KRSC's remote sensing and AI-assisted environmental monitoring work across the Arabian Gulf, with full methodological transparency.
KRSC applied multi-temporal remote sensing across four acquisition dates between August 2024 and August 2025, using NDVI, SAVI, NDWI, and EVI indices. The analysis revealed a striking ecological transition: mangrove coverage expanded by 91.2 percent, rising from 535.6 to 1,024.1 hectares. AI-assisted spatial clustering identified 59 distinct mangrove aggregations and 81 isolated patches across the island.
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A comparative analysis of Sentinel-2 imagery from March 2020 and March 2024 tracked the progress of Saudi Aramco's long-term mangrove restoration program under the Saudi Green Initiative. Vegetation health mapping across five NDVI density classes revealed a net decline of 25.5 percent in mangrove coverage, from 3.76 to 2.80 hectares. The NDVI time series flagged pronounced mid-year stress consistent with peak summer heat and saline conditions in this historically oil-impacted intertidal zone.
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Across a 280-hectare mangrove restoration site, KRSC deployed an Isolation Forest anomaly detection model alongside arid-environment spectral indices, including a custom Arid Mangrove Health Index and a Salinity Stress Detection Index. The objective was to independently verify carbon sequestration claims across a ten-year window from 2015 to 2025. The analysis confirmed 8,391 tCO2 per year at a 91 percent confidence level, against a project-claimed figure of 130,723 tCO2 per year, highlighting the role of AI-powered independent verification in blue carbon markets.
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Dr. Nourah Shuaibi and Amnah Mosly distil a January 2026 high-level seminar at the United Nations House in Doha into a framework for moving from dialogue to delivery, with recommendations across connectivity, energy, digital governance, education, and peacebuilding.
Read publicationA comparative study of identity, payments, and data-exchange systems across three Gulf states, with implications for Kuwait's digital transformation agenda.
Coming SoonDrawing on consultations with planners, architects, and climatologists, this assessment proposes concrete measures for heat resilience and water-scarcity planning.
Coming SoonExternal coverage from reputable outlets covering issues relevant to KRSC's research agenda. These are not KRSC publications.
