11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
11th bis IGOS PARTNERS MEETING
China World Hotel, Beijing
18th November 2004
MEETING RECORD
V0.1
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
Table of Contents
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Organisation of the session .............................................................................................................. 3
Eleventh session ................................................................................................................................ 3
GEO progress .................................................................................................................................... 3
IGOS-P position regarding GEO .................................................................................................... 5
Themes for approval: Coastal ......................................................................................................... 7
Brief status reports on other Themes.............................................................................................. 8
Socio-economic data in relation to IGOS-P .................................................................................. 11
Any other business .......................................................................................................................... 13
Review of P-11bis actions ............................................................................................................... 13
Date and venue of next session ...................................................................................................... 14
Calendar of Partner meetings........................................................................................................ 14
Closure of the session...................................................................................................................... 14
Status of action items from P-11.................................................................................................... 15
IGOS-P input to GEO-5 ................................................................................................................. 17
IGOS-P-11bis actions ..................................................................................................................... 18
Participants ..................................................................................................................................... 19
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1.
Organisation of the session
Norberto Fernandez (Co-Chair / UNEP) and Colin Hicks (Co-Chair / UNEP) welcomed the participants
to the 11th bis IGOS Partners meeting. Norberto expressed the apologies of Steve Lonergan (UNEP) who
was unable to attend the meeting due to ill-health.
The proposed agenda was adopted.
2.
Eleventh session
The minutes of the 11th IGOS Partners meeting (Rome, 27th May 2004) were adopted without comment.
The status of the action items from the P-11 meeting was reviewed and agreed (refer to annex A here;
note that the indicated status reflects the conclusions of any discussions later in the P-11bis agenda).
Regarding Action 11-12 (Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS) interaction with the IGOS
Partnership and its existing Themes), Robert Missotten (UNESCO) advised that he had contacted with
GGOS on several occasions and that he awaited their response – the action on UNESCO was agreed to be
completed. Don Hinsman noted that GGOS was actively pursuing participation in GEO.
3.
GEO progress
Norberto Fernandez (Co-Chair / UNEP) acknowledged with gratitude the positive response of the GEO
Co-Chairs to the invitation from the IGOS Co-Chairs to send representatives to the P-11bis meeting to
participate in the discussion regarding IGOS-P’s interface with GEO. He introduced Greg Withee
(CEOS/NOAA & GEO/USA), Tobias Fuchs (GEO/Europe), and Adi Paterson (GEO/S Africa) as the
nominated representatives and thanked them for attending the meeting.
Tobias Fuchs (GEO/Europe) gave a presentation summarising the status of the GEO activity, including
the following key points:
-
GEO was established at the First Earth Observation Summit (EOS), held in Washington DC on 31st
July 2003; the EOS declaration created and tasked GEO to prepare a Ten-Year Implementation Plan
for the development of a new Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) by the end of
2004 (now moved to mid February 2005);
-
GEO currently has 51 member countries (plus EC) and 29 participating international organisations;
-
the GEO Co-Chairs are: Vice Admiral Conrad Lautenbacher, the United States’ Undersecretary of
Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere; Dr Akio Yuki, Japan’s Deputy Minister of Education,
Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; Dr Achilleas Mitsos, Director-General of the European
Commission’s Directorate-General: Research; Dr Rob Adam, Director-General of the South African
Department of Science and Technology;
-
the planned scope and focus of the GEOSS was depicted:
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-
the way forward for GEO focuses on GEO-6 (14th & 15th February 2005, Brussels: approval of the
GEOSS 10-year Implementation Plan and acceptance of the related Reference document) and the
Third EOS (16th February 2005, Brussels: adoption of the GEOSS 10-year Implementation Plan);
-
a GEO Transition period is foreseen - to February 2006, based on a commitment by GEO members to
provide resources to the GEO successor entity on a regular basis and preparation of a work-plan;
-
regarding the potential IGOS-P role in GEOSS: GEOSS does not intend to replace current EO
activities, but to achieve a political commitment for continuous support of global Earth observations;
GEOSS will be built on current EO activities and aims to closely co-operate with the existing EO
activities (such as IGOS-P); new EO needs arising from GEOSS may require consideration of
adjustments of IGOS-P activities/themes; IGOS-P could consider endorsing the GEOSS 10-Year
Implementation Plan in order to become a GEO participating organisation, and to play a role in the
GEOSS scientific and technical mechanisms;
Adi Paterson (GEO/S Africa) added that finding a suitable way for the IGOS Themes to interact with the
GEO societal benefit areas should be a priority for the IGOS Partners. He reminded that the deadline for
inputs to GEO-5 was the 19th November (the following day). Yoji Furuhama (CEOS/SIT Chair) noted
that the IGOS Themes were the best examples available in the community of practical progress towards
an Earth observing system of systems – and, as such, offered a significant opportunity for GEO to build
upon.
Norberto Fernandez (Co-Chair / UNEP) gave a brief overview of the communications between IGOS-P
and GEO SEC during the last year – noting that the most recent exchange was at the GEO Governance
Meeting in Brussels in September, at which the Co-Chairs delivered a short written statement on the
relevance of IGOS-P and its Themes for the development of a GEOSS.
