GEO Blue Planet 6th Symposium
Seoul, Republic of Korea | 31 Oct – 2 Nov 2023
GEO Blue Planet held its 6th GEO Blue Planet Symposium from 31 October to 2 November 2023 in Seoul, Korea. Themed Digital Solutions for Sustainable Oceans, the symposium was specifically geared towards improving GEO Blue Planet’s engagement with Asian nations to expand the Earth observation community of practice, strengthen local capacity and provide access to resources, tools, and services.
The in-person event featured Plenary Sessions centered on the GEO Blue Planet Core Action Areas of Stakeholder Engagement, Cooperation, and Co-design and Capacity Development. Additionally, it included multiple sessions on Korean Marine Spatial Planning (K-MSP) and digital solutions for marine sustainability, thematic workshops, and a highly interactive symposium forum.
The event was organised by the GEO Blue Planet Secretariat with support from the US, Asia and EU Offices, with substantial support from local hosts, including the Korea Maritime Institute, which hosts GEO Blue Planet’s Asian Office, the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency and the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology. The fruitful event brought together over 100 participants from 20 different countries and diverse sectors (research institutions, government agencies, international and regional bodies, the private sector and universities.
Gallery
Resources
Agenda
Symposium Opening and Plenary Sessions
08:30 – 09:30 Registration
09:30 – 10:00 Opening Ceremony
Facilitator: Sang-Hyeok Lee (KMI)
- 09:30-09:40 Jong-Deog Kim (KMI President)
- 09:40-09:45 Woonyul Oh (KIMST President)
- 09:45-09:50 *Paul DiGiacomo (GEO Blue Planet Co-Chair | NOAA Division Chief)
- 09:50-10:00 “Introduction to GEO Blue Planet and the Symposium” Sung-Jin Cho (GEO Blue Planet Asia Secretariat | KMI)
- 10:00-10:10 Group Photo
- 10:10-10:30 Coffee Break
10:30-11:30 Keynote Presentations
- 10:30-11:00 “Issues and Challenges for Blue Economy” Young Tae Chang (Professor Emeritus, Inha University)
11:00-11:30 “State of Ocean and Coasts in the EAS region: challenges and opportunities” Aimee Gonzales (Executive Director, PEMSEA)
11:30 – 12:30: Plenary Session Ⅰ : Ocean And Coastal Challenges And Priorities In Asia And Pacific Region
Session Co-chair: Aimee Gonzales (PEMSEA) & Rory Scarrott (University College Cork)
- 11:30-11:35 Welcome from Moderator
- 11:35-11:45 “Towards Roadmap 2030: Marine Challenges and Priorities for the Asia Pacific region” Mahesh Pradhan (Coordinator, COBSEA)
- 11:45-11:50 “GEO Blue Planet Opportunities” Emily Smail (GEO Blue Planet US Secretariat | NOAA)
- 11:50-11:55 Facing realities: A sense-check- Open for Comments
- 11:55-12:10 “Focusing on People: The importance of considering regional socio-economic contexts for technology uptake” Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community)
- 12:10-12:30 Panel and audience deep dive
- Additional panelists:
Suk Jae Kwon (KIOST) Laura David (UP Marine Science Institute)
Yegor Volovik (Secretary Director, NOWPAP)
12:30 – 14:00 Lunch
14:00 – 15:30: Plenary Session Ⅱ : Digital Solutions For Sustainable Oceans
Session Co-chairs: Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community) & Piotr Zaborowski, (Open Geospatial Consortium)
- 14:00-14:10 Introductory remarks Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community) & Piotr Zabrowski (Open Geospatial Consortium
- 14:10-14:20 “Enhancing User Experience in the Western Pacific and Marginal Seas of South and East Asia through the Digital Twin Ocean” Ryo Furue (JAMSTEC)
- 14:20-14:30 “New Trends of Reality Tech in Ocean: XR, Digital Twin and the Metaverse” David Kim (CEO, Samwoo Immersion Inc.)
- 14:30-14:40 “Coast Big-Data Platform: Discovering New Marine Industries w/ Bigdata” Chol Young Lee (Director of Marine Bigdata∙AI Center, KIOST)
- 14:40-14:50 “The Development of Electronic Monitoring in the Western and Central Pacific Long line Fisheries” Leontine Baje (The Pacific Community)
- 14:50-15:30 Panel Discussion: Opportunities, Challenges and Future Trends Presented by Digital Solutions for Users.
15:30-16:00 Break
16:00 – 17:30: Plenary Session Ⅲ : Introduction To K-MSP
Session Chair: Jungho Nam (KMI)
- 16:00-16:10 Session Introduction
- 16:10-16:25 “Marine Spatial Planning of the Republic of Korea” Hee-Jung Choi (KMI)
- 16:25-16:40 “Marine Spatial Assessment of the Republic of Korea” Myoung Won Kim (GeoSR Inc.)
- 16:40-17:30 Panel Discussion Panelists:
Yegor Volovik (Secretary Director, NOWPAP)
Dong-Oh Cho (Senior Policy Consultant, KMI)
Jeong-Kyu Yoo (Director of Marine Spatial Planning, KOEM)
18:00 – 20:00: Dinner & 3 Minutes For Melting Pot.
09:00 – 10:30: Workshop 1 | Workshop 2 | PEMSEA Learning Exchange Program: Session I
Workshop 1: Marine litter
Chair: Audrey Hasson (Mercator Ocean International) & Sunwook Hong (OSEAN)
Speakers:
- Young Nam Kim (KOEM)
- Jong Soo Lee (OSEAN)
- Audrey Hasson (Mercator Ocean Intl.)
