ADPC and UN-SPIDER partner to boost space based technology in Asia-Pacific

UN-SPIDER and ADPC sign agreement formalizing ADPC’s role as Regional Support Office. As the Regional Support Office, ADPC will enhance awareness and capacity of regional partners to use spaced based information for disaster risk management and climate change adaptation.

For over 10 years, UN-SPIDER has been working to ensure Government and international partners have access and capacity to take advantage of the opportunities offered by space-based information to support disaster management. A recent agreement, signed on 6 June 2016, between UN-SPIDER and ADPC helps realize this vision in the Asia and the Pacific along with other Regional Support Offices in the region.

This agreement formally recognizes ADPC as the Regional Support Office (RSO) to work with UN-SPIDER in enhancing awareness and capacity of space based information in the region. Including ADPC, there are 20 RSOs worldwide, ranging from government agencies, academic institutions and regional organizations.

This agreement highlights the important role ADPC has had, over several years, with UN-SPIDER related activities. This includes serving on Technical Advisory Missions to Lao PDR, Bhutan and Mongolia and actively participating at the International Expert Meeting in Vienna, Austria.

Over the years, ADPC has demonstrated its value in strengthening the use of space based information to support disaster response. For example, ADPC provided maps, analytics and recommendations that supported government responses during the Thailand Floods (2011), the Myanmar Floods (2015), the Nepal Earthquake (2015), and the ongoing drought in Cambodia.

Additionally, ADPC has been promoting the use of scientific based approaches, such as satellite technology, for disaster preparedness in the form of risk assessments and monitoring. As a new UN-SPIDER RSO, ADPC will be in a position to provide technical support for the full disaster risk management cycle in a more systematic way.

A key component of ADPC’s contribution to the field of space based information is the SERVIR-Mekong initiative, a joint partnership with USAID and NASA. Through SERVIR-Mekong, ADPC and its consortium partners and University network in the Lower Mekong Region are working closely with Government and non-Government stakeholders. The aim of this work is to increase access and strengthen capacity to use publicly available spaced based data for informed decision making on vital issues in climate change, disaster preparedness and sustainable development.

As the impact of climate change becomes more visible with the increased frequency and intensity of disasters, the use of space based information will play a critical important role in reducing risk. The Regional Support Office agreement with UN-SPIDER ensures that ADPC will remain active in the realm of earth observation applications for disaster risk management and climate change adaptation.