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4.
IGOS-P position regarding GEO
The Co-Chairs invited the CEOS SIT Chairman, Yoji Furuhama (CEOS/JAXA) to make a short report on
the conclusions of the 18th CEOS Plenary (which concluded the day before) regarding the CEOS inputs to
GEO-5 and their plans to prepare for GEO-6 and EOS-III. The SIT Chairman reported that:
-
CEOS will provide a short statement to GEO-5 stressing its experience in coordination of space-based
observations and stressing that CEOS is willing to serve GEO in the context of the ‘specialist
scientific bodies and institutes’ identified in the 10-Year Implementation Plan; the CEOS inputs will
be framed as specific comments on the Plan document (as is required for consideration at GEO-5);
-
CEOS Plenary recognised the need for CEOS to improve elements of its process and structure for it
to be an effective and credible partner of GEO; a CEOS Task Force has been established, under the
leadership of the SIT Chairman, in order to study the nature of, and mechanisms for, these changes to
CEOS;
-
an ad-hoc meeting of CEOS Principals will be held in 2005 in order to discuss the preliminary
findings of the Task Force.
Colin Hicks (Co-Chair) noted that a discussion paper had been developed by UNEP and BNSC for the P11bis meeting, and that this paper followed the template of the paper developed for the CEOS Plenary.
There was then an extended discussion on the status of GEO, its future evolution, and the role of IGOS-P
therein. The highlights of this discussion are summarised below:
-
Paul Mason (GCOS) noted that IGOS needed to clarify the nature of its ‘personality’ and
responsibilities, including its role in implementation – to avoid any future confusion with its mandate
and that of GEO;
-
Don Hinsman (WMO) advocated that Partners continue to maintain strong support for IGOS-P and
the IGOS Process which has been extremely successful in defining and initiating – via the IGOS
Themes – global efforts to integrate Earth observation systems; he noted that the IGOS Themes are
widely quoted in the GEO documentation and that IGOS Theme leaders played a key role in the
development of the GEO Implementation Plan; Don suggested that IGOS-P should not attempt to preempt the evolution of GEO – either by taking on new Partners or new Themes in anticipation of GEO
needs; WMO is certain that GEO will proceed in some form, but that it will take time for its precise
nature to be determined; in the meantime, IGOS-P should keep a watching brief and be ready to
respond as GEO events unfold; Don pointed out that the GEO Implementation Plan required some
amendment to allow participating organisations (such as IGOS-P) to commit at EOS-III to be
founding partners of GEO (as the text stands it suggests that a ‘Ministerial level’ signature is
required);
-
Jeff Tschirley (FAO) seconded WMO’s caution not to be hasty in reforming IGOS-P to meet the
needs of a GEO which are not yet stable; he added that IGOS-P still faced the challenge of ensuring
long term viability of the Themes - which are generally still in their infancy;
-
Don Hinsman (WMO) recalled the pivotal role of CEOS in helping to establish the IGOS Partnership,
and of its Members in contributing to the practical progress in defining and implementing a number
of the IGOS Themes; he expressed the hope that CEOS efforts to reform to serve the needs of GEO
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would not conflict with their continued support of IGOS and each of the Partners – many of whom
are also CEOS Associates;
-
Robert Missotten (UNESCO) suggested that IGOS-P would need to be ready to respond to the
outcomes of EOS-III in February, and suggested that the IGOS Secretariat should be charged with
taking actions during 2005 as necessary;
-
Jeff Tschirley (FAO) noted that support for the GEO Implementation Plan might place more pressing
demands on the typical IGOS-P annual calendar – and that more meetings of the Partnership might be
necessary, in order to accelerate the pace of Theme development and implementation;
-
Brent Smith (CEOS/NOAA) noted that the GEO SEC had allocated a short agenda timeslot and that a
suitable presentation should be planned.
Colin Hicks (Co-Chair) proposed that a small group of volunteers (led by Don Hinsman of WMO) work
in the margins of the lunch-break to develop a draft paper for IGOS-P to input to GEO-5. This was agreed
by participants. It was also agreed that:
-
the Co-Chairs would define the next IGOS meeting (P-12 in May 2005) agenda to focus on the
IGOS-P relationship with GEO;
-
the Co-Chairs, supported by IGOS SEC, would keep a close watch on GEO developments, and would
propose inter-sessional actions by IGOS-P accordingly;
-
no pre-emptive action (eg new Themes, or new Partners) should be undertaken by IGOS-P in the
interim.
The draft text which was presented in the afternoon session, and which was agreed to be sent to GEO-5, is
presented in annex B. The following actions were agreed:
Action
11bis-1
IGOS Co-Chairs to input the submission from IGOS-P to
GEO-5 and to include a comment on line 24 of the GEO
Short Document noting the need for clarification on the issue
of signatories for participating organisations such as IGOS-P.