- *Noriko Tamiya-Hase (Ministry of Environment Japan)
Panelist:
- Yoon Jung Lee (KMI)
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Workshop 2: Satellite Derived Bathymetry
Chair: Nashwaan Matheen (MSRO)
Speakers:
- Nashwaan Matheen (MSRO)
- Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community)
Panelist: Jongkuk Choi (KIOST)
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PEMSEA Learning Exchange Program: Session I
Session I
Sustainable Development Strategy for the Seas of East Asia: Roadmap to 2030
Speaker:
- Nancy Bermas, PEMSEA Resource Facility
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11:00 – 12:30: Workshop 3 | KIOST Session | PEMSEA Learning Exchange Program: Session II
Workshop 3: Fisheries
Chair: Nikelene Mclean (University of Maryland)
Speakers:
- *A Gopalakrishnan (Central Marine Fisheries Institute, India)
- Sukguen Jung (Jeju National University)
- Jaeyoon Park (Global Fishing Watch)
Additional Panelists:
- Dong-Hun Go (KMI)
- Manasa Babitu (The Pacific Community)
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KIOST Session: Data Centers in Coast Big-Data Platform
Chair: Chol Young Lee (KIOST)
Speakers:
- Woo Ram Kim (Haebomdata Inc.)
- Jin Il Song (Inha University Research and Business Foundation)
- Chan-Yeong Oh (OCEANIC Co., Ltd.)
- Ho-Seung Jung (OSEAN)
- Lukas Kim (NSONESOFT Co., Ltd.)
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PEMSEA Learning Exchange Program: Session II
Session II
Sharing Sessions
- ICM and Sustainable Coastal Development Approaches
- Biodiversity and Habitat Management
- Role of Learning Institutions in Biodiversity Conservation and Management
Speakers: PNLC members
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Chair: Daeseok Kang (Pukyung National University)
Speakers:
- Jungho Nam (KMI)
- Shenghui Li (Guangdong Ocean University)
- Sung-Jin Cho (KMI)
Additional Panelists:
- Jong-Joo Yoon (Chungnam Institute)
- Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community)
- Mahesh Pradhan (Coordinator, COBSEA)
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Co-Chairs: Joy Chakrabartty (NOAA) & David Cabana (GERICS)
Speakers:
- Laura David (UP Marine Science Institute)
- Hak Soo Lim (KIOST)
- Soo-Min Kim (GeoSR Inc.)
Additional Panelists:
- In-Seong Han (National Institute of Fisheries Science, Korea)
Symposium forum
- 09:00-09:10 Session Introduction
- 09:10-09:55 Speakers:
Han San Park (MTCRC)
Johnny Ching (De La Salle University)
Hyunsoo Hur (Geostory Inc.)
Emily Smail (NOAA) - 09:55-10:30 Panel Discussion
Additional Panelists:
– Andiswa Mlisa (The Pacific Community)
– Piotr Zabrowski (Open Geospatial Consortium)
– Nashwaan Matheen (MSRO)
Chair: Jungho Nam (KMI)
11:00-11:10 Overview of Current Working Group Activities : Audrey Hasson (Mercator Ocean Intl.)
- 11:10-11:20 Summary of 5th GEO Blue Planet Symposium : Nikelene Mclean (University of Maryland)
- 11:20-11:30 Summary of Key Highlights from Plenary Sessions : Joy Chakrabarrty (NOAA)
- 11:30-11:40 Summary of Key Highlights from Thematic Workshops : Nikelene Mclean (University of Maryland)
- 11:40-11:50 Operational Direction of GEO Blue Planet in Asia : Sang-Hyeok Lee (KMI)
- 11:50-12:20 Open Discussion
- 12:20-12:30 Concluding Remarks : Sung-Jin Cho (KMI)
PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
| JungHo Nam
GEO Blue Planet/Korean Maritime Institute (KMI) |
Sang-Hyeok Lee
GEO Blue Planet/KMI |
| Sung-Jin Cho
GEO Blue Planet/KMI |
Audrey Hasson
GEO Blue Planet/Mercator Ocean International |
| Lillian Diarra
GEO Blue Planet/Mercator Ocean International |
Pierre Yves Le Troan
GEO Blue Planet/Mercator Ocean International |
| Emily Smail
GEO Blue Planet/National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/University Of Maryland |
Joy Deep Chakrabarrty
GEO Blue Planet/NOAA |
| Ken Ando
Japan Agency For Marine-Earth Science And Technology (JAMSTEC) |
Semi Jeong
KMI |
| Miju Kim
KMI |
Hee-Jung Choi
KMI |
| Nashwan Matheen
Maldives Space Research Organisation |
Seunghyun Son
NOAA |
| Piotr Zaborowski
Open Geospatial Consortium |
Aimee Gonzales
Partnership In Environmental Management For The Seas Of East Asia (PEMSEA) |
| Shinji Kim
PEMSEA |
Jens Kruger
The Pacific Community (SPC) |
| Hamid Mehmood
United Nations Economic And Social Commission For Asia And The Pacific (UNESCAP) |
Rory Scarrott
University Cork College |
Organisers
Sponsors
About GEO Blue Planet Symposia
GEO Blue Planet hosts symposiums every one to two years in different regions for the purpose of increasing regional linkages, promoting linkages between stakeholders and the observing community and gathering community feedback on the focus of GEO Blue Planet activities.
- 1st GEO Blue Planet Symposium (Ilhabela, Brazil, 2012)
- 2nd GEO Blue Planet Symposium (Cairns, Australia, 2015)
- 3rd GEO Blue Planet Symposium (Maryland, USA, 2017)
- 4th GEO Blue Planet Symposium (Toulouse, France, 2018)
- 5th GEO Blue Planet Symposium (Accra, Ghana, 2022)