Background

Abbas Farshad (1944) has a BSc in geology of the State University of Tehran, Iran (1965), an MSc in Soil Science, genesis and classification, of the State University of Ghent, Belgium (1975), and a PhD in Earth Sciences from the same University, in Ghent, Belgium (1997).

Abbas started his career, once he was through with the 4 months of military service, as an officer in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Department of Land-reform, covering the Central Province. He then got a job at Soil Institute of Iran, working with FAO, as "member of soil and land evaluation team" in Shiraz, covering the regional and local studies in the Southern Provinces (with arid to subtropical climatic conditions) going as far as Persian Gulf.

After about 2 years he was appointed for studying at ITC, Delft (academic year 1970-1971). He then went back to Iran and continued his work as "soil and land evaluation party leader". In 1973, he got an acceptance from the State University of Ghent to do his MSc During the period 1975 to 1980 he worked as "soil correlator" visiting different groups stationed in different parts of the country. In the same period, he also followed a course on remote sensing at ITC, Enschede (1978). In 1981, when he moved to Enschede (where his wife comes from) he got a job at ITC, Department of Soil Survey, as instructor, involved with mainly teaching air photo-interpretation and remote sensing, and fieldwork. As usual, instructor becomes lecturer and lecturer becomes more senior, working in various fields and positions.

At present he, as assistant professor in the Department of Earth System Analysis (ESA), teaches various subjects, at different levels (mainly Post Graduate and MSc) related to soil mapping and the interpretation of soil data for land degradation, conservation, land suitability evaluation and sustainable land management. His research is directed toward degradation and desertification, and more specifically to the use of remote sensing and modelling for salinisation and compaction, although among his students, at post-graduate, and MSc level, also topics such as land evaluation, relationships between geopedologic characteristics and vegetation appear too. Abbas Farshad has published over 50 papers in national and international journals and conference proceedings.

Being interested in cultural and indigenous knowledge, Dr. Farshad has collected a wide experience in sustainable use of land, in particular in (semi-) arid regions. His wealth of experience originates from his (scientific; associated with fieldwork) trips to different parts of the world such as Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Ghana, Nigeria, Botswana, Bangladesh, and Mexico.

Activities in education

Abbas Farshad covers a wide field of education since 22 years of service at ITC:

• Application of remote sensing to soil survey,
• Applied geomorphology to soil science and mapping soils
• Pedology; soil formation, properties and behaviour, pedotransfer function, soil management
• Soil and landscape ecology
• Land evaluation for (non-) agricultural uses
• Degradation and desertification
• Supervision of several MSc research projects

Activities in research

Abbas Farshad tries to focus his research, and also the work he supervises, on the use of remote sensing data and modelling in desertification and sustainable land management:

• Modelling salt movement (one main field of interest),
• Modelling land qualities for land evaluation purposes and yield prediction

Currently he is co- promoter / supervisor of one PhD research project.

Activities in project services

At present A. Farshad participates in a research project for Geological Survey Dept. of Botswana, coordinated by Dr. M. Lubczynski.

Publications

ISI Journal Articles

Farifteh, J., Farshad, A. and George, R.J. (2006) Assessing salt - affected soils using remote sensing, solute modelling, and geophysics. In: Geoderma : an international journal of soil science, 130 (2006)3-4, pp. 191-206. Full text | Full text

Zinck, J.A., Berroteran, J.L., Farshad, A., Moameni, A., Wokabi, S.M. and van Ranst, E. (2004) Approaches to assessing sustainable agriculture. In: Journal of sustainable agriculture, 23(2004)4, pp. 87-109.

Farshad, A. and Barrera-Bassols, N. (2003) Historical anthropogenic land degradation related to agricultural systems : case studies from Iran and Mexico. In: Geografiska annaler : series A. Physical geography, 85 (2003)3-4, pp. 277-286.

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (2003) Traditional irrigation water harvesting and management in semiarid Western Iran : a case study of the Hamadan region. In: Water International, 23(1998)3, pp. 146-154.

