- June 19, 2008
- Posted by: EARSC
- Categories: EARSC News, Internationalization
Toulouse, June 19, 2008
Planet Action is a non-profit initiative launched by Spot Image, a world leader in satellite imagery.
Planet Action and its partners support local projects acting on climate change issues by providing geographic information, Earth observation images and expertise to NGOs, institutions and universities.
Partners in the Planet Action initiative include co-founder and leading GIS provider, ESRI, and more recently the UNESCO who joined Planet Action within the framework of the Open Initiative to support World Heritage sites using space technology. Other partners include CNES (the French Space Agency), NSPO (the Taiwanese Space Agency), DigitalGlobe and Definiens.
Awareness about climate change is now mainstream and spreading among all communities: scientific, civil, governmental, nongovernmental or business. Faced with this unique challenge, satellite imagery brings the coverage, resolution and agility that are needed to assess and understand climate change impacts and to prepare, measure and manage adapting strategies.
Planet Action aims to:
– Build capacity to understand and act upon climate change related issues and support projects from the civil society that are engaged in action – Raise awareness and educate the public about the climate crisis, the benefits of Earth observation imagery and GIS, and the role of local NGOs and scientists as they tackle these issues.
Non-governmental organizations, institutions, universities and research organizations engaged in actions addressing climate change causes, impacts, and solutions can benefit from support from Planet Action.
5 key areas are the focus of Planet Action:
– Human dimensions & habitat – Drought, desertification, water resources – Vegetation, biodiversity, & ecosystems – Oceans – Ice & snow cover
Today, more than 30 projects are currently benefiting from satellite imagery and GIS expertise. These include projects on biodiversity changes in Indonesia, invasive plants in Madagascar, forest protection in Brazil, land cover change in Nepal, coral bleaching in Guadeloupe, and tracing toxic algae in the Mediterranean.
More information can be found on the Planet Action website : www.planet-action.org.
An international call for projects was launched last week to NGOs and institutions working on climate change issues. Planet Action is expecting to work with more than 100 non profit organizations before the end of the year. Details on the selection process and how to submit a project is available at:
http://www.planet-action.org/web/40-1st-call-for-projects-2008.php
About Planet Action
Planet Action is an initiative launched by Spot Image in June 2007. Its aim is to encourage the Earth observation industry and geo-information professionals to support efforts to combat climate change and encourage action. To this end, satellite imagery, geographic information systems and image display and processing software are vital for studying the global and local impacts of global warming on our planet. Non profit organisations and institutions can benefit from Earth observation images and technologies by contacting Planet Action and submitting a project. www.planet-action.org
About Spot Image
Headquartered in Toulouse, France, Spot Image has established subsidiaries in the USA, China, Singapore, Japan and Australia, with a sixth planned for summer 2008 in Brazil. As the commercial operator of the SPOT satellites and provider of imagery from other optical and radar satellites, Spot Image is a world leader in the provision of satellite imagery and geo-information value added services. For over two decades, Spot Image has successfully harnessed a range of space- and ground-based systems to meet customers’ needs. The Spot Image group leverages a global network of ground receiving stations, partners and distributors to bring geographic information, products and services to public- and private- sector decision makers worldwide.
Contacts :
Planet Action Coordinator :
Louis-François Guerre + 33 (0)05 62 19 41 19 planet-action@spotimage.fr
Spot Image Communications Director
Jennifer Newlands + 33 (0)05 62 19 40 09 jennifer.newlands@spotimage.fr
