2024 Earth at Risk Image Contest Winners

We’re excited to share the winners of the Earth at Risk Image Contest, organized by the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS) Young Professionals!

With over 45 stunning entries from more than 14 countries, the third edition of our contest highlighted the global passion for using remote sensing and geospatial technologies to bring environmental challenges into focus. Each submission told a powerful story, and we were truly inspired by the creativity and thought behind them.

This contest judging panel includes the below and was led by members from the REACT Technical Committee:

• Irena Hanjsek, ETH Zürich and the German Aerospace Center
• Jakob Steiner, University of Graz (Austria) / Himalayan University Consortium
• Mohammed Khalid, GRSS Young Professionals Team

To everyone who submitted — thank you. Your contributions made this contest a real celebration of science, awareness, and art.

We’re now proud to present the top three images that impressed our judges the most. Scroll down to see the winners!

FIRST PLACE:

Adityarajsinh Jayendrasinh Parmar, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India

“Since October 7, 2023, over 70,000 tons of bombs have ravaged Gaza, significantly escalating an already dire humanitarian and environmental crisis. This study utilizes Sentinel-2 satellite data, with images from July 2023 (pre-conflict) and July 2024, along with NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) analysis, to assess the war’s impact on the environment. The analysis reveals severe damage to vegetation health, with extensive destruction of farmlands and  irrigation systems across Gaza, North Gaza, and Deir Al-Balah. Once-lush fields have turned into barren landscapes, leading to a dramatic decline in crop health and soil quality.

As the conflict continues, the bombardments and deliberate destruction of infrastructure further compromise Gaza’s agricultural production capabilities. This ongoing destruction not only undermines immediate food security but also threatens the region’s ecological balance and long-term sustainability.

Already, 96% of Gaza’s population faces severe food insecurity as of September 2024, and the situation is likely to worsen.

The satellite imagery underscores how the ongoing conflict exacerbates both a humanitarian crisis and Earth’s environmental imbalance. The extensive damage to key areas highlights the broader environmental impact of war, which is poised to inflict even greater harm on ecosystem stability and global food resources if the violence persists. This evidence illustrates the urgent need to address the environmental repercussions of conflict to protect planetary health.”

~ Adityarajsinh Jayendrasinh Parmar

SECOND PLACE:

Odunlami Oluwabunm, Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Nigeria

“This heat risk map of Kano Metropolis, Nigeria, vividly illustrates the escalating impact of urban heat islands (UHIs) exacerbated by rapid urbanization, minimal vegetation cover, and high population density. By integrating data from Landsat 8, Sentinel-2, and WorldPop, the map highlights areas with varying heat risk levels, emphasizing zones at “Very High” risk.

The image synthesizes three critical factors contributing to heat vulnerability: lack of tree canopy, maximum land surface temperature (LST), and population density. Wards like Yalwa, Zango, and Kantudu, characterized by minimal greenery and densely packed settlements, experience the highest heat stress. The darker shades on the map correlate with severe heat exposure, posing significant health risks, especially to vulnerable populations.

This visualization underscores the urgent need for sustainable urban planning and greening initiatives. The critical role of remote sensing in this context is evident; it enables the identification of high-risk areas and informs policymakers and urban planners about where intervention is most needed. As climate change continues to intensify, the ability to monitor and mitigate heat risks through Earth Observation (EO) data is indispensable for protecting urban populations and enhancing resilience against future environmental crises.”

~ Odunlami Oluwabunm

THIRD PLACE

Muhammad Bilal, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, Austria

“Wetlands, among the most exploited and vulnerable ecosystems, have recently gained attention due to their complex roles in environmental and socioeconomic systems. The Ramsar Convention recognized the East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW) as a “Wetland of International Importance” in August 2002, due to its unique waste recycling region (WRR) through a resource recovery system. However, increasing anthropogenic activities are degrading this unique environment, underscoring the urgent need for a robust management strategy. Between 2009 and 2019, the spatial changes in EKW’s land-use/land-cover classes were documented, revealing a significant reduction in wetlands and an increase in built-up areas. While the built-up area expanded by approximately 50%, agriculture land, wetlands, vegetation, and open spaces declined by 30%, 55%, 60%, and 20%, respectively. Using the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), the extraction of wetland areas with greater accuracy was achieved. The findings highlight the severe conversion of wetlands driven by human activity over the past four decades. This calls for immediate protection, not only for the ecosystem’s preservation but also for the livelihood of local communities and the long-term sustainability of Kolkata. Remote sensing and GIS-based spatial change detection analyses offer an efficient, cost-effective means for identifying and managing the threats to such ecosystems. Through this research, we aim to raise awareness and demonstrate the effectiveness of satellite data, such as Landsat (EO) data, in detecting and analysing wetland changes in the East Kolkata Wetlands region.”

~ Muhammad Bilal

Congratulations to the Earth at Risk Image Contest Winners for 2024 and we look forward to your participation in 2025!!!