Action
11bis-2
IGOS Co-Chairs to consult with IGOS Partners on
how/whether IGOS Co-Chairs can commit IGOS-P to be a
founding partner at EOS-III
Action
11bis-3
IGOS Co-Chairs, in cooperation with IGOS SEC, to followup with GEO SEC on the possibility of an IGOS presentation
at GEO-5
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19th November 2004
February 2005
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5.
Themes for approval: Coastal
Dr Liana McManus gave a presentation on the Coastal Theme Report, including the following key points
- the Coastal Theme observing requirements have been categorised as follows:
-
geophysical: ocean winds, waves, sea surface height, currents, salinity, temperature, discharge,
precipitation, ice cover;
-
biological and biogeochemical: pigments, nutrients, particulate and dissolved matter, aerosol
properties, slicks and spills, fluorescence, optical properties, O2 and pCO2;
-
mapping (Physical, Ecological, and Socio-Economic): topography, bathymetry, shoreline position
& use, high/low tide lines, habitat types and condition, land cover/use, reef maps, coastal
population assessments/demographics.
- the spatial and temporal resolutions and other characteristics of the requirements have been quantified
by the Theme team; the main ‘knowledge, resolution, and continuity’ challenges have been identified;
- a Coastal Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment (CODAE) is proposed to be the focus of the initial
implementation phase;
- the implementation framework will be lead jointly by GTOS and GOOS, and will include an oversight
committee and regional/national links alliances to ensure linkages to relevant programmes; written
endorsements confirming participation have been received from GTOS, GOOS, and FAO;
- UNESCO/IOC has offered to fund publication and printing of the Theme report;
- the first workshop in 2005 of CODAE will be sponsored by NOAA, NASA and IGBP;
- the overall implementation timetable is shown in the figure below:
- initial membership of the implementation team is as follows:
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Paul Mason (GCOS) observed that the Coastal Theme would be an extremely expensive programme to
implement given the ambitious coverage and resolution requirements for observations. Don Hinsman
(WMO) congratulated the Theme team in being so specific in the definition of their requirements – which
facilitates easy import to the CEOS/WMO Database.
Robert Missotten (for the Geo-hazards Theme) and Jeff Tschirley (for the Land Theme) noted the
significant commonalities in requirements among the Coastal Theme and existing IGOS Themes and
suggested that future dialogue on the topic would be productive.
The SIT Chairman summarised the conclusions of the SIT-15 meeting (subsequently adopted by CEOS
Plenary) with regards to the Coastal Theme Report and its compliance with the IGOS Process Paper:
- CEOS SIT is pleased to endorse the Coastal Theme Report to move to implementation phase;
- this is conditional on the final Theme report including a number of clarifications: precise details of
membership & leadership commitments; space observation priorities; resource estimates of the
implementation, and the origins of the required resources.
The Co-Chairs confirmed that they shared this assessment of the Coastal Theme Report and tasked the
Theme team to make the necessary revisions. Subject to completion of this action, it was agreed that the
Coastal Theme could move to implementation. The Co-Chairs congratulated the Coastal Theme Team on
all their hard work and on an excellent Theme report.
Action
11bis-4
6.
Coastal Theme Team to address comments on their draft
report raised at IGOS-P-11bis and, with support from IGOS
SEC, to finalise the document ready for publication.
March 2005
Brief status reports on other Themes
Ocean: No input. Norberto Fernandez (Co-Chair) noted that Paul DiGiacomo (NASA) and Keith
Alverson (GOOS) were the new Ocean Theme Co-Chairs.
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Carbon: A written input was provided by the IGCO team – confirming good progress on development of
their implementation plan.
Cryosphere: Gilles Sommeria (WCRP) gave a presentation on behalf of the Cryosphere Theme team:
- the theme team has been working hard to address the shortcomings in the Theme proposal identified
by the SIT-14 meeting;
- the theme originators are: WCRP - acting through its Climate and Cryosphere (CliC) Project; and
ICSU - acting through its Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR); in July 2004 an MoU
was signed by WCRP and SCAR on joint sponsorship of CliC;
- Dr Jeffrey Key of NOAA NESDIS (Advanced Satellite Products Team) has agreed to chair the CliC
Observation Products Panel and to lead the Theme report preparation; Dr Mark Drinkwater of ESA
ESTEC (Head of Oceans/Ice Unit, Earth Observation Programmes) has agreed to serve as the vicechair of the Theme;
- the theme team has been enhanced but still requires more expertise in certain areas - work on this is
ongoing;
- the updated Theme concept document, a current list of potential Theme contributors, and some other
relevant documents are now available for the Theme contributors’ reference at a dedicated webpage
http://stratus.ssec.wisc.edu/IGOS-cryo/ ; this is not an official theme site but a working tool where
contributions can be gathered and reviewed;
- some resources for Theme preparation have been secured from CliC and SCAR; the Canadian Space
Agency (CSA) has graciously offered sufficient support to host a workshop on the Theme;
approximately three workshops on the Theme are envisaged: in North America (supported by the
CSA), and in Asia and Europe (sponsors yet to be identified);
- it is hoped to conclude the Theme report by October 2005.
