2005-IGM-SPG 10.pdf - Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change ...

Proposed New Activities for 2005/2006:
APN Capacity Building Workshop
on
Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS)
IGM/10/08
SPG/10/08
Launched at the first Earth Observation Summit in Washington in July 2003 the
intergovernmental ad hoc Group on Earth Observations (GEO) was tasked with
developing a ten-year implementation plan for a Global Earth Observation
System of Systems (GEOSS). The plan entails the coordination of a wide range of
space-based, air-based, and ocean-based environmental monitoring platforms,
resources and networks – presently operating independently.
The goals of APN are aligned with the Earth Observation System (EOS) objectives
of understanding planet Earth that “is crucial to enhancing human health, safety
and welfare, alleviating human suffering including poverty, protecting the global
environment, and achieving sustainable development.” Moreover, a high priority
APN goal is to improve the scientific and technical capabilities of Asia-Pacific
nations. This goal is currently being addressed by the APN’s CAPaBLE programme
and by other activities including projects supported directly through the
competitive Annual Call for Regional Proposals (ACRP).
At the Earth Observation Summit III in Brussels in February 2005, where APN
was represented as an “organisation requesting participation,” the GEOSS tenyear
implementation plan was approved with capacity building as an integral part
of the implementation strategy. In particular, the implementation plan
emphasises that:
• Specific capacity building activities, however, need to be tailored to suit
regional or local requirements on the basis of existing capacity.
• There are significant advantages to taking a coordinated, focused, cofinanced
and partnership-based approach to capacity building.
Proposed Activity:
Capacity Building Workshop
As part of a “partnership-based approach to capacity building” that is “tailored to
suit regional or local requirements,” a planning workshop on capacity building
activities for GEOSS implementation in the Asia-Pacific region, organised by the
APN, is proposed to convene in Japan in autumn 2005.
The main objective of this workshop will be to establish an appropriate
methodology to effectively implement the capacity building component of GEOSS,
as well as to discuss how to share roles between key players. Target groups to
be invited include representatives from: ∗ APN member countries, Secretariat of
the Group on Earth Observation (GEOSEC), International Organisations and
∗ APN member countries that are also GEO countries include: Australia, China, India, Indonesia,
Japan, Nepal, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Thailand, and the United
States.
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