# Authors and Contributors

## 🧑‍💻 Project Lead & Creator

**Samir Baladi**
- **Role**: Interdisciplinary AI Researcher, Scientific Software Developer
- **Email**: gitdeeper@gmail.com
- **ORCID**: 0009-0003-8903-0029
- **Phone**: +1-614-264-2074
- **GitLab**: https://gitlab.com/gitdeeper2
- **Research Interests**: Applied AI/ML in geosciences, computational meteorology, scientific software development, wildfire behavior modeling

---

## 🤝 Contributors

### Scientific Advisory Board
| Name | Institution | Role |
|------|------------|------|
| Dr. Maria Papadopoulou | National Observatory of Athens | Fire Meteorology |
| Prof. Carlos Silva | University of Coimbra | Forest Engineering |
| Dr. Francesca Romano | Italian National Research Council | Remote Sensing |
| Dr. Jean-Luc Martinez | French National Institute for Agricultural Research | Fuel Dynamics |

### Development Team
| Name | Role | Contribution |
|------|------|--------------|
| Elena Rossi | Backend Developer | API development, data processing |
| Ahmed Benali | Frontend Developer | Visualization dashboard |
| Sofia Andersson | DevOps Engineer | CI/CD, Docker deployment |
| Thomas Weber | GIS Specialist | Spatial analysis, DEM processing |

### Validation & Testing
| Name | Institution | Contribution |
|------|------------|--------------|
| Dr. Konstantinos Dimitriou | Hellenic Fire Service | Field validation, Greece |
| Miguel Oliveira | Portuguese Institute for Nature Conservation | Case studies, Portugal |
| Laura Garcia | Catalan Fire Service | Operational testing, Spain |
| Giuseppe Lombardi | Italian Civil Protection | Alert system validation |

### Data Contributors
- **European Space Agency**: Sentinel-2 imagery
- **EFFIS**: Historical fire database
- **Canadian Forest Service**: CFFDRS integration
- **Mediterranean Civil Protection Agencies**: Operational data

---

## 📄 Citation Format

When citing SYLVA, please use the following format:

```

Baladi, S. (2026). SYLVA: A Thermodynamic-Fuel Continuum Framework for 
Wildfire Spread Rate Estimation in Mediterranean Forest Systems (Version 0.1.0) 
[Computer software]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14882347

```

---

## 🎓 Acknowledgments

This project received funding and support from:
- European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS)
- Mediterranean Climate Outreach Programme
- Open Earth Observation for Wildfire Monitoring Initiative
- GitLab Open Source Program

Special thanks to all wildfire firefighters and emergency managers who provided invaluable feedback during the development and validation phases.

---

## 📝 How to Contribute

We welcome contributions! Please see [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md) for guidelines.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch
3. Commit your changes
4. Push to the branch
5. Open a Merge Request

---

*Last updated: February 12, 2026*

## 📄 Citation

Please cite SYLVA as:

```

Baladi, S. (2026). SYLVA: A Thermodynamic-Fuel Continuum Framework for 
Wildfire Spread Rate Estimation in Mediterranean Forest Systems (Version 1.0.0) 
[Computer software]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18627186

```

## 🔗 Links

- **Zenodo Record**: https://zenodo.org/records/18627186
- **GitLab Repository**: https://gitlab.com/gitdeeper2/sylva
- **Documentation**: https://sylva-fire.readthedocs.io