Moameni, A. and Farshad, A. (1998) Evaluation of prevailing irrigation practices and their relation to soil properties : a case study of the Hamadan - Bahar area of western Iran. In: Annals of arid zone, 37 (1998)2, pp. 119-131.

Mohammed, S.O, Farshad, A. and Farifteh, J. (1996) Evaluating land degradation for assessment of land vulnerability to desert conditions in the Sokoto area, Nigeria. In: Land degradation and development, 7 (1996)3, pp. 205-215.

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (1995) The fate of agriculture in the semi - arid regions of Western Iran : a case study of the Hamadan region. In: Annals of arid zone, 34 (1995)4, pp. 235-242.

Zinck, J.A. and Farshad, A. (1995) Issues of sustainability and sustainable land management. In: Canadian Journal of Soil Science, 75(1995), pp. 407-412.

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (1993) Seeking agricultural sustainability. In: Agriculture, ecosystems and environment, 47 (1993) pp. 1-12.

Other Refereed Journal Articles

Sokouti, O.R. and Farshad, A. (1999) Land use compatibility index for assessing agricultural sustainability in Uromieh, Iran. In: Desertification Control Bulletin, (1999)35, pp. 55-58.

Farshad, A. (1994) Communication : spectral image analysis in soil micromorphology with ILWIS. In: ITC journal : bulletin de l'ITC,  (1994)2, pp. 168-171.

Book Chapters

Shrestha, D.P. and Farshad, A. (2009) Mapping salinity hazard : an integration application of remote sensing and modeling based techniques. In: Remote sensing of soil salinization : impact on land management. / ed. by A.J. Zinck and G. Metternich. Boca Raton : CRC Press, 2009. ISBN: 978-1-4200-6502-2 pp. 257-272. Full text

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (2001) Assessing agricultural sustainability using the six - pillar model : Iran as a case study. In: Agroecosystem sustainability, developing practical strategies / Gliessman, S.R. (ed.) Boca Raton : CRC, 2001. ISBN 0-8493-0894-1 pp. 137-151.

PhD Theses

Farshad, A., Stoops, G. (Promotor) and Zinck, J.A. (Promotor)  (1997) Analysis of integrated soil and water management practices within different agricultural systems under semi - arid conditions of Iran and evaluation of their sustainability. Enschede, ITC, 1997. ITC Publication  57, ITC Dissertation  45, 395 p. ISBN: 90-6164-142-X.

Conference Proceedings (full papers)

Tansiri, B., Kuneepong, P., Farshad, A. and Arpauthaipong, T. (2008) Mapping soils by application of digital terrain model in Thailand. In: Proceedings of the second international conference on cartography and GIS, January 21-24, 2008 Borovets, Bulgaria. / ed. by T. Bandrova. Borrovets : ICA ; University of Architecture, Civil engineering and Geodesy, 2008. Vol. 1. pp. 437-445. Full text

Farshad, A., Zinck, J.A. and Stoops, G. (2005) Human impact on soil quality : assessment of structure degradation using digital image analysis : a case study of Hamadan, Iran. In: Proceedings of the international conference on human impacts on soil quality attributes, 12-16 September, 2005, Isfahan, Iran. pp. 624-627. Full text

Shrestha, D.P., Soliman, A.S., Farshad, A. and ... [et al.] (2005) Salinity mapping using geopedologic and soil line approach. In: ACRS 2005 : proceedings of the 26th Asian conference on remote sensing, ACRS 2005, 7-11 November 2005, Hanoi, Vietnam. Hanoi : Asian Association on Remote Sensing (AARS), Geoinformatics Center, Asian Institute of Technology, 2005. 6 p. . Full text

Garrido-Pérez, A., Farshad, A. and Velázquez, A. (2004) A GIS oriented method for landscape evaluation within the framework of Geopark : a case study of the Pico de Tancitaro area in Central Mexico. In: Proceedings of the 1st international conference on Geoparks : Beijing, 27-29 June 2004. / ed. by. Z. Xung, J, Jianjun, D. Shuwen, L. Minglu, Z. Ting. Beijing, Geological Publishing House, 2004. 14 p.