Atmospheric Chemistry: Don Hinsman (WMO) gave a presentation on behalf of the IGACO team:
- the IGACO theme was strongly endorsed by the WMO Executive Council in June 2004, confirming
WMO as the implementation leader; the Co-Chairs are Dr Len Barrie of WMO & Dr Joerg Langen of
ESA;
- efforts are underway to identify funding for an IGACO theme office – ESA is exploring possible
avenues;
- the IGACO Theme is being leveraged and linked to by a number of high-profile initiatives in the
relevant communities, including:
-
GEMS: development of a chemical assimilation model by ECMWF;
-
the Frontier Global Climate Centre (Japan): which is considering registering their model
development efforts (Global Environmental Simulator) as a regional IGACO Centre for Asia;
-
the European Union’s decision to fund the IAGOS project (‘Integration of Routine Aircraft
Measurements into a Global Observing System’ – the follow-on to MOZAIC) was due in large
part to the expression of requirements in the IGACO Theme Report;
-
the IGACO team is working with the Future WMO Information System (FWIS) staff in order to
set data submission standards for ozone and aerosol observations to be provided to forecast
groups as real-time data;
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-
a pilot project has been defined (by EC and DLR) to consider a European data centre that would
construct a World Reference Observational Data Base for a key set of IGACO variables.
Land: Jeff Tschirley (FAO) summarised progress on the Land Theme since IGOS-P-11:
- the team had met recently in Rome and started to define priorities for the Theme; Chris Justice (Univ
Maryland) chaired the meeting;
- the team is keen to ensure socio-economic issues and developing country needs are addressed from the
outset;
- the team has noted the need to synchronise their Theme development timetable with the timetable
planned for the IGOS-P and CEOS SIT meetings at which the Theme would be reviewed/approved
etc.
The Co-Chairs noted that the action from IGOS-P-11 on the Land Theme team to clarify issues of
membership/leadership remained open, and they encouraged the team to provide a full response (similar
to that provided by the Cryosphere Team). [Action 11-9: Land Theme Team to fulfill obligations outlined
in IGOS Process Paper for newly approved Themes]. Robert Missotten added that UNESCO hoped to
participate actively in the Land Theme team.
Geo-hazards: Robert Missotten (UNESCO) reported that:
- recent effort has focused on implementation mechanisms and in the realignment of the GARS
programme of UNESCO and ICSU for this purpose; the theme team was delighted to welcome JAXA
and ESA to the steering committee;
- ESA and BRGM (French Geo Survey) have created a bureau for implementation assistance and focus;
this is funded for an initial 3 years and incorporates 2 full time staff dedicated to the theme
implementation; the official opening was held in early Nov 2004;
- the team has been extremely active on outreach efforts, including at: ISPRS (July, Istanbul), COSPAR
(July, Paris), the International Geological Congress (August, Florence), IAC (October, Vancouver),
and the UN Workshops on Disasters and Remote Sensing;
- in January 2005 the team will hold their first workshop with the bureau and GARS; the meeting will
populate the working groups defined for implementation (on capacity building, observations and key
systems, integration and modelling, databases and interfaces, underpinning science);
- an international workshop will be held by BRGM on 6th-8th April 2005; the outcomes will be reported
to IGOS-P-12;
- the Theme team has been actively supporting the GEO and IPTT efforts.
Water Cycle: Rick Lawford (WCRP/GEWEX) updated the meeting on the IGWCO status:
- an outline plan for ‘CEOP-II’ has been developed and will be elaborated over the next few months:
this report will: emphasise the need for the development of products based on the data sets collected in
CEOP; extend some of the data collection and processing activities; identify new opportunities related
to the International Polar Year (IPY); this proposal will be presented to the next IGOS-P meeting;
- a joint CEOP/IGWCO workshop is being planned for Tokyo for 28th February to 4th March 2005;
JAXA is supporting this event; the current version of the IGWCO Implementation plan will be
completed at this workshop;
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- IGWCO, in collaboration with GEWEX (WCRP) and UNESCO, held a workshop (supported by ESA
and NOAA) on trends in the global water cycle at UNESCO in early November; a report from this
workshop will be submitted to Working Group I of the IPCC; observational recommendations from
this work will be presented at SIT-16 and at the Joint Scientific Steering Committee of WCRP; these
will include the need for reprocessing of key satellite data-sets to attempt to reconcile differences with
in-situ measurements;
- IGWCO is interested in arranging a workshop on ‘High resolution precipitation products’ in order to
initiate a preliminary evaluation of current products derived from satellite and to compare them;
- IGWCO is also arranging a series of capacity-building workshops – hoping to cover Latin America,
East Asia, and Africa (in the case of Africa it was proposed that IGWCO should explore linkages with
the TIGER project since considerable work of relevance is already underway within that framework).
Coral Reefs: Michael Hales (CEOS/NOAA) noted that the Coral Reef sub-theme continued to make
implementation progress. It was agreed that, with the approval of the Coastal Theme Report, the Coral
Reefs Sub-Theme should be fully integrated into the Coastal Theme – as was always intended. And that
all future reports from the Coral Reefs team to Partner meetings should be integrated into the Coastal
Theme reports.
