GEO Blue Planet is an initiative of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) that focuses on the use of ocean and coastal observations to inform policy and decision making. GEO Blue Planet conducts activities in three Core Action Areas. To find out about our current activities, click here.
This action area is geared towards identifying stakeholders’ needs and priorities. GEO Blue Planet’s portfolio of stakeholder core actions include outreach materials, workshops, symposia and consultations and white papers on Earth Observation applications.
Outreach materials
Stakeholders who are not experts in Earth Observations or ocean science are often interested in what Earth Observations are, how they are applied in the ocean and coastal domains and the limitations to their use. To this end, GEO Blue Planet produces informational materials including booklets on ocean and coastal observations, examples of indicators and decision support tools that utilize ocean and coastal observations, infographics, videos and other outreach materials as needed
Workshops, Symposia and Consultations
Understanding the decisions that stakeholders are required to make and what information is required to support those decisions is a key focus of GEO Blue Planet. GEO Blue Planet works to plan regional and thematic workshops that bring together representatives of government, research institutions, industry and NGOs. This provides an avenue to assess information needs in terms of ocean and coastal observation-based products and service and capacity development. GEO Blue Planet also makes understanding information needs and stakeholder priorities a focus of international GEO Blue Planet symposia. GEO Blue Planet Secretariat, Committee and Working Group members also welcome invitations to participate in UN expert meetings on topics that require input on ocean and coastal observation topics and to provide informal consultations on relevant topics.
White papers on Earth Observation applications
In order to understand the state of science, limitations and future directions of ocean and coastal observations for a specific application (e.g., management of tuna fisheries, monitoring of marine litter, etc.) or provision of policy-relevant information, GEO Blue Planet produces white papers on Earth observation applications based on requests from stakeholders. Teams of experts collaborate to produce the publications which are published either by the requesting organization (such as the UN) or in a relevant journal.
This action area is geared towards meeting stakeholders’ needs through cooperation and co-design between scientists, intermediaries and end-users. GEO Blue Planet’s portfolio of cooperation and co-design core actions include building expert networks, developing indicators and decision support tools and co-creating information hubs.
Building expert networks
Once a stakeholder information requirement is identified, GEO Blue Planet works to bring together an expert network that can advise on the development of indicators or decision-making support tools. This may be met through internal expertise or through linking existing groups/task teams (e.g., SCOR, GESAMP, GOOS, CEOS teams) and/or identifying additional experts with other skills required to meet the stakeholder’s needs (such as statisticians, policy experts, etc.).
Developing indicators and decision support tools
Distilled ocean and coastal information in the form of indicators and decision-making support tools are needed for sustainable management of the ocean and coasts. GEO Blue Planet works in an iterative process to co-design and co-develop indicator and decision-making support tools based on stakeholder needs. These include indicators for specific global policies, such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction or Paris Climate Agreement.
Co-creating information hubs
Earth observation information alone is often not enough for non-expert users to understand issues and make informed decisions. Often Earth observation processes and resulting outputs must be simplified to ensure its relevance for a larger community. To facilitate cooperation with other communities, GEO Blue Planet supports the development of information hubs
(e.g., https://sargassumhub.org/) that provide background information on Earth observation-based co-designed indicators and decision-making support tools, information about the topic and other information. The information hubs are co-designed and developed with end users and a variety of partners and are intended to be maintained long term by a partner organization.
This action area is designed to develop global capacity to utilize ocean and coastal observation-derived data and information for operational capabilities, develop applications that utilize ocean and coastal observations or to maintain applications on a long-term basis. This portfolio includes the provision of training courses, information exchange and transfer of applications to operational agencies.
Training Courses
GEO Blue Planet targets training courses at government and other stakeholder organizations that will be able to implement and maintain the skills learned on a regular and sustained basis. GEO Blue Planet does not arrange training for students or for informational purposes. Training is focused on building long term capacity for an Earth observation provider to deliver a decision support tool to a specified end user on a sustained basis. Training material and learning tools are carefully chosen to provide long-term solutions using resources that can be sustained by the end user.
Information Exchange
Capacity development involves the transfer of information between experts in different regions and fields. GEO Blue Planet works to support information transfer related to ocean and coastal observations. Core actions for information transfer include activities such as ambassador programs and exchanges, best practices documentation and sharing of data, tools and protocols.
Transfer of applications to operational agencies
One of the major challenges in the sustainability of Earth observation applications is maintenance due to the current funding and development structure. In the ocean and coastal observations arena, there are many useful applications that are developed with temporary grant funding that become nonfunctional at the end of the funding cycle. For applications where stakeholders have a clear need for continued use and maintenance of the applications, GEO Blue Planet works with operational agencies that support and operationalize these applications. GEO Blue Planet also works to identify operational agencies or other partners that applications that are developed in collaboration with GEO Blue Planet’s working groups.
