Global Forest Watch

What is it?

Global Forest Watch (GFW)  is an online platform that provides data and tools for monitoring forests.

GFW provides an interactive map with multiple layers on forest cover and change, land use, and biodiversity sites that can be consulted to identify deforestation/land conversion risks at the sub-national level.

How to use it?

Soy

For soy, the following layers (or a combination of these) can be used to identify risks: 

• Tree cover loss* and gain, including whether losses are associated with soy planted area
• Tree cover loss by the dominant driver – commodity-driven, shifting agriculture, forestry, wildfire, urbanization
• Whether soy planted area complies with the Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS) guidelines
• Whether soy-planted area takes place in key biodiversity and conservation areas and biodiversity hotspots
• Emerging hot spots of forest loss
• Places to watch due to recent alerts about the impact of soy production
• Location of Integrated deforestation alerts**

*Loss indicates the removal or mortality of tree cover and can be due to a variety of factors, including mechanical harvesting, fire, disease, or storm damage. As such, “loss” does not equate to deforestation.

** Integrated deforestation alerts monitor forest disturbance in near-real-time using integrated alerts from three alerting systems

Oil palm

For palm oil, the following layers (or a combination of these) can be used to identify risks: 

• Tree cover loss* and gain, including whether losses are associated with the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil  (RSPO) or other palm oil concessions
• Tree cover loss by the dominant driver – commodity-driven, shifting agriculture, forestry, wildfire, urbanization
• Whether palm oil concessions are in key biodiversity and conservation areas and biodiversity hotspots
• Emerging hot spots of forest loss
• Places to watch due to recent alerts about the impact of oil palm production
• Location of Integrated deforestation alerts**

*Loss indicates the removal or mortality of tree cover and can be due to a variety of factors, including mechanical harvesting, fire, disease, or storm damage. As such, “loss” does not equate to deforestation.

** Integrated deforestation alerts monitor forest disturbance in near-real-time using integrated alerts from three alerting systems.

Agricultural commodities

For other agricultural commodities, the following layers (or a combination of) can be used to identify risks: 

• Tree cover loss* and gain
• Tree cover loss by the dominant driver – commodity-driven, shifting agriculture, forestry, wildfire, urbanization
• Whether commodity production takes place in key biodiversity and conservation areas and biodiversity hotspots
• Emerging hot spots of forest loss
• Location of Integrated deforestation alerts**

*Loss indicates the removal or mortality of tree cover and can be due to a variety of factors, including mechanical harvesting, fire, disease, or storm damage. As such, “loss” does not equate to deforestation.

** Integrated deforestation alerts monitor forest disturbance in near-real-time using integrated alerts from three alerting systems