Action
11bis-5
7.
Coastal Theme to report to IGOS-P-12 on how the
Coral Reef Sub-Theme is being integrated into Coastal
Theme implementation (all Coral-Reef Sub-Theme
reports to be subsumed in future in the Coastal Theme
Report to IGOS Partner meetings)
IGOS-P-12
Socio-economic data in relation to IGOS-P
Roberta Balstad (ICSU) recalled IGOS-P action 11-11 (ICSU, in co-operation with the IGOS Co-Chairs,
to finalise their proposal for an IGOS-P workshop on socio-economic issues) and summarised progress to
date:
-
ICSU arranged a workshop (at CIESIN in September) to help formulate the way forward for IGOS on
socio-economic issues, including on the questions: What is meant by socioeconomic data? How are
these data collected? Why is it important for IGOS to use socioeconomic data? What are the initial
socioeconomic data and methodological issues that should be of high priority for IGOS? What are the
next steps that IGOS should take to improve its access to socioeconomic data?;
-
the workshop formulated a number of recommendations (to IGOS, to GEO, and to ‘data experts’);
those directed to IGOS are as follows:
1. IGOS should improve its access to information about socioeconomic data in relevant Themes
2. The development of socioeconomic databases that would be useful to multiple themes must be
tied to a long-term IGOS strategy
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3. The IGOS Partnership should consider enlarging its membership to include organizations that
are knowledgeable about socioeconomic data and could contribute to the use of and provide
access to socioeconomic data in the IGOS Themes
4.
IGOS should work closely with GEO and its successor, with national governments, and with
multilateral organizations in order to implement these recommendations
The discussion which followed the presentation included the following key points:
- Yoji Furuhama (CEOS SIT Chairman) thanked ICSU for their efforts, noting the importance of
demonstrating social benefits for all Earth observing programmes – including GEO and IGOS
Themes; he suggested that IGOS-P should, under ICSU leadership, continue to develop a better
understanding of the issues;
- Don Hinsman (WMO) recognised the need to incorporate socio-economic expertise within IGOS and
its Themes; he proposed that this could best be achieved by Themes on a case-by-case basis – without
the need for new Partners or a new dedicated Theme; a number of Partners expressed support for this
proposal.
Colin Hicks (Co-Chair) proposed a way forward on the topic of socio-economic issues for the IGOS
Partnership, recorded in the following actions:
Action
11bis-6
IGOS Co-Chairs to convey the socio-economic data
workshop recommendations (those directed to IGOS) to the
IGOS Theme Teams with a request that they consider how to
reflect them in their activities
December 2004
Action
11bis-7
Coastal Theme, Land Theme, and Water Cycle Theme Team
leaders, supported by IGOS SEC, to prepare reports for
IGOS-P-12 on their progress on implementing socioeconomic data workshop recommendations and lessons
learned for Themes in definition and implementation
IGOS-P-12
Action
11bis-8
ICSU, in co-operation with IGOS SEC, to provide guidance
and support to IGOS Theme Teams in their consideration of
the use of socio-economic data, and to further develop their
investigation of how the IGOS Partnership might address
socio-economic issues
IGOS-P-12
Action
11bis-9
IGOS Co-Chairs to work with ICSU to make the amended
socio-economic data workshop report available via the IGOS
WWW site
December 2004
It was agreed that the recommendations directed to GEO should be removed from the Report before
publication, and that the title should be revised to make clear that it reflects the outcomes of a workshop.
It was further agreed that the topic would be discussed again at IGOS-P-12. The Co-Chairs thanked
Roberta Balstad and ICSU for their fine efforts in arranging the workshop and developing the report.
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8.
Any other business
GCOS Implementation Plan Update: Paul Mason presented a short update on the status of the GCOS
Implementation Plan, noting that the final version of the document was available from the GCOS WWW
site (www.wmo.ch/web/gcos/gcoshome.html ), and that it would be presented to COP-10. The plan cites
131 different actions required for implementation – at an estimated cost of around $630Mn per annum. It
was agreed that it was important for IGOS Theme teams to be aware of the GCOS Plan, and the CoChairs undertook to bring it to their attention.
IGOS Process Paper Provisional Update: Stephen Ward (CEOS/BNSC) referred Partners to the
provisional update of the IGOS Process Paper which had been distributed with the P-11bis papers – for
information only. He noted that the updates included the ‘compliance matrices’ which the SIT Chair had
contributed (to simplify compliance of Theme assessment at the proposal approval and Report approval
stages), and updates to Partner contact details. A full update will be undertaken, as appropriate, by the CoChairs in 2005 – reflecting any impact from the GEO conclusions.
