[This interview is part of a bouquet developed by the Jadaliyya Environment and Palestine Page editors to highlight the work of critical mapping initiatives and research on the role of mapping spaces in Palestine, Lebanon, and across the region. The authors highlight not only their own work and its methodologies, but also discuss how they hope it contributes to our larger understanding of space and popular conversations of the spaces we inhabit and study. Read the rest of the articles featured in this bouquet linked at the bottom.]
Tell us about your project. What time(s), place(s), and topic(s) does your work/project cover?
Our project, titled "Settling Shadows: Cartographic Analysis of Settler Colonialism in the West Bank," is part of a larger research initiative on border geographies. It explores the dynamics of Israeli settler colonialism by analyzing land use and environmental transformations in the west, south, and southeast Bethlehem regions of the West Bank in Palestine. We investigate how Israeli settlements in these areas follow a deliberate strategy of prioritizing expansion into fertile agricultural lands over urban areas. This expansion involves selective land use practices designed to fragment the region into isolated units through strategies such as landscape compression, dissection, and decoupling [1]. Upon finalizing this data analysis, we plan to publish our findings in scientific papers, the first of which will include aerial photographs and cartographic visualizations of settlement expansion.
We investigate land use and land cover (LULC) changes specifically from 1970 to 2021, situating the evolution of Israeli settlements within key historical and political contexts. Using 1970 as a historical baseline, when aerial photographs become easier to source following the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967, and temporal intervals of ten to fifteen years from the 1980s through the 2020s as periods of intensified settlement activity, the research reveals patterns of territorial transformation that are central to understanding settler colonial expansion. This approach ensures that significant changes over time are captured, as annual differences are often minimal. By 1970, extensive environmental changes had already taken place due to Israeli occupation policies, including land confiscation for settlements and military zones, leading to deforestation and ecological degradation. Between 1971 and 1999, forest areas decreased by twenty-three percent, with Gaza losing ninety-five percent of its forests. Additionally, the transformation of the Palestinian landscape between 1920 and 1970 under Zionist settlement was marked by significant ecological shifts. For instance, monoculture farming, particularly the large-scale cultivation of citrus for export, replaced the diverse, polyculture farming systems that Palestinians had practiced for centuries.
Focused on the southwest and southeast Bethlehem district within the Gush Etzion Bloc, we examine the expansion of major settlements like Beitar Illit, and Efrat. These areas serve as focal points for exploring the disruption to surrounding Palestinian agricultural and grazing lands, highlighting the environmental and socio-economic impacts that settlements have inflicted on the region. Given that these settlements are currently undergoing further expansion, understanding the ecological and spatial dynamics in this region is crucial for analyzing the broader patterns of settler colonial expansion in the West Bank.
Our work explores three main topics: land use changes, environmental impacts, and socio-economic structures. We work to quantify shifts in land use by documenting the conversion of forested, agricultural, and grazing areas into urbanized settlement zones. The analysis also addresses vegetation cover, soil degradation, and habitat fragmentation caused by settlement encroachment [2]. We are also investigating the ecological consequences of settlement growth, such as biodiversity loss, ecosystem fragmentation, soil erosion, and water pollution. These environmental transformations are contextualized as part of the broader settler colonial strategy to dominate and exploit the land [3]. Our third component then looks at how settlements disrupt traditional Palestinian agricultural practices and livelihoods. It explores the barriers imposed by settlements on access to natural resources and the resulting challenges to food security, emphasizing the socio-political implications of these disruptions [4].
How did you come to develop your project? What sources and/or analytics did you draw upon?
The development of our project emerged from a critical analysis of the historical and ongoing dynamics of Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank, particularly in southwest and southeast Bethlehem. Drawing on extensive research, reports, and datasets from organizations such as B'Tselem, Peace Now, and ARIJ [5] we identified a significant gap in real-time geospatial monitoring of settlement growth and its environmental impacts. By integrating historical context, GIS technologies, and satellite imagery analysis, the project aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how settlement activities affect land use, agriculture, and biodiversity, addressing both historical patterns and contemporary challenges.
What is your aim for the project? For example, who do you hope to reach? How do you hope people will engage with the work?
