The first coverage on the Earth Symposium was published in one of the leading Nepali newspapers "Kathmandu Post" on September 29, 2010:
Anil Giri - AHN News Correspondent
Kathmandu, Nepal (AHN) - The issue of climate change and its effects on Himalayan glaciers is becoming a cause of concern for the world’s environmental and scientific community. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is showing keen interest in building the regional capacity of at-risk mountain communities’ to adapt to the change.
NASA Administrator Charles F. Bolden is arriving here Friday to attend a week-long high-level symposium on fostering regional and international cooperation to promote the use of and access to earth observation for improved scientific knowledge and understanding to support adaptation to climate change in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan (HKH) region. The HKH is the only reservoir of biodiversity that includes all or part of four global biodiversity hotspots.
Bolden will receive VIP treatment from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He will meet Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and other senior government officials during his stay in Kathmandu.
According to the itinerary provided by the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), one of the organisers of his Nepal trip, he will be launching SERVIR Himalaya, an earth observatory that monitors and visualizes systems that integrate satellite and other geospatial data for improved scientific knowledge and decision-making by managers, researchers, students and the general public.
“SERVIR provides a model for building the capacity of countries to use earth observations and geospatial information technologies in regions around the world,” said ICIMOD.
More than 250 delegates from 24 countries — scientists, researchers and development practitioners, as well as policy makers from the HKH region and beyond will be participating. Michael Yates, senior deputy assistant administrator of USAID, Indian Minister of State for Environment and Forest Jairam Ramesh, Group on Earth Observation (GEO) Secretariat Director Prof. Jose Achache of Switzerland are expected to attend the symposium.
The jamboree of researchers and policy makers, the first of its kind in Nepal, will discuss remote sensing of snow, glaciers, spatial decision support systems for ecosystem management, space-based information for disaster management, land cover change and carbon socks, trans-boundary air pollution monitoring and spatial data infrastructure for climate change adaptation.
“The systematic collection of data and information about the HKH mountain system is critical for improved understanding of climate change, and its trends and impacts for protecting future scenarios. Data and information derived from Earth observation are proving increasingly vital to gaining insights into regional status and trends, especially climatic implications at the global level,” ICIMOD said in a briefing.
This platform will enable the participants of the different events during the Symposium to interact virtually, stay updated on the ongoing sessions and provide a room for debate and creative exchanges.
