Mathematica and NASA Harvest Partner to Advance Evidence for Climate Adaptation

Mathematica has partnered with NASA Harvest, NASA’s Global Food Security and Agriculture Consortium, to holistically assess climate smart adaptation interventions. NASA Harvest operates as a multidisciplinary and multisectoral expert consortium led and implemented by scientists at the University of Maryland Center for Global Agricultural Monitoring Research. Through this collaboration, Mathematica will combine its deep evaluation and policy analysis expertise with NASA Harvest’s comprehensive knowledge of climate’s impact on agriculture to expand understanding of effective interventions and strengthen the climate adaptation evidence base.

NASA Harvest works to broaden the use of satellite Earth Observation (EO) data to conduct agricultural monitoring that can advance understanding of agricultural land use, productivity, and sustainability. As investments in climate smart agriculture continue scaling up to meet the demands of reducing agriculture’s vulnerability to climate change, rigorous evidence will play a growing role in directing investments to interventions that are proven and effective. By combining EO data with survey data collection and robust evaluation methods, Mathematica and NASA Harvest will be able to more quickly and cost-effectively identify which interventions and agricultural technologies should be promoted and which require further evidence before additional support should be provided.

“This partnership will enable Mathematica to assess climate smart crops, and other agronomic interventions with greater precision so we can better measure how they impact agricultural yields in different climate and weather scenarios, and NASA Harvest can use our field measurements of yields to improve their modeling moving forward,” said Tulika Narayan, vice president of climate change, Mathematica. “I look forward to working with NASA Harvest so we can collectively provide the agriculture sector with the data analytics and analyses needed to inform evaluations and decision making to support more climate resilient agriculture.”

“Building models to understand crop health is at the core of what we do. This partnership will help us use these models to provide an answer to the key question facing farmers today: how to adapt to a rapidly changing climate?” said Ritvik Sahajpal, crop-condition co-lead, NASA Harvest.

"Partnering with Mathematica allows us to leverage their evaluation and policy analysis expertise alongside NASA Harvest’s extensive experience in applied Earth Observations to agriculture and food security," said Inbal Becker-Reshef, Director, NASA Harvest. "This collaboration will enhance our ability to assess climate smart adaptation interventions, broadening the use of satellite Earth Observation data to inform effective, evidence-based agricultural practices and investments."

This partnership marks Mathematica’s latest investment in its commitment to growing its interdisciplinary climate practice, which seeks to uncover the reliable and precise evidence needed to measure the impact of climate policies, maximize investments, and improve public well-being.

Visit our Climate Change page for more information about the company’s expanding climate-related solutions and expertise.