Space4Climate has secured three years’ funding from the UK Space Agency to continue our role bringing together the UK’s Earth Observation for climate community, it was announced at the Living Planet Symposium today (May 24).
The news came in a speech by Space4Climate Chair, Beth Greenaway, who also announced that Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) is joining Space4Climate as a funding member.
Beth was delivering a Plenary Speech on Day Two of the Living Planet Symposium, as Head of Earth Observation and Climate at the UK Space Agency, stepping in for Defra Chief Scientific Adviser, Gideon Henderson, who was injured. She described the two announcements as ‘brilliant’ adding: “We worked together through the (Space4Climate) network to show the value of space at COP26 and it did a brilliant job.”
Three-year plan to support UK Earth Observation community
Krupa Nanda Kumar, Space4Climate Interim Manager, welcomed the announcements, saying: “This funding enables Space4Climate to support and promote the UK’s world-leading climate data from space community and it’s a huge endorsement to have Defra join our board. We are now able to develop and deliver our new three-year plan, aimed at ramping up our support to climate services development and engagement within the UK EO community. Our members and stakeholders will benefit from the leading knowledge, innovative thinking and policy planning that is central to Defra’s work across the UK and through its EO Centre for Excellence.”
Reinforcing the UK’s commitment to investing in Earth Observation to provide trusted climate data from space for climate action around the world, especially Nature-Based Solutions, Beth’s speech highlighted the importance of satellite data to address climate change and the UK’s use of satellites for science and action by government and beyond.
Long-term vision for climate satellite missions
She picked out the role of members the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), the UK’s National Metrology Institute, in calibration and quality assurance of EO data, saying: “We are asking people to take really big, expensive decision so we have to be sure of the data.”
Looking at upcoming ESA climate satellite missions that are drawing on UK expertise, Beth said: “We need long-term vision and long-term plans of how all our different missions will come together.”
She went on to call for continued international collaboration, including among space agencies, and for engagement with and investment in the new and next generations of Earth Observation talent. She said: “It’s the people that make it happen, people from many different organisations coming together to make this happen. I don’t think it’s every really been acknowledged that people are a really great part of the equation.”
‘Space is inspiring, climate is inspiring’
Beth demonstrated the huge range of skills and talents illustrated with a preview of Space4Climate’s new infographic ‘101 climate careers in Earth Observation from Space’ saying: “Space is inspiring, climate is inspiring, together we can work to address climate … It’s about the [satellite] images, it’s about the people, but it’s all about change.”
Living Planet Symposium 2022, in Bonn, is organised by the European Space Agency (ESA). The Day 2 plenary session drew on speakers from across Europe to present Earth Observation proposals ahead of the ESA Ministerial Council being held in November and to ‘fine tune’ the Executive’s plans for the future – aiming to keep Europe in ‘pole position’ in addressing the world’s climate crisis. These plans include ensuring that Earth Observation ‘benefits society, the economy, the commercial world and more’.
Space4Climate Task Groups
Beth put the spotlight on Space4Climate’s Task Groups that bring together non-specialist and climate data from space experts to develop innovative uses of EO data, services and prototype products covering peatlands monitoring and climate risk as well as Nature-Based Solutions focusing on forests, oceans and monitoring emissions.
9 ways our members are supporting Global Stocktake
To coincide with today’s announcements and themes, Space4Climate has selected nine case studies from our wide membership – spanning private, public, academic and governmental agencies – to highlight UK Earth Observation capabilities to contribute to the Global Stocktake (GST) now and in the future. The GST is a process for taking stock of the implementation of the Paris Agreement to assess the world’s collective progress towards achieving the purpose of the Paris Agreement. Read the case studies by clicking on the link, above right.
Space4Climate is a neutral, not for profit, membership organisation, chaired by the UK Space Agency, hosted by the National Centre for Earth Observation (NCEO) and based at the University of Reading.