SWF Recognized as Key Player in US Data Release to Promote Global Climate Resilience

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

On Sept. 23, 2014, the Barack Obama Administration announced a new set of actions to promote global climate resilience, particularly for vulnerable populations. The announcement, made during the Climate Summit in New York, NY, included the much-anticipated release of global high-resolution elevation data. SWF is recognized in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) release detailing the initiative as one of the key partners involved in the data release initiative and in its ongoing capacity-building efforts to enable decision makers in developing countries to make the best use of this information. SWF was also among the participants in a special OSTP and United Nations Foundation event on Sept. 24, 2014, highlighting the new initiatives.

As part of its Human and Environmental Security portfolio, SWF is an active member of the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) and its Working Group on Capacity Building and Data Democracy (WGCapD), which works with member institutions from around the world to build capacity for the effective use of and improved access to Earth observation (EO) data. For the past couple of years, CEOS member institutions and partners have been working to enable the global release of high-resolution elevation data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), which, as noted in the release,  “will be used worldwide to improve environmental monitoring, climate change research including sea-level rise impact assessments, and local decision support.”

In response to a release of a subset of these data in May 2013, SWF and WGCapD members, in partnership with the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD), hosted a week-long training workshop in Nairobi, Kenya, where participants from six African countries learned how to utilize the data to improve decision making processes. In support of the phased release of the global data set, SWF will continue to engage with WGCapD members and other partners in efforts to expand the online and regional workshops.