This year, the “Living Planet Symposium 2022” organised by the European Space Agency (ESA) will take place in Bonn from 23rd to 27 May. On May 25th, UNU-EHS will host an Agora Session titled “Climate adaptation from space: How can earth observation technologies advance sustainable and inclusive adaptation?”. Please find the programme here. The session will bring together various stakeholders from academia, private sector, research and international organizations to discuss the need of earth observation to inform inclusive and sustainable climate change adaptation.
Description: The need for risk-informed adaptation action is urgent. More frequent and intense extreme weather events are affecting particularly vulnerable and remote regions in the world. Human, economic but also natural losses related to climate change are rapidly increasing. In response, initiatives to address climate-induced risks and damages are on the rise. Technical, financial, and political solutions look promising. However, current efforts tend to address adaptation as a finite goal, with little done to consider its iterative nature or long-term sustainability.
What do we need from earth observation technologies to advance adaptation? How can we make state-of-the-art tools available for those most in need to inform immediate action in adaptation and its effectiveness? This session will bring together representatives of different stakeholder groups to discuss and understand the challenges of making adaptation more sustainable and inclusive, and the role of space technologies to reach this goal. The session will be divided into three thematic blocks, addressing the following key questions:
1. How do satellite imagery and remote sensing inform iterative and sustainable adaptation and risk management?
2. What tools and initiatives are available to manage risks and what can be further done for decision-makers in the most vulnerable regions to access state-of-the-art technologies?
3. How can earth observation technologies help to localize climate action and public finance for the most vulnerable?
