AfriClimate AI Workshop @ Deep Learning Indaba 2024

Theme: Uniting for a Climate-Resilient Africa: Fostering Climate Data and Knowledge Exchange

Date: 6 September 2024

Location: Amadou Mahtar Mbow university (UAM), Dakar, Senegal.

Workshop Overview

Across Africa, the detrimental effects of climate change are being acutely felt. However, the continent's ability to respond is hampered by a critical lack of accurate, accessible climate data. This workshop aims to bridge this gap by fostering collaboration between climate scientists, data practitioners, and machine learning experts. By working together, we can build a comprehensive climate data repository that empowers African researchers and policymakers with the tools they need to address the continent's unique climate challenges.

The absence of reliable climate data hinders effective decision-making. Farmers struggle to adapt to changing weather patterns, while infrastructure projects are more susceptible to climate-related risks. This workshop will explore strategies to improve data collection methodologies and infrastructure across Africa. By leveraging advancements in sensor technology, data transmission networks, and data storage solutions, we can ensure that the data needed to model and predict climate patterns is available, accessible, and accurate.

Workshop Objectives

Understand Climate Data Poverty: With the engagement of leading experts, identify gaps in data collection and explore strategies for improvement.
Knowledge Exchange and Collaboration: Foster interdisciplinary collaboration and sharing of best practices.
Open-Source Tools and Frameworks: Advocate and showcase accessible solutions for African climate experts.
Capacity Building: Enhance participants' skills in machine learning for climate applications.
Recognise African Research: Showcase and support cutting-edge research in AI and climate science from the Indaba community.

Call for Lightning talks.

We invite submissions for lightning talks that showcase excellent research in Climate Science and AI from the African community. These talks should highlight innovative research, methodologies, datasets and practical applications that contribute to understanding and mitigating climate challenges in Africa.

Topic Areas: Research topics should relate to Climate Science and AI, focusing on innovative solutions, case studies, datasets and data collection methodologies, predictive models, or tools that address climate resilience in Africa.

Format: Lightning talks are brief, high-impact presentations, each lasting approximately 5 minutes. Presenters should focus on key insights and outcomes of their research.

Submission Requirements:

Title of the talk
Abstract or short paper (maximum 500 words)
Presenter’s name, affiliation, and contact information

Evaluation and Awards:

Submissions will be evaluated based on originality, relevance, and potential impact. The top three lightning talks will receive awards, including mentorship and support from established researchers within the AfriClimate AI community to develop their work into full proceedings or journal papers.

Submission Link: https://forms.gle/ccpuQTdV9sU4y5Xc9

Important Dates:

Submission Deadline: 31 July, 2024

Notification of Acceptance: 15 August, 2024

Workshop: 6 September 2024

Speakers

Mouhamadou Bamba Sylla

Mouhamadou Bamba Sylla is currently serving as the AIMS Network Research Chair in Climate Change Science at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Rwanda. He previously held senior positions at WASCAL, where he focused on climate modelling and change. Dr Sylla has extensive experience, having completed a postdoc at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics and serving as a research scholar and part-time lecturer at Loyola Marymount University. His research interests encompass climate modelling, climate change impacts, and extreme weather events. Dr. Sylla is a prolific researcher with over 50 peer-reviewed publications and has contributed to numerous trainings and conferences globally. He also serves as a lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Jason Hickey

Jason Hickey is a computer scientist with 40 years of experience in artificial intelligence, weather and climate modelling, programming languages, and more. He leads the Google Research office in Accra, Ghana, where his team applies AI to address critical issues impacting Africa. Under his leadership, the office focuses on areas such as food security, weather prediction, and the development of technology for African languages. Jason’s extensive expertise and commitment to innovation drive the development of solutions tailored to the unique challenges and opportunities across the continent.

Sabrina Amrouche

Sabrina Amrouche is the Head of Data Science at ZYTLYN Technologies. She holds a PhD from the University of Geneva, where her research focused on the design, implementation, and deployment of end-to-end deep learning models for particle trajectory tracking. She has adapted various algorithms, including Similarity Search techniques and Siamese Networks, to develop a novel clustering technique. Sabrina is passionate about applying AI in climate science and is a core team member of AfriClimate AI.

Ilan Price

Ilan Price is a South African Research Scientist at Google DeepMind, currently completing his DPhil in Mathematics at the University of Oxford and the Alan Turing Institute. His research focuses on sparsity and efficiency in deep learning, with additional work in weather forecasting and a broad interest in areas like AI4science, model architectures, and the societal impact of machine learning. With an interdisciplinary background spanning mathematics, philosophy, and leadership experience, Ilan is passionate about applying his skills to address important challenges

Ibrahim Salihu Yusuf

Ibrahim is an AI Research Engineer at InstaDeep, driven by a passion for harnessing the power of artificial intelligence for the greater good. His expertise spans geospatial machine learning, computer vision, and computational biology. Ibrahim's diverse portfolio showcases impactful projects that range from enhancing food security and disaster response to advancing immunology research and development.