Mapping Spatiotemporal Changes of Evergreen Forest Patches that are Heritage Sites in Southern Mozambique using Google Earth Engine

Abstract

Using forests as burial and ceremonial places is a long-standing cultural practice in Mozambique. However, this information is still not translated into land-cover and land-use maps. Thus the locations of these forests and their descriptions remain unknown. To address this gap in the knowledge, this paper presents the results of mapping 52 local heritage sites in Inhambane, and analysing land-cover changes of two locally protected forest patches. Results from spatiotemporal change analysis show that these patches experienced fewer disturbances in comparison to other areas of vegetation.