Installation

This guide covers the installation of the Deforisk Analysis Framework in SEPAL.

What is SEPAL?

SEPAL (System for Earth Observation Data Access, Processing and Analysis for Land Monitoring) is a cloud-based platform that provides access to powerful computing resources and satellite imagery. It’s designed to make geospatial analysis accessible without requiring your own infrastructure.

The Deforisk framework is designed to work seamlessly within SEPAL, taking advantage of its pre-configured environment and Google Earth Engine integration.

Installation Steps

Follow these simple steps to set up the framework in your SEPAL environment:

Open SEPAL Terminal and cloning the Repository

Log into your SEPAL account and open a terminal window. This is where you’ll run all the installation commands. Clone the Repository code to your SEPAL workspace:

git clone https://github.com/SerafiniJose/deforisk-jupyter-nb-v2.git
cd deforisk-jupyter-nb-v2

This creates a folder with all the framework code and notebooks.

Step 3: Install UV Package Manager

UV is a fast Python package manager that will help install all dependencies:

pip install uv

Step 4: Set Up the Environment

Run the main setup script to create a virtual environment and install dependencies:

uv run main.py

This command automatically creates an isolated Python environment and installs all required packages.

Step 5: Install GDAL

GDAL is a geospatial data library needed for working with raster and vector data:

uv pip install gdal[numpy]==3.8.4 --no-build-isolation --no-cache-dir --force-reinstall

Step 6: Activate the Environment

Activate the virtual environment that was created:

source .venv/bin/activate

You’ll notice your terminal prompt changes to show (.venv) at the beginning - this means the environment is active.

Step 7: Install Jupyter Kernel

Finally, register the environment as a Jupyter kernel so you can use it in notebooks:

python -m ipykernel install --user --name deforisk-deg --display-name "deforisk-deg"

This makes the environment available in Jupyter with the name “deforisk-deg”.

Using the Framework

Once installation is complete, you can:

Option 1: Use Jupyter Notebooks

1. Open JupyterLab in SEPAL

2. Navigate to the deforisk-jupyter-nb-v2/notebooks/ folder

3. Select the “deforisk-deg” kernel when opening a notebook

4. Start with _1.variables_factory.ipynb to learn the basics

Option 2: Use from Terminal

With the environment activated, you can run Python scripts directly:

source .venv/bin/activate
python your_script.py

Google Earth Engine

The framework uses Google Earth Engine to access satellite imagery and global datasets. In SEPAL, Earth Engine is already configured and ready to use - no additional authentication is needed!

When you start working with the notebooks, the framework will automatically connect to Earth Engine using SEPAL’s credentials.

What’s Next?

Now that you have the framework installed, you’re ready to start analyzing deforestation risk:

• Quick Start Guide - Understand what the framework does and see the basic workflow

• Variable Factory Tutorial - Learn how to work with geospatial variables

Need Help?

If you encounter any issues during installation:

1. Make sure you’re running commands in the SEPAL terminal

2. Check that you’re in the correct directory (deforisk-jupyter-nb-v2)

3. Verify the environment is activated (you should see (.venv) in your prompt)

4. Try running the commands one at a time to identify where the issue occurs