Fostering the understanding of how space contributes to solving global challenges: the ESA catalogue
- Paper number
IAC-19,D4,2,3,x50484
- Author
Mrs. Isabelle Duvaux-Bechon, France, ESA - European Space Agency
- Year
2019
- Abstract
Since many years now, space programmes and activities have been recognised as supporting global challenges. They are not acting in isolation and often integrated into wider projects, or contributing with essential data combined with data from other sources. Still, those space programmes and activities are now indispensable to tackle many challenges, either by allowing a measurement of the status and evolution of the parameters characterising a challenge, or by contributing to the solution. And in many cases, the support they can bring is still unknown or not recognised enough. Those challenges can be those faced “locally” by countries in a given geographical area, or thematic, focusing mainly on development for all and supporting the delivery of what is essential for human beings (starting with water, food, health and education). In parallel with the adoption in September 2015 of the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), ESA was analysing its programmes and activities supporting development. It was then natural to combine the two and identify those ESA activities that can support at least one SDG in order to help potential users to identify which activities could contribute to an improved sustainable development on Earth. This approach is also building on the fact that those SDGs have to be reached by all States, developed and developing, and that most of the ESA activities can be mapped against at least one SDG. The catalogue that ESA developed and put on line in March 2018 includes already more than 300 ESA projects, from all space domains, and more are coming regularly. A Memorandum of Understanding has been prepared with the UN Office of Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) to include information from the catalogue into the Space Solutions Compendium they are building. The concept behind this ESA catalogue supporting the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals will be presented, together with typical examples of programmes and activities that are included and the parameters that can be used to search for information. The 2019 step of identifying and integrating elements of a socio-economic nature illustrating the quantitative and qualitative benefits that could be obtained by using “space” will be explained as well as the cooperation being put in place to expand the catalogue to all the activities in Europe and with OOSA for the support of their activities.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-19,D4,2,3,x50484.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
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