Patanakanog, B., Shrestha, D.P., Saengthongpinit, C., Sapet, A. and Farshad, A. (2004) Land use change and land degradation : a case study in Nam Chun subwatershed in Thailand. In: ACRS 2004 : Proceedings of the 25th Asian conference on remote sensing, ACRS 2004 Silver jubilee: November 22-26, 2004, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Chiang Mai : Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), 2004. pp. 1384-1389. Full text

Soliman, A.S., Farshad, A., Sporry, R.J. and Shrestha, D.P. (2004) Predicting salinization in its early stage, using electro magnetic data and geostatistical techniques : a case study of Nong Suang district, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. In: ACRS 2004 : Proceedings of the 25th Asian conference on remote sensing, ACRS 2004 Silver jubilee: November 22-26, 2004, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Chiang Mai : Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), 2004. pp. 847-852. Full text

Farifteh, J. and Farshad, A. (2002) Remote sensing and modeling of topsoil properties : a clue for assessing land degradation. In: 17th World congress of soil science CD-ROM proceedings : Confronting new realities in the 21st century : 14-21 August, 2002, Bangkok, Thailand. - Bangkok : Kasetsart University, 2002. pp. 865-1 - 865-11.

Farshad, A., Wadid Fawzy Erian, Seied Hossein Zarei Abarghuei and Shrestha, D.P. (2002) Towards sustainable use of deserts. In: 17th World congress of soil science CD-ROM proceedings : Confronting new realities in the 21st century : 14-21 August, 2002, Bangkok, Thailand. - Bangkok : Kasetsart University, 2002. pp. 683-1 - 683-9.

Farshad, A., Zinck, J.A. and Stoops, G. (1999) Computer assisted image analysis to assess soil structure degradation : a case study of Iran. In: Geoinformatics Beyong 2000: an international conference on geoinformatics for natural resource assessment, monitoring and management, 9-11 March, 1999 IIRS, Dehra Dun, India.

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (1998) Traditional agriculture in semiarid western Iran : a case study of the Hamadan region = Agriculture traditionelle dans l'Ouest semi - aride de l'Iran : un cas d'etude dans la region Hamada. In: WCSS 1998 : 16th World congress of soil science CD-ROM proceedings : Man versus Soil : 20 - 26 August 1998, Montpellier, France. Montpellier : Centre de Cooperation Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement (CIRAD), 1998. 7 pp.

Farshad, A. and Zinck, J.A. (1997) Indigenous knowledge and agricultural sustainability : a case study in semi - arid regions of Iran. In: CD-ROM Proceedings of the international conference on geo - information for sustainable land management : Enschede, ITC, 17-21 August 1997 / ed. by K.J. Beek, C.A. de Bie and P. Driessen. 10 p.

Zinck, J.A. and Farshad, A. (1994) Issues of sustainability and sustainable land management. In: Proceedings of the 15th world congress of soil science : Vol. 6a, Commission V symposia : Acapulco, Mexico, July 10-16 1994, pp. 379-387.

Farshad, A. (1990) A general overview on the effect of agricultural systems on the quality of soil in the semi - arid regions of Iran. In: 14th international congress of soil science : transactions : Kyoto, Japan, August 1990 : Vol. VI, Commission VI, pp. 219-220, 18 p.

Scientific and Professional Publications

Bergsma, E. and Farshad, A. (2007) Monitoring erosion using microtopographic features. In: Monitoring and evaluation of soil conservation and watershed development projects/ ed by J. de Graaff ... [ et. al] Enfield : Science publishers, 2007. ISBN-13: 9781578083497 pp. 249-266. Full text

Farshad, A. (2001) Reconstruction of the evolution of the past agrarian landscape as a clue to assessing sustainability : a case study of Iran. In: Landscape ecology applied in land evaluation, development and conservation : some worldwide selected examples / D. van der Zee and I.S. Zonneveld (eds.) Enschede : ITC, 2001. ISBN 90-6164-197-7 (ITC Publication ; 81) (IALE Publication ; MM-1) pp. 21-47.

