Big Earth Data in Support of the Sustainable Development Goals (2022)—The Belt and Road

This open access book showcases the innovative practices of Big Earth Data methods through a collection of global comprehensive case studies to monitor and evaluate indicators for seven SDGs, i.e., zero hunger (SDG 2), clean water and sanitation (SDG 6), affordable and clean energy (SDG 7), sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11), climate action (SDG 13), life below water (SDG 14), life on land (SDG 15), and to analyzes the interactions among multiple SDGs indicators.

The emphasis on Big Earth Data is highly relevant within the context of growing global challenges. Disaster risk mitigation, climate change, global food security, resource management, and environmental challenges all are interlinked through earth systems and processes that are independent of human constructs. Therefore these case studies highlight methods and practices of spatial information mining and integrated SDG evaluation, which include evaluating the synergy and trade-off relationships among the SDGs in the context of their correlations; simulating multiple indicators’ interactions in environmental, economic, and social scenarios in the context of their temporal variations; designing integrated evaluations of regional SDGs in the context of experience with the study of multiple indicators. Big Earth Data therefore has the potential to support informed policy and decision support at global, regional, and local scales.

Introduction..- SDG 2 Zero Hunger.- SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation.- SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy.- SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities.- SDG 13 Climate Action.- SDG 14 Life Below Water.- Chapter 8  SDG 15 Life on Land.- Interactions Among SDGs and Integrated Evaluations.- Summary and Prospects.

Guo Huadong is Director General of the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS) and Professor of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Aerospace Information Research Institute. He is Academician of CAS, Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Foreign Member of the Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters, and Fellow of the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). He presently serves as Honorary President of the International Society for Digital Earth (ISDE), Director of the International Center on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage under the Auspices of UNESCO, Member of the International Science Council (ISC) Global Commission on Science Missions for Sustainability, Chair of Digital Belt and Road Program (DBAR), and Editor-in-Chief of two scientific journals International Journal of Digital Earth and Big Earth Data. He served as Member of UN 10-Member Group to support the Technology Facilitation Mechanism for SDGs (2018-2021), Chairman of the International Committee of Remote Sensing of Environment (2017-2020), and President of ISDE (2015-2019) and ICSU Committee on Data for Science and Technology (2010-2014). Prof. Guo specializes in remote sensing, radar for Earth observation, and Digital Earth science. He has published more than 500 papers and 24 books and is the awardee of 19 international and domestic prizes.