The aim of our project is to critically examine the dynamics of settler colonialism in the West Bank, focusing on the transformative impacts of Israeli settlement expansion on land use, environmental patterns, and the livelihoods of indigenous Palestinian communities in west, south, and southeast Bethlehem. By highlighting how selective land use strategies, such as fragmentation and ecological narratives like "greening," serve as tools of occupation and domination, the project seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of these practices and their socio-economic and cultural consequences. These strategies effectively block and control critical resources, disrupt Palestinian livelihoods, and weaken communities’ connection to their land. By targeting key agricultural landscapes in southwest and southeast Bethlehem, Israeli settlements not only displace Palestinian populations but also erode their socio-economic structures, food security, and cultural identity. This strategic expansion reinforces occupation and domination while transforming the landscape to align with settler colonial objectives. Furthermore, the "greening" of the land, as implemented by Israeli settlements, is presented as a continuation of ancestral practices, ultimately advancing the goals of dispossession and elimination.
We hope to reach a broad audience, including academics, policymakers, human rights organizations, environmental advocates, and local Palestinian communities. Through detailed cartographic analysis, geospatial data, and evidence-based insights, we aim to engage policymakers and advocacy groups in discussions about equitable land use, environmental justice, and sustainable development. Additionally, the work seeks to empower affected communities by providing tools and data to support their efforts in resisting dispossession and advocating for their rights.
We envision people engaging with this research through interactive maps, publications, public talks, and collaborations with local and international organizations. By creating accessible outputs, we aim to raise awareness, influence policy, and foster greater understanding of the settler colonial strategies that impact Palestine and similar contexts worldwide.
Can you tell us a bit about your methodology? What do you include in your maps and what do you leave out? Why? How do you see your methodological choices in connection with analytic and/or political questions?
The methodological challenge lies in gaining a deeper understanding of the relationships between the strategic construction of Israeli settlements, urban land changes, and their impact on the main components of the ecosystem, including food and agricultural systems. This involves examining the spatial and temporal interactions among these systems in the southeast and southwest regions of Bethlehem. This analysis is conducted by examining the functional changes in ecosystem components, focusing on agricultural land, pastures, crops, trees and forests over the period from 1970 to 2021. Additionally, it involves comparing urban expansion and the construction activities of Israeli settlements over time using Palestinian agriculture and forest land in a selective way. Using high resolution aerial photos to monitor Israeli settlement expansion impacts on land cover and land use, we developed a comprehensive spatial inventory that tracks these changes.
To assess the sprawl of Israeli settlements in southeast and southwest Bethlehem, we analyzed six series of aerial and satellite images over several decades. These include images from the 1970 CORONA satellite, providing a historical baseline, followed by images from the 1985 Landsat satellite at thirty meters of resolution, and 1999, 2009, 2017, and 2021 high-resolution aerial photos. In this study, the on-screen digitizing tool within GIS was employed to manually classify features visible in aerial and satellite imagery of the study area. The digitization process was carried out based on a participatory and knowledge-based approach, drawing from a combination of oral histories, local farmers’ expertise, and regional knowledge provided by the Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ). The classification involved delineating land into seven main categories: (1) forests, (2) trees, (3) seasonal crop, (4) shrubs and pastures, (5) Israeli settlements, and (6) Palestinian built-up areas.
The digitizing was done directly on high-resolution imagery, allowing for precise mapping of land use patterns. Each mapped area was created with guidance from long-time farmers from the Bethlehem region who have extensive generational knowledge of the land, as well as expert input from ARIJ researchers. Oral history narratives played a key role in reconstructing historical land use patterns, particularly in areas affected by colonization, land confiscation, or environmental transformation.
To ensure the reliability of the classifications, the digitized outputs were verified through field knowledge and cross-checked with local experts and community members, including elders and agricultural workers. This participatory verification process enhanced the accuracy and contextual depth of the mapped data, making the classification not only technically sound but also socially grounded and historically informed.
These analyses contribute to a comprehensive understanding of how settler-colonial development influences ecosystem health in southeastern and southwestern of Bethlehem, offering essential data to support sustainable planning and conservation efforts.
How do you see this work, or mapping in general, contributing to academic and/or popular conversations on Palestine?
The maps serve as visual tools to illustrate land transformations, emphasizing the implications of settlement activities for Palestinian self-determination and land access. The spatial data aligns with broader political questions about displacement and resource control in settler colonial contexts. In a technical capacity, the generated maps provide spatial representations of settlement boundaries, agricultural lands, and natural vegetation. They visualize temporal trends in land use transitions, demonstrating how settlement expansion alters the landscape. By quantifying environmental and agricultural impacts, the methodology underscores the systemic effects of settler colonialism. Finally, the integration of socio-environmental data into spatial analysis offers a holistic lens for understanding these dynamics and their sustainability challenges.
