Using Remote Sensing to Assess and Monitor Changes in Forest Ecosystems

Dear Colleagues,

The ongoing progress on remote sensing applications and earth observation science and products allow us to better capture nature characteristics, map and model all types of ecosystems and identify changes in spatial and temporal terms. Numerous satellite missions are already in action, while others are ready to be launched to monitor the earth’s surface and provide detailed information for different aspects of our planet, including emissions, land use change, climate data, spatial patterns and trends. Additionally, the use of UAVs and AI-driven software makes it possible to capture, map, model and interpret attributes in unprecedented detail. However, the potential of remote sensing and earth observation data to capture ecosystem attributes at the finest possible scale (yielding close-to-real-life results) is not yet met, thus limiting the capacity of decision and policy makers to the detail level available (local, regional, national or international scale), affecting conservation strategies and management. Woodland and forests are one of the most studied ecosystem types, in terms of extent, condition and changes, as well as in terms of biodiversity, productivity and climate change mitigation (e.g., carbon sequestration). However, some of their attributes (e.g., structural and functional) are still not well captured by remote sensing or earth observation applications.

With this Special Issue, we seek to provide a state-of-the-art collection of scientific articles (research articles and review papers) that document novel practices and advances in assessing and monitoring changes in forest ecosystems via remote sensing.

We welcome manuscripts on the following themes:

1. Remote sensing and earth observation applications in mapping and monitoring changes in forest ecosystems at the regional and local scale.
2. Remote sensing and earth observation applications combined with in situ, field survey data to map and assess ecosystem conditions (including structural, functional and landscape characteristics).
3. Applications in identifying, assessing and mapping microhabitats and relevant indicators.
4.  Natural capital accounting indicator development for woodland and forest ecosystems.
5. Forest ecosystem service indicators, mapping and assessment (including change).
6. Urban forest assessment and monitoring.
7. Biodiversity assessment and monitoring in woodland and forest ecosystems.
8. Integration of remote sensing applications for monitoring forest condition and change in policy and decision making (including climate and land-use change scenarios).
9. Remote sensing and earth observation applications in digital platforms for decision making and protected area management.
10. Use of remote sensing and citizen science to map and assess forest ecosystems.

We look forward to receiving your original research articles and reviews.

Dr. Ioannis P. Kokkoris
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• woodland and forest
• ecosystem change and monitoring
• earth observation
• remote sensing
• natural capital accounting
• biodiversity