The Center for International Earth Science Information Network of the Earth Institute at Columbia University (CIESIN), is pleased to announce the availability of a number of data and information resources and publications released in the past year of likely interest to the human dimensions community. These include:
- Global Fertilizer and Manure, version 1, a collection of four datasets on phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer application from 1994-2011, based on a paper by Potter, Ramankutty, Bennett, and Donner in Earth Interactions (2010). See: http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/sets/browse?contains=ferman.
- Population, Landscape, and Climate Estimates (PLACE), version 3, providing national-level statistics on population and land area across a range of physical characteristics. Version 3 adds rural vs. urban population estimates for 1990, 2000, and 2010 and a new pivot table function to improve data access. See: http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/set/nagdc-population-landscape-climate-estimates-v3.
- Environmental Performance Index and Pilot Trend Environmental Performance Index, 2012 Release, which provides quantitative metrics for evaluating a country's environmental performance in different policy categories relative to clearly defined targets. See: http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/set/epi-environmental-performance-index-pilot-trend-2012.
- Historical Anthropogenic Sulfur Dioxide Emissions, consisting of annual estimates of anthropogenic global and regional sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions for the period 1850-2005, including emissions by country and source category, based on a paper by Smith et al. 2011. See: http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/set/haso2-anthro-sulfur-dioxide-emissions-1850-2005-v2-86.
- National Priorities List (NPL) Superfund Footprint: Site, Population, and Environmental Characteristics Mapper, an interactive, online mapping application that lets users visualize demographic and environmental data for communities near Superfund sites. See: http://superfund.ciesin.columbia.edu/sfmapper/index.html.
- Data and Map Portal of the Africa Soils Information Service (AfSIS), which now provides a range of map products and tools, methods, and data for soil mapping, including a new collection of 250-meter resolution MODIS data for Africa. See: http://africasoils.net/home.
- Where the Rain Falls web site, a resource providing a new set of case studies and associated maps examining the interplay between rainfall patterns, food security, and human mobility, based on a project led by CARE, the United Nations University (UNU), and CIESIN. See: http://wheretherainfalls.org/.
- Climate and Health Analysis for Global Education Viewer (Change Viewer), which uses 3-D NASA World Wind technology to visualize climate change impacts on human health. The tool and related training for educators were developed in partnership with the Institute for the Application of Geospatial Technology (IAGT). See: http://climatechangehumanhealth.org/changeviewer/.