Category: Programmes

There are numerous business cases that demonstrate the value that Copernicus brings to society and provide useful examples that help others to imagine how they in turn might use the data in their own line of work. One of the missions of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) is to demonstrate how Copernicus data can be applied to real-world challenges. Successful Copernicus business and application cases are excellent demonstration tools for showcasing how these challenges are being tackled using Copernicus data.

Last year, CAMS launched the ‘Use Cases programme’ designed to support, technically and financially, the launch of innovative applications using one or more CAMS information products. A first group of eight use cases was selected on the basis of two criteria: the quality of the submitted business case and the potential communication tool that these cases represent for illustrating the benefit of CAMS, and of the Copernicus programme in general. The contracts between the promoters of these use cases and CAMS are structured in two phases, a development phase of up to 6 months, and an exploitation/demonstration phase of up to 18 months. It is expected that an economically sustainable model will have been established by the end of the contract. The 2017 use cases are now entering the exploitation phase and some of the services provided are already being offered through smartphones apps and websites.

While this first generation of CAMS use cases are entering the second phase of their contract, a new public call has been just launched with the objective to award up to six additional contracts which will develop and demonstrate end-to-end applications based on CAMS products. The purpose, once again, is to stimulate innovative ideas and support the development of downstream applications. If you would like to bid for this call you need to submit your ideas by 8 November this year.

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The satellite is the part of the EU’s Copernicus Earth observation programme, and will contribute to daily forecasts of air quality, track where greenhouse gases are being released in unprecedented detail, and verify if the planet’s ozone layer is recovering after being damaged by CFCs in the 20th Century.

There’s only one instrument on board, called Tropomi, developed by scientists in the Netherlands.

“You have one satellite instrument measuring the complete globe – it means that you have one calibrated instrument measuring everywhere – it means that you can compare the pollution levels in Europe directly with those in China and United States,” says Pieternel Levelt, principal investigator for Tropomi and head of Satellite R&D at Dutch national weather service KNMI.

Sentinel-5P will fly on a polar orbit, circling the globe 40 times a day, scanning a swath 2,600 kilometres wide, with each pixel of representing 3.5 by 7 kilometres. That level of precision means the scientists and climate monitoring teams will be able to distinguish the difference between pollution from sources which are located quite close together, for example the port of Rotterdam and the city. They also hope to gain a better understanding of how pollution from some regions and cities travels with weather systems to other parts of the world – for example how pollution from the US reaches across to Ireland, or how pollution from the UK reaches Scandinavia.

Sentinel-5P will also contribute to better pollution forecasts for us Earthlings. Air pollution isn’t just a nuisance, it’s a killer – the WHO reported that 3.7 million people died in 2012 from conditions related to outdoor air pollution. The satellite will be looking for some of the key nasties like nitrogen dioxide, low level ozone, carbon monoxide and formaldehyde, all of which can be very harmful to humans. These gases are commonly produced by fossil fuels burned by vehicles and industrial processes, but also volcanic emissions.

A key question Sentinel-5P should answer is the state of the high-altitude ozone layer, a protective band of gas that allows life on Earth to thrive by absorbing harmful radiation from space. The ozone layer was damaged by mankind’s emission of CFC gases, but these were banned from January 1989 following the UN’s Montreal Protocol. However, there is still a ‘hole’ in the ozone layer above the South Pole between September and October, and globally there is still thought to be a lower level of ozone than in the 1960s.

Pieternel Levelt told Euronews how important this mission is for ozone monitoring: “The ozone layer is often looked at as something which is solved. We understand the chemistry, we understand the dynamics, we know how to improve, to get the ozone back, basically, by reducing the cooling agents (CFCs). But of course it’s important to measure it, to prove that that your measures work, and we don’t expect a complete recovery before 2050, 2060, so we need these measurements to know that the ozone layer is there, because it’s a pre-requisite for life on Earth- without the ozone layer we cannot live here.”

Sentinel-5P joins the other Sentinel satellites already in orbit, representing the space component of Copernicus, the world’s most ambitious Earth observation programme, overseen by the European Commission. Already in space are Sentinels 1 to 4. Sentinel-1A and 1B will providing all day and all night radar images, which are very useful for monitoring events like flooding; Sentinel-2A and 2B deliver high-resolution optical images of land use;
Sentinel-3A, launched on 16 February 2016, provides data for services relevant to the ocean and land; and Sentinel-4 is measuring trace gases and aerosols from a more distant geostationary orbit.

