Analysis of satellite data on NO2 emissions to evaluate development in Africa

This research project aims to explore the complex relationship between human development and environmental sustainability in Africa, a continent uniquely positioned at the intersection of rapid economic growth, environmental challenges, and poverty alleviation.

The study acknowledges that, in the early steps of the path to national prosperity, industrialization is often needed, leading to elevated emissions of pollutants like NO2 and CO2.

The project will harmonize two satellite data sets of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2) observations to create a consistent, long-term, high-resolution NO2 record from 2004 to the present.

At the intra-country level, NO2 serves as a more effective indicator of human development, compared to CO2, due to its short atmospheric lifetime and its primary emission from combustion processes common in developing areas.

The harmonized data set will be then used together with existing poverty data to evaluate the causal link between human development and NO2 emissions.

The findings will offer valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders, thereby contributing to shaping Africa´s sustainable development trajectory.

The host institutions, Harvard University and the University of Texas at Austin, host world-leading experts in statistical methods and causal inference.

Combined with my expertise in earth observation and data science, we will find answers to these important questions in a rigorous and comprehensive manner.