Applying Earth science knowledge to sustainable development, disaster risk reduction, and climate action Data and insights from Earth observations are critical for assessing the health of our planet, monitoring change, and addressing societal challenges from the local to the global scale. Earth Observation Applications and Global Policy Frameworks presents case studies of Earth science information integrated with statistics and socioeconomic data for managing development targets, improving disaster resilience, and mitigating and adapting to climate change. It also showcases open collaboration among researchers, United Nations and government officials, entrepreneurs, and the public. Volume highlights include: Case studies of projects working with local and national governments, and through public-private partnerships, to make the most of the large volume of complex and diverse Earth science information sources Applications from diverse disciplines including wetland preservation, food security, water quality, marine conservation, disasters, urbanization, drought and land degradation, and greenhouse gas monitoring Examples of internationally coordinated initiatives that are driving progress on three landmark United Nations agreements Resources for decision-makers and practitioners in local and national governments The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. Its publications disseminate scientific knowledge and provide resources for researchers, students, and professionals.

The book focuses on the topic of trends and challenges with regards to satellite-based earth observation. Contributors include legal experts in the field and representatives from institutions such as the European Space Agency, the European Space Policy Institute, academia and the private sector.

... Rather than learning to adapt to natural and manmade disasters, the changing climate, the global food crisis, as well as our growing appetite for energy, and dealing only with the consequences after the fact, we need to start focusing our efforts on the Earth observation systems that will better connect humanity and its home, allowing us to prevent, predict, and mitigate the increasingly dramatic impacts of global change."--from pub. synopsis.

The combined observational power of the multiple earth observing satellites is currently not being harnessed holistically to produce more durable societal benefits. We are not able to take complete advantage of the prolific amount of scientific output and remote sensing data that are emerging rapidly from satellite missions and convert them quickly into decision-making products for users. The current application framework we have appears to be an analog one lacking the absorption bandwidth required to handle scientific research and the voluminous (petabyte-scale) satellite data. This book will tackle this question: "How do we change this course and take full advantage of satellite observational capability for a more sustainable, happier and safer future in the coming decades?"

The result of a workshop bringing together an international advisory board of experts in science, satellite technologies, industry innovations, and public policy, this book addresses the current and future roles of satellite Earth observations in solving large-scale environmental problems. The book showcases the results of engaging distinct communities to enhance our ability to identify emerging problems and to administer international regimes created to solve them. It also reviews the work of the Policy and Earth Observation Innovation Cycle (PEOIC) project, an effort aimed at assessing the impact of satellite observations on environmental policy and to propose a mission going forward that would launch an “innovation cycle”. The achievements of such a mission would feed back to innovations in next-generation observation technology, thus contributing to global policy demand for policy-relevant information. This book is open access under a CC BY license.

This open access book is a consolidation of lessons learnt and experiences gathered from our efforts to utilise Earth observation (EO) science and applications to address environmental challenges in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region. It includes a complete package of knowledge on service life cycles including multi-disciplinary topics and practically tested applications for the HKH. It comprises 19 chapters drawing from a decade’s worth of experience gleaned over the course of our implementation of SERVIR-HKH – a joint initiative of NASA, USAID, and ICIMOD – to build capacity on using EO and geospatial technology for effective decision making in the region. The book highlights SERVIR’s approaches to the design and delivery of information services – in agriculture and food security; land cover and land use change, and ecosystems; water resources and hydro-climatic disasters; and weather and climate services. It also touches upon multidisciplinary topics such as service planning; gender integration; user engagement; capacity building; communication; and monitoring, evaluation, and learning. We hope that this book will be a good reference document for professionals and practitioners working in remote sensing, geographic information systems, regional and spatial sciences, climate change, ecosystems, and environmental analysis. Furthermore, we are hopeful that policymakers, academics, and other informed audiences working in sustainable development and evaluation – beyond the wider SERVIR network and well as within it – will greatly benefit from what we share here on our applications, case studies, and documentation across cross-cutting topics.