Upcoming soon is Sentinel-6, which follows on the sea surface height measurements taken by the Jason series of satellites, the missions which have been vital to quantifying global sea level height for climate studies.

Also watch Euronews video: “Can we solve the mysteries of Earth’s atmosphere?”

©Euronews
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Every six months, a different member takes the role of Primus Inter Pares – or Charter lead. Last week, ESA took over this role for the sixth time, and is responsible for ensuring that the Charter’s policies and rules are respected.

ESA will also develop new partnerships with the space and the disaster risk-reduction communities.

“ESA plans to ensure that not only the operational activities of the Charter are running smoothly but will also prepare for future challenges,” said Maurice Borgeaud, head of ESA’s Earth Observation Science, Applications and Climate Department. “Future challenges include the likely increase of the calls on the Charter, international collaboration with key partners running similar activities, and taking advantage of the ever-increasing availability of Earth observation data.”

Founded by ESA and the French and Canadian space agencies, the Charter is an international collaboration between 16 owners or operators of Earth observation missions. It provides rapid access to satellite data to help disaster management authorities in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.

The value of the initiative lies in being able to mobilise agencies around the world and benefit from their knowhow and their satellites through a single access point that operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and at no cost to the user.

Since its first request for support, in 2000, the Charter has called on space assets on many occasions, helping to respond to more than 520 disasters in more than 120 countries.

Recent activations have included Hurricanes Irma and Maria, which hit the United States and Caribbean in September, as well as the 7.1-magnitude earthquake that struck central Mexico on 19 September.

On average, the Charter is activated about 40 times a year. But this year has been particularly busy, already exceeding that average. In August and September alone, there have been 16 activations – twice the monthly average.

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Members of the European Committee of the Regions have given their support to Andres Jaadla (ET/ALDE) by adopting his opinion Space Strategy for Europe.
The CoR is in line with the European Commission vision on space published in November 2016. Yet it asks to further develop its regional dimension so to bring space technologies closer to citizens. Space technologies, data and services ensure communication, surveillance, border and security control, rapid response to natural disasters and support for agriculture, fisheries and transport management.

Space technologies, data and services have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. In Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), space technology allows information exchange in real time. In digital services, it leads to continuous high-resolution surveillance systems. Space satellites advantage rapid responses to natural disasters and contribute to better urban administration and public transport management. Space-related capabilities and services play an important role in terms of European defence and security as well as in environmental monitoring, the protection of biodiversity and the fight against global warming.

‘Space policy can help boost jobs, growth and investment in Europe while it pushes the boundaries of science and research’ said rapporteur Andres Jaadla. The member of the Rakvere city council added: ‘we must develop the regional dimension as to bring space benefits closer to citizens. The EU space policy and strategy does however need to better convince society of all the potential benefits. Users should be at the centre of Europe’s space policy’.

_Rapporteur Jaadla added ‘Local and regional authorities have the competence and the will to be involved in the implementation of EU’s space policy. While many regions have joined the Network of European Regions Using Space Technologies (NEREUS), pointing to the growing importance of space for regional economies, these actions need to be highlighted more and foster integrative partnerships between civil society, business, public institutions and the science community.’_Rapporteur Jaadla called for the space strategy to be further interlinked and integrated into other EU policies, such as the Urban Agenda, smart cities and climate policy.

Andres Jaadla added: ‘education and public awareness in connection with better trained specialists, more engineers and scientists should empower the European public to play a central role in developing the complex systems of tomorrow, both on earth as well as in the skies with satellites, through programmes such as Galilei and Copernicus.”

Referring to the Copernicus programme, the European Committee of the Regions is keen in proving support for its development and implementation. The CoR proposes to provide a full permanent member to be part of the programme’s user forum. ‘Such direct participation would feed the forum with the perspective of local actors in terms of the use of Copernicus data’ said Andres Jaadla.

“The CoR can be a pivotal partner in connecting the European Commission, member states, the European Space Agency, academics, local governments and users so to build new partnerships with other EU policies”, concluded Andres Jaadla.

