The European SocialForest project held an international webinar this week dedicated to the use of satellite data for forest management. The activity was organised within the framework of EU Green Week 2026 with the aim of bringing forest monitoring tools closer to professionals, forest managers and researchers. The training, delivered in a hybrid format from the Midi-Pyrénées Observatory at the University of Toulouse, brought together participants from different parts of the Sudoe area over two days who were interested in learning about the latest applications of European space programmes for forest monitoring and sustainable forest management.
The first session focused on the use of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery and methodologies for detecting changes in forest cover. Specialists from the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAE) explained the basic principles of SAR image acquisition and processing, as well as the opportunities offered by the CuSum methodology for identifying transformations in forest ecosystems.
During the session, practical exercises were also carried out, enabling participants to apply these techniques to real case studies. Among the examples analysed were the generation of forest masks and the classification of areas according to the frequency of changes detected through satellite image time series.
The second day was dedicated to the Sentinel-2 mission of the European Copernicus programme and its applications in the prevention and monitoring of forest fires. Experts from the University of Toulouse presented the mission’s main characteristics, the pre-processing procedures required for image analysis, and various indices used to monitor areas affected by wildfires.
As part of the training, participants completed a practical exercise based on Sentinel-2 imagery related to forest fires, demonstrating the potential of these tools to improve decision-making in emergency management and the planning of forest restoration activities.
This webinar forms part of the training activities promoted by SocialForest to encourage knowledge transfer and the adoption of innovative technologies among stakeholders involved in the management of forest territories.
Through initiatives such as this, the project contributes to strengthening the technical capacities of managers, public authorities and organisations linked to the forestry sector, promoting more efficient, sustainable and resilient management in the face of current environmental challenges.