Action
11bis-10
IGOS Co-Chairs to undertake a formal up-date of the IGOS
Process Paper in time for consideration at IGOS-P-12
IGOS-P-12
WCRP/GCOS Climate Products: Gilles Sommeria (WCRP) explained the COPES strategy
(Coordinated Observation and Prediction of the Earth System) of WCRP. The COPES Working Group on
Observation and Assimilation (WGOA) has been established in order to promote and co-ordinate the
synthesis of global observations from the atmosphere, land and cryosphere and the fully-coupled system,
as well as GCM re-analyses and assimilation activities. WCRP proposes to develop a co-ordinated
approach to the re-processing of global climate observations covering the “satellite era”. This approach
would involve climate experts and agencies in charge of space systems and global observing systems, and
would be complementary to the activities already undertaken as part of the re-analyses.
Don Hinsman (WMO) suggested that the WCRP proposal sounded rather like a proposal for
establishment of an IGOS Theme on climate data re-analysis – which could be brought forward and
assessed using IGOS Process Paper, per normal procedure. Paul Mason (GCOS) suggested that an
alternative approach would be for existing Themes to take ownership of relevant re-analysis tasks,
focusing on generation of certain new products.
The meeting noted the intention of WCRP and GCOS to develop the proposal further and to bring a fuller
plan to the next Partners meeting.
9.
Review of P-11bis actions
Stephen Ward (CEOS/BNSC) displayed the draft list of actions from the meeting, noting that the list
would be provided for comment by all Partners and participants before its inclusion in the draft minutes.
The new actions are featured here throughout the text – and summarised in Annex C.
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10. Date and venue of next session
Norberto Fernandez (Co-Chair) confirmed that IGOS-P-12 will be planned for the week of 23rd May 2005
– with UNEP’s first choice of venue being Nairobi. Should this prove problematic for many participants
(due to agency travel policy) then Geneva is the second choice. The Co-Chairs will distribute a proposal
for IGOS-P-12 by no later than end January 2005, and will consult with Partners in the process (to ensure
that related meetings such as G3OS and CEOS SIT & Task Force) are taken into consideration.
11. Calendar of Partner meetings
Stephen Ward (CEOS/BNSC) reminded the meeting that, during the IGOS Partner and IGOS SEC
meetings last May, concern was expressed regarding the frequency and content of Partner meetings,
particularly in the context of a possible IGOS-P role in the successor to the ad hoc GEO. Specifically it
was felt that:
- IGOS-P needs to give more consideration to the interface between the Partnership and Theme teams;
agenda time on full Partner meetings for each Theme can be limited – and Theme leaders are often
using scarce travel budgets to attend these meetings;
- IGOS-P efforts may need to ‘step up a gear’ in order to be a credible partner in GEO;
- the IGOS Workshop arranged by MEXT/JAXA in early February 2004 was particularly valuable in
providing a ‘mid-year’ boost to Theme implementation efforts and in developing community inputs to
the participating Themes. The timing of the CEOS SIT meeting, held just before the Workshop, had
proven particularly valuable in identifying key implementation issues for the splinter sessions to
address.
The Co-Chairs proposed that, in light of the above, the Partnership may wish to include two meetings in
its annual cycle of events. The current May/June Partnership meeting could continue to serve as the main
annual forum for Partnership business. The second meeting (perhaps in the Jan-Feb timeframe) would
focus on Theme implementation issues – building on the success and experience of the 2004 IGOS
Workshop. Representation at this second meeting would be mainly from Theme Teams, the CoChairs, and IGOS SEC.
Given the uncertainties in the possible CEOS reorganization, and in the Partnership’s future relations with
GEO, it was agreed to revisit this topic at the P-12 meeting.
12. Closure of the session
The Co-Chairs closed the session and thanked all Partners for their participation.
18th November 2004
14
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
A.
Status of action items from P-11
No.
Brief Description
Status
11-1
IGOS Co-Chairs, supported by IGOS SEC, to co-ordinate
development of an input from IGOS Partners to the GEO
Governance meeting in September
Complete
11-2
IGOS Co-Chairs, supported by IGOS SEC, to develop a
strategy to prepare IGOS Partners for a meeting focusing
on the IGOS strategy regarding GEO - on 18th November
in Beijing
Complete
Paper circulated in advance
of meeting.
11-3
IGOS Co-Chairs to send a reminder to all IGOS Partners of
the importance of review and comment on the GCOS
Implementation Plan
Complete
GCOS has provided an
update on status (to be
reported under AOB.)
11-4
IGCO Theme Team to distribute their draft implementation
plan and timetable for information of IGOS Partners
Complete
Status report under item 6.
11-5
IGOS Co-chairs, supported by IGOS SEC, to consult with
Partners and to develop a plan for inputs from the IGOS
Partnership to CSD-13 (in particular on water issues and
utilising IGWCO team expertise)
Open
UNEP is undertaking a
number of initiatives and
will report at a future date.
NOAA confirmed that GEO
and the IGOS Water Cycle
Theme planned some
participation and that some
harmonisation of efforts
would be worthwhile.