Notes to editors

• 26 November 2016. A space strategy for Europe . Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic And Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions.
• Contact: David Crous | david.crous@cor.europa.eu | +32 (0) 470 88 10 37

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The Australian government used the opening of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Adelaide, South Australia, to announce it would establish a national space agency. The announcement follows months of lobbying by the Space Industry Association of Australia (SIAA) and the South Australian government. Details of how the agency will be set up are yet to be announced.

The heads of the world’s largest space agencies are attending the congress, all of whom praised Australia’s decision.

NASA Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot said the agency would provide an excellent opportunity to increase the collaboration with Australia. “From a NASA perspective we’ve had a great partnership with Australia for a long time and I look forward to seeing which areas Australia decides to focus on,” he said. “I think that will be their challenge, but there’s enough room for them to participate in what we’re doing. It’s a global endeavor — we’re all here for that reason — and I think Australia not being a part of that until now is a little bit strange.”

European Space Agency (ESA) Director General Jan Woerner said having a national agency provided a good access point for space interactions with other nations.

“We welcome this very much,” he said. “There are two aspects to this: One is the national development and capacity building so you have a voice in your own country but at the same time you have a voice to the outer world. At the beginning of the ‘60s Australia was an associate member of the European Launch and Development Organization (ELDO), so we are really happy we can continue our strong cooperation.”

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) President Naoki Okumura said his agency was already working with Australia on Earth Observation (EO) satellite activities but the agency would lead to closer ties. “In the future we would like to work more closely with Australia in order to become an innovation center and strengthen our relationship,” he said.

Canadian Space Agency (CSA) President Sylvain Laporte said establishing a national space program was not without its challenges. “There’s a ton of opportunities and things you can do but there’s always limited resources,” he said. “Putting in a sound governance system that will allow the space agency to make the right decisions, to prioritize what it should do and to make sure it can make the best pitch possible to politicians to secure as much funding as is required for this country to invest in space, I think would be a good first step.”

Until now, Australia was one of the only Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries without a national space agency.

A federal government review into the long-term plan for the sector in Australia was announced in July but will not be completed until March, dashing hopes of an announcement at the congress. However, Senator Simon Birmingham, who announced the agency at the opening of the congress, said it was already clear that the case for a national agency was “compelling.”

“This agency will be the anchor for the domestic coordination and the front door for our international engagement for so many of you from across the world’s space industries,” he said. “The global space sector was growing fast and Australia needed to be a part of it … We have listened to the industry and the overwhelming response to our review has been support for a space agency.”

SIAA Chair Michael Davis said the SIAA was thrilled with the announcement and expected the agency would be a collaboration between government and industry.

“What a start to this congress,” he said. “The aim is to deliver clear economic benefit to the Australian economy and of course, to re-enforce our status as a participant of long-standing in the development of outer space. We will soon take our place at the table of space agencies as major initiatives and cooperative projects are considered and developed.”

“We have the capacity, the science, the skills, the research and development environment, the culture, the industry nous. Now we have the standing of the Australian Space Agency,” he added.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill said the week presented an opportunity for the state to send a bold message to the world.

“We are ready to put ourselves in the service of this nation by becoming a key part of a national space agency,” he told the congress. “We are also sending a clear message to the world that we want to work with you — as our state logo suggests — as an open door to opportunity.”

The SIAA launched a white paper in March calling on the Australian government to establish a national space agency.

Last month Weatherill and ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together toward the creation of a Canberra-based space agency with a prominent presence in Adelaide.

The state government last week also announced a space industry center was being established in Adelaide as part of Defense Industries Minister Martin Hamilton-Smith’s portfolio to include space.

This story was originally published in The Lead South Australia. It has been edited to better serve our audience as part of a collaboration between Via Satellite and The Lead South Australia.

The renewed EU Industrial Policy Strategy brings together all existing and new horizontal and sector-specific initiatives into a comprehensive industrial strategy. It also clarifies the tasks ahead for all actors involved and sets out the fora – an annual Industry Day, the first edition of which took place in February 2017, and a High Level Industrial Roundtable – that will allow in particular industry and civil society to steer industrial policy actions in the future.

Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness Jyrki Katainen said: “By embracing technological change, converting research investments into innovative business ideas, and continuing to pioneer the low-carbon and circular economy we will pave the way for a smart, innovative and sustainable industry in Europe.”

Elżbieta Bieńkowska, Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, added: “Many European industries are at a turning point. In our day and age, industrial policy is about empowering our industries to continue delivering sustainable growth and jobs for our regions and citizens.”

The main new elements of the EU Industrial Policy Strategy include:

• A comprehensive package to reinforce our industry’s cybersecurity. It includes the creation of a European Cybersecurity Research and Competence Centre to support the development of technology and industrial capabilities in cybersecurity, as well as an EU-wide certification scheme for products and services, recognised in all Member States (adopted on 13 September 2017).
• A proposal for a Regulation on the free flow of non-personal data that will enable data to circulate freely across borders, helping to modernise industry and create a truly common European data space (adopted on 13 September 2017).
• A new series of actions on Circular Economy, including a strategy on plastics and measures to improve the production of renewable biological resources and their conversion into bio-based products and bio-energy (autumn 2017).
• A set of initiatives to modernise the Intellectual Property Framework, including a report on the functioning of the Directive on the enforcement of intellectual property rights and a Communication on a balanced, clear and predictable European licensing framework for Standard Essential Patents (autumn 2017).
• An initiative to improve the functioning of public procurement in the EU, including a voluntary mechanism to provide clarity and guidance to authorities planning large infrastructure projects (autumn 2017).
• Extension of the Skills Agenda to new key industry sectors, such as construction, steel, paper, green technologies and renewable energies, manufacturing and maritime shipping (autumn 2017).
• A strategy on sustainable finance to better orient private capital flows to more sustainable investments (early 2018).
• Initiatives for a balanced and progressive trade policy and a European framework for the screening of foreign direct investments that may pose a threat to security or public order (adopted on 13 September 2017).
• A revised list of critical raw materials where the Commission will continue to help ensure the secure, sustainable and affordable supply for the EU manufacturing industry (adopted on 13 September 2017).
• New proposals for clean, competitive and connected mobility, including tightened CO2 emissions standards for cars and vans, an Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Action Plan to support the deployment of charging infrastructure, and actions to foster autonomous driving (autumn 2017).

Putting this holistic strategy into practice is a shared responsibility. Its success depends on the efforts and cooperation of the EU institutions, Member States, regions and most importantly on the active role of industry itself.
Background

Europe’s industry is strong and has retained a leading position in many sectors in global markets. Industry accounts for two thirds of the EU’s exports and provides jobs for 32 million people, with 1.5 million of these jobs created since 2013. But to maintain and reinforce its competitive advantage, an important modernisation effort is required. That is why industry is at the heart of the Juncker Commission’s political priorities. All Commission policies are geared toempower industry to create jobs and boost Europe’s competitiveness, foster investment and innovation in clean and digital technologies and defend Europe’s regions and workers most affected by industrial change.

New production technologies are changing Europe’s industrial landscape and play an increasingly important role in determining the ability of European business to compete globally. They will create jobs through a number of channels, and technologies delivering higher productivity can benefit the wider economy. They may also have a deeper impact on the nature and availability of work. The future of Europe’s industry will depend on its ability to continuously adapt and innovate by investing in new technologies and embracing changes brought on by increased digitisation and the transition to low-carbon and circular economy. At the same time, global competition is higher than before and the benefits from globalisation and technological progress are unevenly spread across our societies. The Juncker Commission wants to address this.

President Juncker’s Political Guidelines have underlined the importance of a strong and high performing industry for the future of Europe’s economy. The creation of jobs and growth through innovation and investment has since been at the centre of the Commission’s key initiatives. The Juncker Plan (the Investment Plan for Europe) and the Capital Markets Union help to mobilise resources to boost economic recovery; EU support for innovation helps industry and in particular SMEs play to their strengths; Europe is at the forefront of the global push for a low-carbon and circular economy through its circular economy, clean energy and low carbon economy initiatives; key enabling technologies help industry compete globally; the Digital Single Market Strategy, the accompanying Digitisation of Industry Strategy and the Action Plan on 5G for Europe help businesses take advantage of new developments and create a properly functioning data economy; the Single Market Strategy makes it possible for industry to access a market of 500 million consumers and to connect in value chains free from customs or technical barriers; and the New Skills Agenda for Europe helps equip the people behind our industry with better skills.

