Visualising Nature’s Tales at Bellingcat’s Hackathon in Kyrgyzstan

In early October, Bellingcat’s Tech staff organised its second ever in-person hackathon, this time in Naryn, Kyrgyzstan with the theme “Visualising Nature’s Tales”. 

This student-only hackathon, in collaboration with the College of Central Asia, noticed 30 contributors from three worldwide universities in Kyrgyzstan put their heads collectively to brainstorm methods to speak one of the vital pressing problems with the area. 

There have been 5 groups in complete: Information Bars, Mountain GOATs, JashylData, Vozduhanny and Trefoil.

Central Asia, which is one in all probably the most susceptible areas to local weather change impacts, skilled devastating storms and landslides, extreme warmth waves, droughts, and wildfires this yr. Smog is a significantly urgent matter within the winter: Kazakh, Kyrgyzs, and Uzbek cities typically prime the World Air High quality Index Rating as among the most polluted cities on the planet as households and native energy vegetation burn low cost, low-quality coal to maintain heat. 

For the primary time, we determined to carry a hackathon with out juries or winners, as we consider that collaborating and dealing on a mission on such an vital subject is already profitable. 

To equip contributors with expertise we deemed helpful for the hackathon, Bellingcat supplied a workshop on open supply analysis, verification, geolocation, mapping providers, and visualisations earlier than the scholars started engaged on their tasks.   

We had been joyful to see how they had been capable of apply new expertise they picked up on the workshop – whether or not monitoring modifications in Google Earth Engine or making visualisations with Datawrapper – to their very own tasks. 

As well as, we invited native journalist Nurlan Tasmaev from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) to look at the hackathon for potential findings that might be revealed. This resulted in an article on one of many tasks, which visualised the size of tree slicing alongside a highway in Naryn, being revealed on the web site of RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service. 

We’re proud to current all the tasks that resulted from this hackathon beneath, with a short rationalization of every one. We hope that these encourage extra open supply researchers to seek out inventive methods of visualising environmental points. 

Tree Chopping for Street Growth in Naryn by the Information Bars Group

In Naryn, the hackathon location, there’s one predominant highway. Whereas strolling we couldn’t assist however discover all of the contemporary tree stumps on either side of the highway. 

The Information Bars Group had been capable of visualise the size of bushes disappearing alongside this highway utilizing satellite tv for pc photos, public CCTV cameras, social media pictures, and even some discipline work. 

Whereas the modifications to bushes lining the highway had been barely seen on satellite tv for pc photos, they might be clearly seen utilizing Sentinel’s Normalized Distinction Vegetation Index (NDVI), which makes use of each seen and invisible wavelengths of sunshine captured in a satellite tv for pc picture to measure the greenness and density of vegetation proven. 

In simply 10 days in September 2024, a highway coated in inexperienced turned utterly beige when visualised with the NDVI.

Mudflows in Kyrgyzstan by the Mountain GOATs staff 

This yr, Kyrgyzstan registered an unprecedented enhance within the variety of mudflows, or the downhill motion of soil combined with rain or snow. In August, robust mudflows flooded 497 residential buildings within the Issyk-Kul area. 

Since authorities have stated that heavy rains are one of many predominant causes of mudflows within the nation, the Mountain GOATs staff regarded into the historic precipitation charges within the nation. They zoomed in on a interval of heavy rain in July 2024, and utilizing satellite tv for pc imagery from Planet, the staff was capable of present the flooded areas in Osh metropolis, with a river noticeably turning brown from mudflows. 

NO2 Air air pollution by JashylData

On chilly days in winter, it is not uncommon to see a dense smog enveloping Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. 

The staff JashylData used Google Earth Engine to visualise the Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) focus in Kyrgyzstan previously 4 years and revealed extraordinarily excessive concentrations of the gasoline, which is principally produced by the burning of fossil fuels, in Bishkek in addition to some focus in Osh area, within the south of the nation. 

Publicity to excessive concentrations of NO2 has a extreme influence on human well being particularly on respiratory illness. 

PM2.5 Air air pollution by Vozduhanny

One other staff, Vozuhanny, additionally regarded into the air air pollution in Kyrgyzstan, however not like JashylData, they centered on a unique air high quality measurement – PM2.5 ranges. This measurement, of particulate matter of lower than 2.5 micrometres in diameter, is related to toxins which can be sufficiently small to enter the bloodstream and be transported across the physique.

Vozduhanny analysed PM2.5 ranges, as reported by The World Air High quality Index Mission, in February 2024 and visualised them on a district degree. They discovered that Oktyabrsky district had the best PM2.5 ranges in February. 

Semipalatinsk Check Website by Trefoil 

Lastly, the Trefoil staff regarded into the Semipalatinsk Check Website in Kazakhstan, which was the Soviet Union’s predominant nuclear testing floor from 1949 to 1989. Over 450 nuclear checks had been carried out and over 1.5 million folks had been affected by radiation publicity throughout that interval.

Utilizing declassified knowledge from the Protection Menace Discount Company, Trefoil visualised radiation ranges within the villages across the Semipalatinsk take a look at website. 

Bellingcat is a non-profit and the flexibility to hold out our work relies on the type assist of particular person donors. If you need to assist our work, you are able to do so right here. You can even subscribe to our Patreon channel right here. Subscribe to our E-newsletter and comply with us on Twitter right here and Mastodon right here.