UNCTAD-AIR initiative to help Brazil and South Africa harness geospatial technology

UNCTAD has partnered with the Atlantic International Research (AIR) Centre, a non-profit organization, to help Brazil and South Africa boost their earth observation capabilities.

Space technologies can revolutionize how countries capture, visualize and analyze data about Earth’s surface, such as disaster-prone areas, local air and water quality, and transportation networks.

The joint work will arm both countries with much-needed data to support evidence-based urban planning and management, and to report on their progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.

The initiative was announced at a global workshop on Earth observation held in the Azores, Portugal between 8 and 12 January. The event focused on enhancing geospatial analysis using Julia, an innovative open-source programming language developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The initiative is part of a two-year project running through 2025, entitled “Harnessing space technological applications in sustainable urban development”.

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