11-6
Coastal Theme Team to finalise development of the Theme
Team Report with a view to approval of the Theme at the
Partners meeting in November 2004, allowing for a review
period consistent with the IGOS Process Paper
Complete
11-7
Coastal Theme Team to input draft Theme report sections
to the GEO IPTT
Complete
11-8
IGACO Theme Team to fulfill obligations outlined in IGOS
Process Paper for Themes moving to implementation Phase
Complete
WMO has confirmed that
they will lead the
implementation team for
IGACO
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
11-9
Land Theme Team to fulfill obligations outlined in IGOS
Process Paper for newly approved Themes
Open
Report invited under item 6.
11-10
Cryosphere Theme Team, supported by IGOS SEC (with
Don Hinsman serving as IGOS Sec liaison), to further
develop their proposal to ensure compliance with the IGOS
Process Paper and to fulfill obligations for next steps
Complete
Report invited under item 6.
11-11
ICSU, in co-operation with the IGOS Co-Chairs, to finalise
their proposal for an IGOS-P workshop on socio-economic
issues
Complete
A report has been produced
and will be presented at P11bis meeting.
11-12
UNESCO, in consultation with IGOS SEC, to assist the
Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS) to explore the
best way forward for GGOS interaction with the IGOS
Partnership and its existing Themes
Complete
Robert Missotten reports
slow progress from GGOS
contacts.
11-13
IGOS Co-Chairs to try to identify a host agency for the 2005
IGOS Workshop proposed by CEOS/JAXA
Open
For discussion under item
11.
11-14
Josef Aschbacher, Robert Missotten and Michael Hales to
distribute the proposed amendment to the IGOS Process
Paper for review and approval by Partners
Complete
Provisional draft only.
Circulated for information.
Propose that a full update
be undertaken by P-12,
reflecting any
developments in GEOSS.
Ongoing actions from previous meetings
10-16
Partners’ Meeting Actions 9-14 and 9-15 were
subsumed to direct IGOS Partners to work with the
CEOS WGEdu to maximize efforts and resources
on common activities in education, training and
capacity building, and to request the WGEdu to
take on the responsibility of harmonizing the
capacity building efforts of the IGOS Partners, to
the extent possible. Colin Summerhayes is to report
on the status of these actions to the IGOS Partners
at the IGOS P-11. (Action: Colin Summerhayes)
18th November 2004
IGOS-P-12
16
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
B.
IGOS-P input to GEO-5
IGOS P input for the GEOSS Implementation Plan at GEO-5
With respect to the draft GEO 10-Year Implementation Plan, specifically lines 184 (“….GEOSS will
be based on existing …systems..”) and lines 337/8 (“….specialist scientific bodies and institutes….”),
IGOS wishes to stress its endorsement and support for the GEO process resulting in the GEOSS
Implementation Plan including a strong willingness to co-operate with GEO.
In particular, IGOS proposes that:
-
With the strong links already existing in the IGOS Partnership, IGOS provides a coordinated
approach for the definition, development and planning for the implementation of global observing
systems that have the potential to serve as the core of GEOSS.
-
IGOS, in particular its resident expertise contained in the many IGOS Themes, can also provide
advice and assistance to address specific technical problems. IGOS offers to consider adapting
existing Themes and developing additional ones as requested. IGOS is exploring ways in which
it can integrate the use of socio-economic data into appropriate IGOS-P Themes. IGOS will also
provide relevant specialists to serve on groups established by GEOSS.
-
Finally, with its well-established history and successful activities, IGOS offers to serve within the
“Science and Technical mechanisms” as described in the GEO Implementation Plan, if asked.
The Co-Chairmen of IGOS will act as a single point of contact to facilitate access to its capabilities
and expertise.
The IGOS Partnership will not be able to provide a formal letter from a ‘Foreign Affairs Ministry or
its equivalent’ (as set out in Line 24 of the GEO 10-Year Implementation Plan). The wording should
allow such letters to be sent by the appropriate representative of inter-governmental and nongovernmental organisations.
18th November 2004
17
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
C.
No.
IGOS-P-11bis actions
Brief Description
Due date
11bis-1
IGOS Co-Chairs to input the submission from IGOS-P to GEO-5
and to include a comment on line 24 of the GEO Short Document
noting the need for clarification on the issue of signatories for
participating organisations such as IGOS-P.
19th November 2004
11bis-2
IGOS Co-Chairs to consult with IGOS Partners on how/whether
IGOS Co-Chairs can commit IGOS-P to be a founding partner at
EOS-III
February 2005
11bis-3
IGOS Co-Chairs, in cooperation with IGOS SEC, to follow-up with
GEO SEC on the possibility of an IGOS presentation at GEO-5
11bis-4
Coastal Theme Team to address comments on their draft report
raised at IGOS-P-11bis and, with support from IGOS SEC, to
finalise the document ready for publication.