These horizontal policies that concern all industries are complemented by a number of specific policies for strategic sectors, including a Space Strategy to further build on Europe’s strong and competitive space industry, a proposal for a European Defence Fund which will act as a catalyst for a competitive and innovative European defence industry, and a wide range of initiatives for clean, sustainable and competitive car industry (including the Europe on the Move initiative, actions to curb air pollution by cars and GEAR2030 action), and a Communication on steel to ensure Europe’s steel industry can compete fairly in world markets.

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The NGO uses the software and Copernicus products to strengthen the drought monitoring capacity in the region. This is helping decision makers -such as the Government of Mali – to operate their own drought detection system, as a component of the national early warning system. To further democratise the information, the next step is to deliver information directly to herders.

Over the years, rainfall in the West African Sahel has become increasingly volatile, with years of floods preceding extreme droughts. These climatic shocks place millions of people in a precarious and vulnerable situation, which is more acutely felt by livestock herders.

In countries such as Mali and Niger, the majority of cattle are held in semi-nomadic herds that move according to the seasons in search of greener pasture and water. As the Sahel has a single rainy season of 3-4 months between July and October, herders need to make careful decisions on moving their cattle, ensuring that their animals stay healthy and survive the long dry season. For the communities in the region a poor rainy season can severely affect their way of living. Family herds that took decades to form can be decimated in only a few months. As an example, in 2009, following a drought in Niger, herders in the worst-hit areas lost up to 90% of their livestock.

Reliable information on biomass and water availability is fundamental. Herders, as well as humanitarian and government actors, need to know which areas are going to be impacted by droughts to plan for early response interventions.

Since 2005, a humanitarian NGO, Action against Hunger (Action Contre la Faim, ACF), has been working to use remote sensing data to improve humanitarian response to droughts. Through a partnership with the Flemish Institute of Technology (VITO NV, Belgium), ACF has been providing geo-information, derived from the SPOT/VGT and PROBA-V satellite sensors, to other humanitarian actors in order to identify areas prone to drought.

Over the years, this initiative has grown and several Copernicus Global Land Service products related to vegetation and water – Dry Matter Productivity, Water Bodies, Soil Water Index and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index – are now being used operationally to monitor the West Sahel. Software developed by ACF uses Copernicus data to estimate biomass/grassland production and water availability.

This article was first published in Copernicus Observer.
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The European Commission intends to establish a User Feedback Mechanism to monitor and continuously improve the performance of the Copernicus programme, and user satisfaction. This mechanism is under development with the support of Copernicus Entrusted Entities to get all necessary intelligence, and identify necessary service improvements.

As a Copernicus user, your opinion is integral to the development of the programme! So answer these surveys and help to improve our services and products.

Below you can access the current open surveys:

• Copernicus Land Monitoring Service
• Copernicus Open Access Hub for Sentinel data

The Region of Western Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Epirus and Western Macedonia organized and hosted the activities of event, while Interbalkan Environment Center (i-BEC) acted as the accelerator of the whole endeavor in the Balkan region being Participating Organization of GEO. Mrs. Katerina Notopoulou from the Prime Minister’s Office also honored the event with her presence.

The Minister of Rural Development and Food Mr. Evangelos Apostolou welcomed the event and focused on the need to strengthen the competitiveness of the agricultural sector by adopting Earth Observation applications in the national rural development policy with the aim of ensuring the highest quality in the agricultural products. The Minister highlighted that the goals of the Initiative for the increase of competitiveness in the agri-Food Sector in Balkans are in line with the Ministry’s strategic guidelines and highlight the need to engage and further assiste the cooperation of the stakeholders in the Balkans to establish the EO ecosystem towards the sustainable development. The Secretary General of Telecommunications and Posts Mr Vasilios Maglaras representing the Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Information through stressed out the need to exploit research and scientific applications related to Earth observation for the modernization of agri-food sector and that the outcomes of the meeting must be incorporated to the implementation of the national digital strategy. In the light of the above, the need for co-operation between the two Ministries was pointed out to develop the necessary infrastructure to enhance digital agriculture.

