Baena, Susana
Job TitleSpatial Information Scientist
DepartmentHerbarium, Library, Art & Archives
SectionGIS Unit, Regional Teams
Science Teams:
- Madagascar
- Wet Tropics: Africa
- Wet Tropics: SE Asia
- Temperate Team
- Rubiaceae
- Tropical America
- Drylands: Africa
Joined Kew: 2002
Foreign Language(s): Spanish, French
Qualifications & Appointments
BSc, Univ. Madrid, 1994
MSc, University College London, 2002
Role
Responsible for Remote Sensing (RS) and Vegetation Mapping. Manages GIS/RS projects and related research, with a special interests in vegetation mapping and field methods.
To deliver RBG Kew’s mission by: providing expertise and support in vegetation mapping for consultancy and science projects, which in the main delivers to Kew’s Breathing planet strategies 2 (BP 2) mapping and prioritising. Notably to; develop GIS/RS within vegetation mapping projects and the use of GIS/RS applications to conservation, environment and plant science. Presenting data and producing tools for conservation and environmental monitoring.
Special interests are in:
1. Vegetation mapping and area conservation assessments (2d), using remote sensing and GIS techniques to give up-to-date and accurate vegetation mapping and vegetation change (temporally). See Madagascar Vegetation Mapping Project and Mount Oku and Ijim Ridge (Cameroon).
2. Field methods. Methods used for collecting data and information in the field. Sampling strategies for field data collection used to train and validate Remote Sensing techniques.
3. Madagascar and SE Asia. We hold a lot of data and expertise for Madagascar and SE Asia and pilot much of our GIS and remote sensing work on these regions.
4. Remote Sensing methods and techniques (multispectral and object orientated approaches) working with both high and low resolution images.
Projects
- Baseline Data for the Conservation and Sustainable Development of Coffee Species
- CEPF Madagascar Vegetation Mapping - COMPLETED 2007
- Monitoring and Managing Biodiversity Loss in South-East Africa's Montane Ecosystems
(project completed 2009) - Guinea (Conakry): Developing botanical capacity, a National Herbarium and Red Data book
- Itremo Massif Protected Area Project
- Madagascar GIS
- The Plants of Mefou Proposed National Park, Yaoundé, Cameroon: A Conservation Checklist
- MSB Enhancement Project Part 1A: Species Targeting (Project completed 2008)
- Turks and Caicos Islands Pine Recovery Programme
- Vegetation mapping in the Geelvink Bay Papua, Indonesia
- Toucan Cipó
Selected Recent Publications
Baena, S, Moat, J. & Forboseh (2010). Monitoring vegetation cover changes in Mount Oku and the The Ijim ridge (Cameroon) using satellite and aerial sensor detection. Systematics and Conservation of African Plants. 459-470.
Baena, S., Lowry, P. & Schatz P. (2007). A brief history of vegetation mapping in Madagascar. In Moat J. and Smith P. Atlas of the vegetation of Madagascar. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. P 8-9.
Moat, J., Crouch, C., Milliken, W., Smith, P., Hamilton, M., Baena, S., Bachman, S. & Rivers, M. (2008). Rapid forest inventory and mapping Monitoring forest cover and land use change – report to the Office of Climate change – Eliasch Review London: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 1-29.
Baena, S. (2007). Landsat Classification methodology. In Moat J. and Smith P. Atlas of the vegetation of Madagascar. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. P 14-15.
Timberlake, J., Bayliss, J., Alves, T., Baena, S., Francisco, J., Harris, T. & da Sous C. (2007). The biodiversity and conservation of Mount Chiperone, Mozambique, Darwin report, London: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew p32.
Selected Earlier Publications
Cheek, M., Moat, J., Baena, S., Harvey, Y., Pearce, L., Burgt, X. van der. (2006). "Pic de Fon" vegetation map and botanical survey December 2006 Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 111pp.
