Transcripts of NASA_JGI_web

Narrator: At NASA Earth Science, we wake up every day looking for new ways to expand our understanding about the Earth, to push the frontiers of science, and to share what we're learning to benefit people worldwide. Together with our partners, we put science into action. One of our partners, the Jane Goodall Institute, has a mission to protect chimpanzees and the world we all share. In 1960, Jane Goodall arrived on the shores of Lake Tanganyika in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Goodall: I think of those early days when it was just me and the forest and the chimpanzees. It was so magic. Narrator: As her work studying chimpanzees progress, the land around the park was steadily deforested for timber and agriculture, severing the connection between chimpanzees inside and outside the park, a connection they need to survive. Deforestation is a problem for people, also. Goodall: It was clear there were more people living there than the land could support, they had overfarmed the land, which was infertile. Terrible soil erosion, little streams getting silted up. People clearly struggling to survive. And that's when I realized, unless we improved the lives of the people, we can't even start to try and save the chimpanzees. Narrator: People in the communities and at the Jane Goodall Institute needed a new perspective to see how changes had taken place over time. That's when the partnership began between the institute and NASA. They looked to space, using NASA's satellites that observe the Earth to gain a higher vantage point. Pintea: When we first got our Landsat satellite images from '72 and '99 we made a natural color composite of Gombe and area outside Gombe. And put them side-by-side and realized that lots of deforestation happened. You can see it. The villages lost maybe 90 percent 80 percent of the forest cover. And they will tell stories about how the hills were covered in forest. But then when you show them a picture, it's very shocking to everybody, realizing what has been lost. Villagers were motivated to find new ways for sustainably managing their land and to protect the health of the area. The institute and communities started a forest monitoring program to provide training and equip community members with GPS-enabled devices to document forest activities. Together with the institute, villages developed land use plans for mapping where to build homes, what areas could support agriculture, and where it was best to harvest the forest sustainably. Goodall: Really really exciting to see the impact of these images on the villagers. And to see them sitting around and identifying sacred places, and that enabled them to do these land use management plans. And that's made all the difference. Narrator: Tree cover is returning, and Earth observations are now being used to show progress and inspire continued action. This helps protect soil needed for agriculture and clean drinking water, and safeguards forest health. It also ensures the long-term survival of Gombe's famous chimpanzees and those across western Tanzania. Goodall: I think that there's no question but that NASA with its satellite imagery used in the right way, it can really be really helpful for conservation. Narrator: At NASA, we continue to observe, examine, and advance the understanding of our home planet. We team with partners who use our science and solutions for improving life on Earth.