Mrs. Ryan Barbara, GEO’s Director-General, who honored the event with her presence, mentioned the importance of providing digital services to citizens through the incorporation of Earth observation capabilities into daily applications and the need for them to be disseminated in the Balkan countries with the aid of the Inter-Balkan Environmental Center as an interregional organization of GEO and as a Technology Broker. In this context, the need for an Earth Observation System of Systems (BalkanGEOSS) that will initially focus on monitoring the most important crops fulfilling the role of Balkan GEOGLAM in the Balkan region was highlighted. The Scientific Director of the Inter-Balkan Environmental Center, Professor George Zalidis coordinated the 1st Session of the Round Table Meeting that discussed the utilization of space technologies and applications for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) implementation related to the agri-food sector. In particular, Michel Deshayes and Juan Pablo Guerschman coordinators of the Global Agricultural Monitoring Initiative (GEOGLAM) and GEOGLAM Rangeland and Pasture Productivity (GEOGLAM-RAPP), respectively, presented several applications that could be used to increase agricultural yields, reduction of ecological footprint, as well as the sustainable management of grasslands and pasturelands. The representative of the Ministry of the Environment and Energy, Mr. Ioannis Kazoglou, stressed out that remote sensing practices should be used as part of the national strategy for rural development and the protection of natural resources. The utilization of modern technological tools in the agri-food sector were made by videoconferencing by Brian Killough, NASA and Committee in Earth Observation satellites (CEOS) scientist and, Espen Volden and Gordon Campbell, as representatives of the European Space Agency (ESA) for the Balkan Peninsula region. All speakers referred to the significant potential exploitation of multi-dimensional data-processing structures such as the Data Cube and the Thematic Exploitation Platforms for increasing the competitiveness and sustainability of agricultural practices. These applications have already been utilized in a number of countries and thematic sectors and the speakers underlined the common belief that these opportunities could be exploited in the Balkans through the Contact Points set up by GEO-CRADLE to strengthen the agricultural sector. Lawrence Friedl, Director of NASA’s Applied Science Program and Aditya Agrawal Director of the GPSDD highlighted the value of satellite data availability for monitoring SDGs. Summarizing, at the end of the Session, the Rector of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Mr. Pericles Mitkas, emphasized the role of AUTH in the interconnection of research with the productive sector and set the year 2018 as a landmark year for the further interconnection of i-BEC in the Balkans, while Mr. Athanasios Paliatsos, special advisor of the Directorate of Radio Spectrum and Satellite Communications focused on the need for co-operation between stakeholders so that Earth Observation Systems can be harnessed to the benefit of many sectors of the agri-food economy.

The discussion followed by representatives of the ecosystem of stakeholders from the Balkan region in order to draw up a plan to improve the implementation of regional development policies to actively support entrepreneurship. The Coordinator of the Decentralized Administration of Epirus – Western Macedonia, Mr. Vasileios Mihelakis, representing the majority of the Coordinators of the Decentralized Administrations in the event, highlighted the importance of common actions and strategies with Interbalkan Environment center related to water, forest and environment. Theodoros Karypidis, Governor of the Region of the Western Macedonia, Nikolai Chanev, Regional Governor of Kardzhali (Bulgaria), the Deputy Regional Governor of the Region of Central Macedonia Fanis Pappas and the Deputy Governor Mr. Panagiotis Plakentas emphasized the importance of cooperation between cross-border countries and the need to integrate Earth Observation applications into the Regional Operational Programs enhancing the funding for Small and Medium Enterprises to increase their competitiveness. Mr. Kyriakos Loufakis, President of the Greek International Business Association and Alexander Zarkov, Director of the Chambers of Commerce of Macedonia highlighted that the Chambers of Commence in the Balkans would be very interested in certified labelled products as reduced input practices products using Earth Observation applications and proposed to organize a round table on entrepreneurship in the Balkans.