Presentations

Moonjun, R., Farshad, A., Shrestha, D.P. and Vaiphasa, C. (2008) Application of artificial neural network and decision tree in a GIS - based predictive soil mapping in sloping areas in Thailand. Presented at the 3rd global workshop on digital soil mapping, 30 September - 3 October, Utah State University, Logan, Utah. 10 p. Full text

Farshad, A. and Rossiter, D.G. (2008) Computer assisted geopedology for predictive soil mapping : powerpoint. Presented at the 3rd global workshop on digital soil mapping, 30 September - 3 October, Utah State University, Logan, Utah. 12 slides. Full text

Sánchez-Moreno, J.F., Farshad, A. and Jetten, V.G. (2008) Farmer or expert : whose reality counts? a case study of Lao PDR : poster. Presented at the European Geosociences Union EGU General assembly 2008, Vienna, Austria, 13-18 April 2008. Full text

Shrestha, D.P. and Farshad, A. (2008) Mapping salinity hazard : an integrated RS and modelling technique. Presented at ISPRS 2008 : the XXI congress : Silk road for information from imagery : the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 3-11 July, Beijing, China. Comm. VIII, WG VIII/9. 3 p. Full text

Farshad, A. and Mantel, S. (2008) Suitable of not suitable, how right are we when applying FAO framework : poster. Presented at the European Geosociences Union EGU General assembly 2008, Vienna, Austria, 13-18 April 2008. Full text

Usman, M.T., Woldai, T., Farshad, A. and ... [et al.] (2006) Drought risk and vulnerability analysis for land resources management of the Sudano - Sahelian region of Nigeria : abstract. In: AARSE 2006 : Proceedings of the 6th AARSE international conference on earth observation and geoinformation sciences in support of Africa's development, 30 October - 2 November 2006, Cairo, Egypt. Cairo : The National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Science (NARSS), 2006. ISBN 1-920-01710-0. 121-122 p. Full text

Farshad, A., Udomsri, S., Ekkanit Hansakdi and Shrestha, D.P. (2006) GIS - based geopedology : a way to predictive soil mapping : poster. Presented at the 18th World Congress of Soil Science WCSS : frontiers of soil science, technology and the information age, 9-15 July, Philadelphia, USA. Full text

Kuneepong, P., Patanakanok, B., Suchinai, A., Farshad, A., Shrestha, D.P. and ... [et al.] (2005) Deforestation and land degradation in Thailand: case study in Nam Chun Sub - watershed, Phetchabun province, Thailand. Presented at the international conference on human impacts on soil quality attributes, 12-16 september, 2005, Isfahan, Iran. Full text

Farifteh, J., van der Meer, F.D., Farshad, A. and van der Meijde, M. (2005) Spectral characteristics of salt - affected soils : impact on imaging spectrometry : abstract. In: 4th workshop on imaging spectroscopy : new quality in environmental studies, 27-29 April 2005 Warsaw, Poland : abstract book. / ed. by B. Zagajewski, M. Sobczak and W. Próchnicki. EARSeL, 2005. pp. 48.

Farshad, A. (2001) Soil micromorphology in the study of climate change in a semi - arid region of Northwestern Iran : abstract. In: Abstracts of the International working meeting on micropedology, Ghent, July 9-13, 2001. p. 34.

Farshad, A. (1998) Quantifying indigenous knowledge : a clue to measuring land use sustainability. Presented at ITC Land evaluation module 1998. 19 pp.

Farshad, A. (1998) The role of archaeology in sustainability studies : a case study of Iran. Presented at a seminar University of Groningen 1998. 15 pp.