WorldCereal is excited to introduce the very first WorldCereal Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Reference Data for Crop Type Mapping! This free course is the first in a three-part series designed to offer a deep dive into global cropland mapping and monitoring.
The first WorldCereal online course on Reference Data for Crop Mapping is now open. In it you will find presentations, demonstrations, and practical exercises, each focused on a specific aspect of reference data for crop mapping, including field data collection using Crop Capture, a โQuestโ inside IIASAโs Geo-Quest mobile app designed to collect crop reference data in an easy and straightforward manner. All MOOC materials are freely available to the public, allowing you to learn at your own pace, anytime, anywhere.
The course provides an in-depth understanding of reference data requirements (in terms of quantity, quality and format) and processing in the context of land cover and crop type mapping. Detailed topics include reference data definition, collection, harmonization, quality assurance, ingestion into the WorldCereal system, exploration and download of available data and tips & tricks related to the use of the data for mapping purposes.
The course consists of a combination of lectures, practical demonstrations and hands-on exercises to ensure participants acquire both the necessary concepts and practical skills to deal with reference data in the WorldCereal context.
In the course you can:
- Learn crucial concepts and usage of practical tools for data collection
- Gain an understanding of our data harmonization and curation approach
- Master data quality assurance techniques
- Get step-by-step guidance to discover, download, and contribute reference data via the WorldCereal ๐๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐จ๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ (RDM)
- See a demonstration of how data quality and quantity impact crop mapping applications
IIASA researchers Juan Carlos Laso Bayas and Santosh Karanam are part of the group of experts explaining reference data collection procedures and usage of the WorldCereal reference data module.
News
05 November 2026
What will society look like after the world's population hits its peak?
How will populations around the world change over the next three centuries, and what will those changes mean for future societies? In a new study, IIASA researcher Samir KC explores how populations and human capital across 200 countries and territories could evolve in the years leading up to 2300.
22 October 2026
Global agricultural productivity growth is in decline
Global agricultural productivity growth has hit its lowest level since the 1970s, threatening future food security. IIASA researchers contributed to Chapter 3 of the 2026 GAP Report published by the Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) Initiative at Virginia Tech, exploring how regenerative agriculture could help reverse this trend while improving farm profitability and resilience.
16 October 2026
Getting back on track to reduce methane emissions
A new study, led by IIASA researchers and coauthored by UNEP colleagues, finds that if governments fully implement their methane reduction plans, they could reduce global emissions by 11% between 2020 and 2030. This would reverse the current trend of increasing methane emissions, but would not be sufficient to achieve the goal of the Global Methane Pledge.