Rift Valley Fever Early Warning System

Rift Valley fever is a mosquito-borne illness that affects livestock, including cattle and sheep, across Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Outbreaks are linked to climate anomalies and seasonal wetlands, as well as livestock trade. This research seeks to increase the lead-time for early warning systems so that interventions, including livestock vaccinations and insecticide applications, can be distributed to communities. To achieve this, we are developing machine learning models integrated with new information and existing livestock case data. This project is part of a longstanding collaboration between USDA-ARS CMAVE (Dr. Seth Gibson and Dr. Ken Linthicum), NASA (Dr. Assaf Anyamba), and FAO. We are currently submitting proposals to fund continued work to prevent spread to other high risk regions.

As part of this network, I contributed to an upcoming International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) publication aimed to help managing veterinarians use remote sensing and GIS software to develop technical expertise within their country programs. I am also involved in the GeoHealth Community of Practice to promote use of remote sensing data for climate-related disease and health initiatives.