March 2005
11bis-5
Coastal Theme to report to IGOS-P-12 on how the Coral Reef SubTheme is being integrated into Coastal Theme implementation (all
Coral-Reef Sub-Theme reports to be subsumed in future in the
Coastal Theme Report to IGOS Partner meetings)
IGOS-P-12
11bis-6
IGOS Co-Chairs to convey the socio-economic data workshop
recommendations (those directed to IGOS) to the IGOS Theme
Teams with a request that they consider how to reflect them in their
activities
December 2004
11bis-7
Coastal Theme, Land Theme, and Water Cycle Theme Team
leaders, supported by IGOS SEC, to prepare reports for IGOS-P12 on their progress on implementing socio-economic data
workshop recommendations and lessons learned for Themes in
definition and implementation
IGOS-P-12
11bis-8
ICSU, in co-operation with IGOS SEC, to provide guidance and
support to IGOS Theme Teams in their consideration of the use of
socio-economic data, and to further develop their investigation of
how the IGOS Partnership might address socio-economic issues
IGOS-P-12
11bis-9
IGOS Co-Chairs to work with ICSU to make the amended socioeconomic data workshop report available via the IGOS WWW site
December 2004
11-bis 10
IGOS Co-Chairs to undertake a formal up-date of the IGOS
Process Paper in time for consideration at IGOS-P-12
18th November 2004
26th November 2004
IGOS-P-12
18
11th bis IGOS Partners Meeting
D.
Participants
Agency
CEOS/BNSC
CEOS/BNSC
CEOS/BNSC
CEOS/BNSC
CEOS/CONAE
CEOS/CONAE
CEOS/CSA
CEOS/ESA
CEOS/ESA
CEOS/EUMETSAT
CEOS/EUMETSAT
CEOS/GISTDA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/JAXA
CEOS/NASA
CEOS/NASA
CEOS/NOAA
CEOS/NOAA
CEOS/NOAA
CEOS/NOAA
CEOS/NRSCC
CEOS/NRSCC
CEOS/NSC
CEOS/USGS
CEOS/USGS
Coastal theme
Cryo Theme
FAO & GTOS
GCOS
GEO
GEO
GEO
ICSU
UNEP
UNEP
UNESCO
Water theme
Water theme
WCRP
WMO
WMO
18th November 2004
Name
E-mail
Dr. Colin Hicks
Mr. Mark Churchyard
Ms.Paula Freedman
Mr. Stephen Ward
Dr. Laura Frulla
Mrs. Ana Medico
Mr. Daniel De Lisle
Dr. Josef Aschbacher
Dr. Stephen Briggs
Dr. David Williams
Mr. Roy Gibson
Dr. Pakorn Apaphant
Dr. Yoji Furuhama
Mr. Chu Ishida
Mr. Yukio Haruyama
Ms. Satoko Miura
Ms. Mariko Kato
Ms. Kazuko Misawa
Mr. Ronald Birk
Ms. Devon Carroll
Mr.w.Paul Menzel
Mr. Brent Smith
Mr. Michael Hales
Ms. Renee Leduc Clarke
Prof. Li Mengxue
Dr. Zhu Zhongil
Mr. Per Erik Skrovseth
Mr. Jay Feuquay
Mr. Lawrence Pettinger
Dr. Liana Talaue McManus
Prof. Fumihiko Nishio
Mr. Jeffrey Tschirley
Dr. Paul Mason
Adi Paterson
Tobias Fuchs
Mr. Gregory w Withee
Roberta Balstad
Dr. R. Norberto Fernandez
Ms. Silvia Giada
Robert Missotten
Dr. Toshio Koike
Dr Rick Lawford
Dr Gilles Sommeria
Dr. Donald Hinsman
Dr. Yan Hong
colin.hicks@bnsc.gsi.gov.uk
mark.churchyard@bnsc.gsi.gov.uk
paula.freedman@bnsc.gsi.gov.uk
mail@stephenward.net
frulla@conae.gov.ar
amedico@conae.gov.ar
daniel.delisle@space.gc.ca
josef.aschbacher@esa.int
stephen.briggs@esa.int
dwilliams@eumetsat.de
roy.gibson@wanadoo.fr
pakorn@gistda.or.th
furuhama.yoji@jaxa.jp
ishida.chu@jaxa.jp
haruyama.yukio@jaxa.jp
s-miura@eorc.jaxa.jp
kato.mariko@jaxa.jp
misawa@restec.or.jp
ronald.j.birk@nasa.gov
devon.carroll@nasa.gov
paul.menzel@ssec.wisc.edu
brent.smith@noaa.gov
michael.hales@noaa.gov
renee.leduc.clarke@noaa.gov
mengxueli@nrscc.gov.cn
zhongli@ceos-china.com
per.erik.skrovseth@spacecentre.no
feuquay@usgs.qov
lpetting@usgs.gov
lmcmanus@rsmas.miami.edu
jeff.tschirley@fao.org
p.j.mason@reading.ac.uk
adi.paterson@dst.gov.za
tobias-berthold.fuchs@cec.eu.int
Greg.Withee@noaa.gov
roberta.miller@ciesin.org
norberto.fernandez@unep.org
silvia.giada@unep.org
r.missotten@unesco.org
tkoike@hydra.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp
lawford@umbc.edu
gsommeria@wmo.int
dhinsman@wmo.int
hyan@wmo.int
19