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| Division
of Early Warning and Assessment (DEWA)
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) http://www.unep.org
& http://www.unep.net
The Early Warning and Assessment programme is a cross-cutting UNEP activity that assists other parts of the programme and the UN system with the collection, management and use of environmental data and information. Its activities include Environmental Assessment and Reporting (including the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) reports ), Information and Monitoring (including the Global Resource Information Database - GRID centres), Environmental Information Systems responsible for UNEP.net, INFOTERRA and Mercure, and UN system-wide Earthwatch Coordination through an office in Geneva. AGENDA
21 CHAPTERS AND PROGRAMME AREAS OF PARTICULAR FOCUS OR INTEREST:
BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF AND LINKS TO INFORMATION ACTIVITIES: Data Collection, Observation, Monitoring Methodologies developed for global GEMS/Water and GEMS/Air monitoring/data collection networks; meta-data collected through questionnaires; much data supplied by partners. Sources are Government institutes and others. Government offices, acting as national focal points for the INFOTERRA system serve as agents to register sources for the database. Water quality data; general environmental data; geo-referenced data sets on natural resources; attribute and statistical data sets are collected globally and by region, country or subcountry units as needed for assessments. Data collected for INFOTERRA is that of sources of environmental information in over 1,000 environmental categories. Entries include contact addresses, free text description of information services, key words, working languages, geographical coverage, terms of access. All data collection coordinated
with other UN organizations and/or collaborating institutions; formal agreements
and projects; meta-data review. INFOTERRA information is collected by governments
through national focal points coordinated by UNEP.
Methodologies,
Quality Control, Harmonization
The INFOTERRA Envoc Multilingual Thesaurus of Environmental Terms (Fourth Edition, 1997) is used as a standard for environmental terminology throughout the UN system. Global Terrestrial Observing System and other observing systems work towards harmonization of observation programmes internationally; land cover/land classification activities; assessment methodologies; global monitoring networks. Other methodological areas
include conceptual frameworks for environmental assessment and reporting;
Sourcebook, guidelines and software tools for state of environment reporting;
monitoring and data handling methodologies.
Assessment
and Analysis
Always cooperate with other organizations/institutions; develop increased cooperation through system-wide Earthwatch coordination; collaborate with global and regional assessment institutions through GEO Collaborating Centre network. Techniques used: Expert judgement,
expert systems, GIS, synthesis of global, regional and sectoral assessments,
statistical analysis, integrating models, forecast and scenario development,
indicators, etc.
Indicators
Modelling
Expert
Systems/Decision-support systems
Early
Warning Mechanisms
Reports/Information dissemination Dissemination is via commercial and in-house publications, databases, assessment, technical and meeting reports, newsletters, press releases, presentations at meetings, brochures, pamphlets, popular booklets; electronic networking developing rapidly with INFOTERRA internet subscription list, and several World Wide Web sites; INFOTERRA CD-ROM Guide to Environment and Development Sources of Information (1998). There is a wide range of users, ranging from general public to Governments, other agencies, scientific institutions, regional bodies, etc. INFOTERRA users come from 176 countries around the world from all sectors. 60% of users are from the governmental sector, the rest are divided among NGO and private sector, UN and IGOs, academia and business. CEDAR, a governmental agency which acts as a regional service centre, manages an INFOTERRA Internet subscription list. Government INFOTERRA focal points in 176 countries are national dissemination mechanisms for documentation. Governments, NGOs, and private sector institutions serve as centres of excellence under Special Sectoral Source network responding to queries addressed to them and disseminating information. Joint distribution lists are maintained with cooperating organizations. Distribution strategy in place for all publications The information filters and brokers are sectoral experts, cooperating and collaborating centres, providing metadata pointers to distributed databases. INFOTERRA national focal points also function as information brokers. Meta-information inventories are a major role for GRID; land and land use assessment activities; freshwater quality. Promoting the use of information is provided by capacity building in the use of information; wide dissemination of information in several languages; commercial distribution; software production (GEMS/RAISON) for national water quality information and development of other information-handling tools; improved use of existing information through Earthwatch. National INFOTERRA seminars inform the primary user group (governments, NGOs, libraries, information community) of sources of environmental information available through the network. INFOTERRA Bulletin (quarterly) addresses issues of environmental information exchange and alerts readers to sources of information. International source books on priority subject areas inform the public of sources of sectoral information. The subscription list on Internet advertises sources of information. GEO report launched through global and series of regional events; ancillary material available in several languages; widely available as hard copy and on Internet. Information for decision-makers includes development of environmental and sustainable development indicators; support development of models for scenario building and trend detection, cause/effect relationships; development of new methodologies for state of the environment reporting; consultation with users on their information needs. The INFOTERRA directory/database is available on diskette, on-line, CD-ROM, and hard copy in English, French, Spanish and Russian. Network
Development and Support
There are many interactions
with other networks, including UNDP Sustainable Development Network; related
agency networks, regional networks.
Capacity-Building
Training in assessment, data management, scenario building provided by workshops; regional training in GIS and information management; regional environmental and natural resource information networks in existing regional organizations (Asia, South Pacific, Africa, planned for Latin America). Regional user consultations
used to identify gaps and needs; expert consultations to determine minimum
data requirements and data sets; INFOTERRA national focal point inventories
of environmental information sources and environmental expertise.
http://www.unep.org/
http://www.unep.net/
UN System-wide Earthwatch
Coordination (Geneva)
UNEP - Geneva
GRID - Arendal
GRID - Geneva
GRID - INPE
GRID - Sioux Falls
UNEP/GEMS Collaborating Centre
for Freshwater Quality Monitoring and Assessment at the National Water
Research Institute of Environment Canada
Global Environment Outlook
(GEO on Internet:
CIAT/World Bank/UNEP Environmental
and Sustainability Indicators project:
Mercure satellite communications
system:
Responsible
Office/Person (for inquiries or follow-up):
UN System-wide Earthwatch,
UNEP
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| ANNEX
COVERAGE OF AGENDA 21 PROGRAMME AREAS Check list - mark (X) areas of major or minor focus. ORGANIZATION: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): Division of Environmental Information, Assessment and Early Warning (DEIA&EW) |
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