Global Human Settlement

#TODO

(AI:Generate)

The Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) is a project from the European Commission that develops global geographical data on the evolution of human habitation on Earth. It provides open and free data and tools to assess human presence on the planet, using a combination of global archives of fine-scale satellite imagery, census data, and voluntarily provided geographic information.

Key products

The GHSL provides several key datasets:

• GHS-BUILT: Maps built-up areas (density) and is derived from Landsat and Sentinel-2 imagery.
• GHS-POP: [[population-data]]
• GHS-SMOD: Combines GHS-BUILT and GHS-POP to represent the Degree of Urbanization, classifying grid cells as urban centers, urban clusters, or rural areas.
• GHS-BUILT-H: Estimates building height by integrating DEM with Sentinel-2 data.
• GHS-UCDB: (Urban Centre Database) is a dataset on cities with global coverage, multi-temporal and multi-thematic information, ensuring spatial and temporal harmonization.

Applications

GHSL information is relevant to various fields, particularly disaster risk reduction, urbanization, and human settlement dynamics. It can be used for: Monitoring urban growth and land use efficiency: Assessing land consumption rates in relation to population growth rates (Land Use Efficiency - LUE), supporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) like SDG 11.3.1. Disaster risk reduction: Analyzing the exposure of urban center residents and assets to natural hazards to understand disaster risk. Understanding urban morphology: Studying urban forms, population density, urban expansion/densification trajectories, and Local Climate Zones. Supporting policy and decision-making: Providing data for EU regional urban policy, the 2030 Development Agenda, and related agreements such as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.