In a broader sense, our study contributes to theoretical discussions on settler colonialism by highlighting spatial transformations as integral to strategies of displacement and domination. By documenting the environmental and agricultural impacts of settlements, it reinforces key concepts in settler colonial studies, such as eliminatory practices and the ongoing nature of settler focus on land expansion and invasion articulated by [7].
The integration of geospatial tools with socio-political analysis sets a precedent for interdisciplinary research, encouraging the use of spatial methodologies in historical, environmental, and political studies. We hope that the findings will provide actionable insights for addressing resource insecurities and promoting sustainable land management under occupation. These insights can inform policy reforms that aim to mitigate the vulnerabilities imposed by settler colonial practices.
Finally, our research links environmental degradation with socio-political oppression, emphasizing the interconnectedness of ecological and human systems under settler colonial regimes. By drawing parallels between the southeast Bethlehem region and other settler colonial contexts, such as Canada [8], New Zealand [9], and South Africa [10], the study fosters a global dialogue on resistance, resilience, and decolonization. We want this spatial and temporal data on settlement expansion and land use transformations to provide an accessible framework for understanding the complexities of settler colonialism. The maps bridge academic analysis and public discourse, making the impacts of settler colonialism comprehensible to diverse audiences.
Read other articles in this bouquet:
Counter-Mapping the Archive by Zena Agha
Palestine Open Maps by Ahmad Barclay and Majd Al-Shihabi
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[1] Hobbs, N. T., Galvin, K. A., Stokes, C. J., Lackett, J. M., Ash, A. J., Boone, R. B., Reid, R. S., and Thornton, P. K., “Fragmentation of Rangelands: Implications for Humans, Animals, and Landscapes,” Global Environmental Change 18, no. 4 (2008): 776–785, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2008.07.011
[2] “Global Land Cover Product at 10m Resolution for 2021 Based on Sentinel-1 and 2 Data,” The European Space Agency (ESA), 2021, https://rb.gy/3kk6h9.
[3] Lisanyoto, L., Supriatna, and Sumadio, W., “Spatial Model of Settlement Expansion and its Suitability to the Landscapes in Singkawang City, West Kalimantan Province,” IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 338 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/338/1/012034
[4] Abdallah, T. and Swaileh, K., “Effects of the Israeli Segregation Wall on Biodiversity and Environmental Sustainable Development in the West Bank, Palestine,” International Journal of Environmental Studies 68, no. 4 (2021): 543–555, https://doi.org/10.1080/00207233.2011.608504
[5] “ARIJ Submits Its Observation Report to the International Fact-Finding Mission on Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” The Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem / Society towards a Sustainable Palestine (ARIJ), 2014, https://www.arij.org/latest/arij-submits-it-s-observation-report-to-the-international-fact-finding-mission-on-israeli-settlements-in-the-occupied-palestinian-territory/.; “Preliminary Approval for Settlement Division Bill,” PeaceNow, 2018, https://peacenow.org.il/en/preliminary-approval-settlement-division-bill.
[6] ESA, 2021.
[7] Wolfe, Patrick. “Settler Colonialism and the Elimination of the Native,” Journal of Genocide Research 8, no. 4 (2006): 387-409.; Cavanagh, E. and Veracini, L., eds., The Routledge Handbook of the History of Settler Colonialism. Routledge, 2010.
[8] Wagner, J.. “Landscape Aesthetics, Water, and Settler Colonialism in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia,” Journal of Ecological Anthropology 12, no. 1 (2008): 22-38, https://doi.org/10.5038/2162-4593.12.1.2
[9] Huambachano, M., “Indigenous food sovereignty: Reclaiming food as sacred medicine in Aotearoa New Zealand and Peru,” New Zealand Journal of Ecology 43, no. 3 (2019): 3383, https://doi.org/10.20417/nzjecol.43.39
[10] Pedigo, N. “The Struggle for Terroir in French Algeria: Land, Wine, and Contested Identity in the French Empire,” PhD diss., (Southern Illinois University Carbondale, 2015), https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations/1022/