Finally, interventions were made by the President of the Geotechnical Chamber Mr. Spyros Mamalis, the Technical Chamber’s representative Mr. George Tsakoumis and the Vice President of the Central Union of Chambers Mr. Pavlos Tonikidis, focusing on the need for a long-term national planning for economic development that will include specific measures and mechanisms for the further adoption of innovative digital technologies. The meeting was completed after the interventions of Μr. Theodoros Karypidis, Governor of the Region of the western Macedonia and Mr. Vasileios Michelakis, Coordinator of the Decentralized Administration of Epirus and Western Macedonia.

The action plan of the Round Table can be found online

Copernicus – a joint project between the EU and the European Space Agency (ESA) that uses satellites and ground sensors to monitor the environment – is the world’s largest civil Earth observation programme, producing over 8 petabytes per year.
Earth observation data has many important uses, such as tracking deforestation and rising sea levels, helping farmers and fisheries to operate sustainably, and monitoring humanitarian crises.

But Copernicus is not the world’s only supplier, and if the EU and others agreed to provide standardised Earth observation data through a shared and trusted platform, that platform could support additional innovative uses of data in science, business, and policy-making, on a greater scale than any lone data supplier.
Unfortunately, inadequate implementation of common data standards and reuse policies across different Earth observation programmes currently makes it difficult to reuse combined data.

One attempt to resolve this is the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), run by the Group on Earth Observations (GEO), an intergovernmental organisation with over 100 member countries – including the EU’s 28.

GEOSS provides a single portal for various sources of independently-supplied Earth observation data, along with common standards for incorporating them via the GEOSS Common Infrastructure (GCI).

No common standards

Despite the broad membership of GEOSS, it still faces the challenge of pushing for its standards to be widely adopted. There is no binding international agreement that commits the world’s Earth observation programmes to common standards.

If the world could move from merely having disparate suppliers of Earth observation data to sharing a common platform for them, it would be easier to incorporate data from different sources into important research.

It could range from tracking the effects of climate change to planning for global food security, and to use algorithmic techniques, such as text and data mining, to derive insights from huge and diverse data sets. This would help scientists to learn more about the Earth’s climate and its resources.

A shared platform for the world’s Earth observation data would enhance the abilities of governments that lack their own Earth observation technologies to monitor local environmental threats.

For example, the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) & Africa initiative uses Copernicus data to help African nations plan infrastructural development, manage their natural resources, and monitor the effects of climate change, natural disasters, and war.

An international agreement on Earth observation data standards and reuse policies would also support economic innovation globally.

Copernicus data already has various commercial uses, such as helping farmers to manage land and crops more effectively, as well as identifying optimal locations for fisheries that are environmentally sustainable.

A larger, multilateral supply of interoperable data would enhance global capacity for this kind of data-driven innovation by broadening the amount of data businesses can work with at once.

The EU, alongside the ESA, should take the lead in forging an international agreement on the implementation of common standards and reuse policies for Earth observation data.

Driving innovation

The Copernicus programme itself already drives innovation by making its data freely available, including for commercial reuse. And the Copernicus B2B challenge offers cash prizes for participants with the best commercial applications of Copernicus data, such as helping insurance companies to predict losses.

If the EU wants to remain at the forefront of the production and use of Earth observation data, it should work with others to show that when many countries integrate data from their disparate sources, everyone is made better off.

The EU already has cooperation agreements on Copernicus data with the United States and Australia. These agreements help those countries to address local needs with data, such as detecting oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico.

They also bring together leading experts to collaborate on developing uses of Earth observation data that have common benefits, such opening up new markets for data-driven products and services in industries such as agriculture, fisheries, and mining.

Agreements like these demonstrate the benefits to the global environment and economy when different countries share data and expertise.

Similar bilateral cooperation with other countries running Earth observation satellites, such as India and Japan, could help build momentum for a multilateral agreement on interoperable data sharing.

Furthermore, the EU-backed Research Data Alliance publishes guidelines on data standards and reuse policies, which, in addition to GEOSS standards, could further contribute to an agreement on interoperable data feeds that third parties can compare, combine, and freely reuse.

Earth observation data is an important driver of innovation in environmental policy, urban development, scientific research, as well as in industry and business.

Copernicus alone is a towering achievement, but stronger political commitment to GEOSS, with binding agreements, would make it easier for scientists, governments, and businesses to make the most of the data provided by the world’s Earth observation platforms.

The EU should move swiftly to make this happen.

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