition of re-irradiation, appropriate patients and pre-treatment assessments, planning of radiotherapy, and cumulative dose constraints. Consensus was achieved once ≥75% of respondents agreed with a statement. Statements that did not reach consensus in the initial survey rounds were revised based on respondents’ comments and re-presented in subsequent rounds. Results: Fifteen radiation oncologists participated in the four surveys between September 2019 and March 2020. The first three rounds had a 100% response rate, and the final round was completed by 93% of participants. 33 out of 77 statements across all rounds achieved consensus. Key recommendations are: (1) appropriate patients should have a good performance status, can have locally relapsed disease or second primary cancers, and there are no absolute lung function values that preclude re-irradiation; (2) a full diagnostic work-up should be performed in patients with suspected local recurrence and; (3) any re-irradiation should be delivered using optimal image-guidance and highly conformal techniques. In addition, consensus cumulative dose for the organs at risk in the thorax are described. Conclusion: These consensus statements provide practical guidance on appropriate patient selection for re-irradiation, appropriate radiotherapy techniques, and cumulative dose constraints

ARTEFACTS: How do we want to deal with the future of our one and only planet?

The European Commission’s Science and Knowledge Service, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), decided to try working hand-in-hand with leading European science centres and museums. Behind this decision was the idea that the JRC could better support EU Institutions in engaging with the European public. The fact that European Union policies are firmly based on scientific evidence is a strong message which the JRC is uniquely able to illustrate. Such a collaboration would not only provide a platform to explain the benefits of EU policies to our daily lives but also provide an opportunity for European citizens to engage by taking a more active part in the EU policy making process for the future. A PILOT PROGRAMME To test the idea, the JRC launched an experimental programme to work with science museums: a perfect partner for three compelling reasons. Firstly, they attract a large and growing number of visitors. Leading science museums in Europe have typically 500 000 visitors per year. Furthermore, they are based in large European cities and attract local visitors as well as tourists from across Europe and beyond. The second reason for working with museums is that they have mastered the art of how to communicate key elements of sophisticated arguments across to the public and making complex topics of public interest readily accessible. That is a high-value added skill and a crucial part of the valorisation of public-funded research, never to be underestimated. Finally museums are, at present, undergoing something of a renaissance. Museums today are vibrant environments offering new techniques and technologies to both inform and entertain, and attract visitors of all demographics.JRC.H.2-Knowledge Management Methodologies, Communities and Disseminatio