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GEOSS: the backbone of
decision making on climate
José Achache, Director, Secretariat of the Group on Earth Observations
S
ince 2005, the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) has
enabled 130 governments and international organizations
to collaborate on linking together their space, aerial, ocean
and land-based systems for environmental observation, predic-
tion and information. The resulting Global Earth Observation
System of Systems (GEOSS) provides decision-support capabili-
ties and end-to-end services that support science-based decision
making on major global challenges such as climate change and
climate variability.
When Governments adopted the ‘GEOSS 10-Year Implementation
Plan’ for 2005 through 2015, they agreed that GEOSS should contrib-
ute to international efforts to understand, assess, predict, mitigate,
and adapt to climate variability and change. The need for GEOSS to
provide better information on climate was reiterated by the leaders
of the G8 when they met in Hokkaido, Japan in July 2008. “To
respond to the growing demand for Earth observation data,” they
declared, “we will accelerate efforts within the GEOSS, which builds
on the work of UN specialized agencies and programmes in priority
areas, inter alia, climate change and water resources management,
by strengthening observation, prediction and data sharing.”
A cross-cutting issue par excellence, climate both affects and is
affected by changes in the atmosphere, oceans, water cycle and
biosphere, as well as land-use patterns, energy use, natural disas-
ters, socioeconomic conditions and many other variables. Because
GEOSS addresses eight other major societal benefit areas in addition
to climate, it captures and integrates a broad range of observations
and analyses that are relevant to all aspects of the climate challenge.
GEO member governments and participating organizations are
coordinating the construction of GEOSS through an agreed work
plan containing over 100 activities. This article will highlight four
important activities that illustrate the different kinds of climate serv-
ices and monitoring systems that are currently being developed.
End-to-end climate services
The GEO task to provide ‘environmental information for deci-
sion-making, risk management and adaptation’ addresses decision
makers’ needs by integrating relevant climate and environmental
risk management activities. The aim is to coordinate and drive the
development of tailored climate products and services, encourage
the use of this information by decision makers at all levels, and
initiate user-oriented activities to increase the demand and foster
the supply of climate and environmental services. This development
also provides an illustration of how governments and organizations
are implementing GEOSS as a collaborative effort through the coor-
dination framework provided by GEO.
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO), the World
Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the
International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme are
leading an effort to enhance climate, weather, water
and environmental prediction and to deliver new
and improved services. Key activities relate to: seam-
less weather, climate and Earth system prediction;
multi-scale organization of tropical convection and
interaction with the global circulation; data assimila-
tion for coupled models as a prediction and validation
tool for weather and climate research; and information
to assess the risks and benefits of climate and weather
predictions for society and the global economy.
Complementing this effort, WCRP and the Global
Climate Observing System (GCOS) are coordi-
nating the work of organizations and agencies
committed to strengthening climate information for
decision making, risk management and adaptation.
In particular, they are promoting the funding and
implementation of the Climate for Development in
Africa Programme. This programme aims to improve
the availability, exchange and use of climate informa-
tion and services at national, local and regional levels
in support of economic growth and the Millennium
Development Goals. African partners include the
African Union, the UN Economic Commission for
Africa, the African Development Bank, and African
National Meteorological and Hydrological Services.
Similarly, GCOS, WCRP and other GEO member
governments and participating organizations are
supporting the programme ‘Climate Observations
and Regional Modeling in Support of Climate Risk
Management and Sustainable Development’, which
seeks to assist the developing and least-developed
countries of Eastern Africa to undertake and use climate
projections in adaptation planning.
Global carbon monitoring
Another partnership is implementing a set of activities
aimed at establishing a global carbon monitoring system
as part of GEOSS. This system will include a forest
carbon monitoring service that is being coordinated by
the governments of Australia, Japan and Norway, plus
the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS),
the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Global
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