When cities grow faster than their population

Projekt: Spatio-temporal analysis of Earth observation data for mapping the evolution and changes in land-use efficiencies of urban and other settlement areas

Forschende: Jojene R. Santillan, Mareike Dorozynski, Christian Heipke

Projektidee: How does the settlement area of a country change in relation to the population in the Philippines - an analysis over several decades.

Urbanization is a global trend that often leads to challenges like inefficient land use, especially when built-up area growth surpasses population increases. The UN Sustainable Development Goal SDG 11 emphasizes monitoring land use efficiency (LUE) using an indicator called LCRPGR, which compares land consumption and population growth rates over time to assess the balance between urban expansion and land use.

While Earth Observation (EO) data has been widely used for urban mapping and LUE assessment, gaps persist in accuracy assessments, in uncertainty quantification in LCRPGR calculations, and the integration of spatial and economic land-use dimensions. Additionally, the potential of machine and deep learning (ML/DL) remains underutilized for improving LUE predictions.

Our research focuses on addressing these gaps by advancing methodologies for urban area mapping and LUE monitoring in the Philippines and other regions. We aim to quantify how urban growth affects LUE, explore the use of time-series 3D EO data for deeper insights into LUE dynamics, and develop predictive models that combine satellite data with ML/DL techniques for LUE predictions to support sustainable urban planning.