Research Overview
Dr. Nakalembe's research is interdisciplinary and develops innovative methods and applications of Earth Observations and Machine Learning. Her work focuses on Africa primarily to realize the impact of research and data-driven applications in decision-making. She seeks opportunities to develop methods, systems, and approaches grounded in science but remain contextually relevant and applicable for decision-making. She implements science-driven solutions into real-world applications through collaboration and co-development with end-users.
Harvest Africa Applications Framework
She directs the Africa Program under NASA Harvest to develop research methods and deploy solutions for stakeholders, including government, regional and humanitarian organizations. The Harvest Africa program priorities include:
1. Improving monitoring and early warning systems that provide actionable data and
information on agricultural productivity and food security at multiple scales
2. Advancing EO-AI methods that underpin the data and systems
3. Transferring capacity to national and local users for decision making, and
4. Developing strong long-term partnerships
During her Ph.D. research, Dr. Nakalembe developed the remote sensing component of the Disaster Risk Financing Project, which supported over 75,000 households (370,000 people) in the region, saving the Uganda government an estimated USD 11 million in reactive food aid costs.