Peter E. ColohanUnited States Group on Earth Observations

April 21,20101

Overview of USGEO and Overview of USGEO and Canadian GEO CollaborationCanadian GEO Collaboration

What is GEO?• The intergovernmental Group on

Earth Observations (GEO) is a voluntary partnership of 80 Member governments and the European Commission, working with 58 Participating Organizations

• GEO is coordinating efforts to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems, or GEOSS

• A forum to develop new projects, coordinate strategies and investments

What is GEOSS?• A distributed system of systems

– Improves coordination of strategies & observation systems

– Links all platforms: in situ, aircraft, & satellite networks

– Identifies gaps in our global capacity

– Facilitates exchange of data & information

– Improves decision-makers’ abilities to address pressing policy issues

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2010 GEO Ministerial SummitBeijing – 5 November 2010

Main focal points:

• The mid-term assessment of progress on the GEOSS 10-year Implementation Plan (2010-2015)

• Sustaining an operational GCI

• Endorsing actions in support of the GEOSS Data Sharing Principles

• Renewed commitments to observing systems, especially in situ systems

• Laying the framework for the implementation of the

GEOSS in the period 2010-2015 (and beyond).3

• Established to coordinate Canada’s response & engagement in international GEO & to meet Canadian Earth observation challenges

• Environment Canada led (GEO Principal for Canada)• Member departments & agencies: Agriculture, Canadian Space Agency, Fisheries &

Oceans, Foreign Affairs, National Defence, Health, Natural Resources, Parks Canada, Public Safety, Statistics Canada

• Governance• CGEO ADM Steering Committee (SC)• CGEO DG-level Interdepartmental Coordination Committee (ICC)

• Interdepartmental Secretariat established 2005

1. Advance the coordination of EO within Canada • Develop a ‘Federal Earth Observation Strategy’• Identify and facilitate collaborative EO projects and development of a Canadian GEOSS• Advocate & catalyze coordinated, comprehensive and sustained EO• Establish partnerships for implementing EO tasks and activities

2. Manage Canada’s involvement in International GEO• Maintain close relations with international GEO Secretariat (Geneva)• Prepare Canada’s positions in GEO Plenary Meetings & Ministerial Summits• Establish strong ties with key countries, especially USA• Co-chair GEO Americas Caucus and GEOSS in the Americas initiatives• Support GEO processes and GEOSS development

CGEO Governance

GEO Principal for Canada(Environment Canada –

lead Department)Steering Committee

(Assistant Deputy Minister level)

InterdepartmentalCoordinatingCommittee

(Director General level)

CGEO Secretariat(hosted by Environment Canada –

funded interdepartmentally)

Working Groups

International Team

other Task Teams

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U.S. Group on Earth Observations

• Established in March 2005 as a standing subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

• Develops the U.S. Integrated Earth Observation System

• Advances international coordination by formulating U.S. positions and inputs to GEOSS, taking into account the requirements of the widest range of decision-makers, researchers, service-providers, the public and other stakeholders

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in the U.S. Federal Structure

National Science and Technology Council

25 Federal agencies and agency components

Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

The White House/Executive Office of the President

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USGEO Interagency Coordination

Strategic Assessment

Recently, the U.S. has expanded existing evaluation and assessment methodologies to better understand the costs and benefits of closing identified gaps in Earth observing capabilities and to prioritize future investment opportunities based on this framework.

This strategic assessment will further develop the U.S. Integrated Earth Observation System (IEOS), which harmonizes Federal government investments in Earth observations and comprises the U.S. National contribution to GEOSS.

Address continuity of current measurements as well as the need for new measurements

Focus near-term decision-making at the highest levels of government

Maximize Federal investment in Earth observations

Provide an integrated picture of national Earth observations priorities

Assessment Goals

Consider measurements from all types of platforms: space-based, airborne, subterranean, land and sea-based

USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Vision

Begin conceiving of North America as a single geographic space for the purpose of Earth observation, particularly along the world’s longest uncontested international boundary.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Three general purposes:

Coordinate engagement in GEO;

Coordinate cooperation on GEOSS in the Americas;

Encourage specific technical cooperation initiatives between the U.S. and Canada on Earth observations.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Water and Ice Workshop - Oct 2008

Hosted by the U.S. National Science Foundation in Arlington, Virginia (US);

Engaged over 80 US and Canadian experts;

Produced 13 recommendations for improving cryospheric and hydrologic Earth observations from a trans-boundary perspective.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

• Toronto Meetings – May 2009

Hosted by CGEO, involving 30 experts and leaders from the U.S. and Canada;

Focused on five areas of specific cooperation building on the recommendations of the Water and Ice Workshop.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

• Five Projects– May 2009

Develop three international, interdisciplinary water-related monitoring testbeds, building on existing initiatives, along the U.S.-Canada border;

Initiate two studies of drought in the context of hazards and extreme events.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Great Lakes TestbedGiven the long-standing mandate for joint monitoring

since the 1987 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, the vast amount of data available from this region, and the many existing cooperative programs along the Great Lakes, the goal of this testbed activity is to bring together the many initiatives to facilitate coordination both on water availability and water quality monitoring.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Prairies Region TestbedInterest in the Prairies stems from the need to close

gaps in critical Earth observation requirements for agriculture, specifically soil moisture. Greater, more concerted efforts are required both in soil moisture data collection as well as soil moisture modeling, particularly the effects on plant stress and root stress. Flooding extremes could also be examined in these contexts.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Rocky Mountains TestbedThis region was identified because of its role as

a laboratory for cold-water processes, as well its importance as the source of many trans-boundary river systems, including the Saskatchewan, Missouri and the Columbia and it’s implications for the Colorado and Athabasca systems.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Surface Water Supply Index (SWSI) StudyThe goal of this effort is to explore expanding the

availability and use of SWSI, a popular index for drought management in the Western U.S., noting the growing demand among users for this index at greater frequency and resolution. The study will examine how SWSI can be further refined and tested, including in Western regions of Canada.

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USGEO-CGEO Collaboration

Drought Definitions and Indices StudyThis study examines the need to improve the

definition of drought for different climatic regions, and the need to develop new and improved indices for drought, including vegetation. Continent-wide study is needed for comparative analysis across regions, and close links to the testbed activities will be pursued to refine definitions and indices for specific regions.

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For More Information

www.earthobservations.org

www.cgeo.gc.ca

usgeo.gov

THANK YOU

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