During the Thirteenth GEO Plenary Meeting, held in St Petersburg, Russian Federation, on 9-10 November 2016, representatives from the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) 103 Member governments and 106 Participating Organizations have assisted to launch of the new look of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) Portal. At the event, the GEO Principal and Secretary General of EuroGeoSurveys, Mr. Demicheli, declared “Over the years, GEO has demonstrated a constant evolution, especially in the provision of free data sharing, creating value-added products and services for the benefit of society; and today, with the involvement of the commercial sector, is making another step forward“. In this framework EuroGeoSurveys contributes through several projects such as Minerals4EU, EMODnet-Geology, EGDI and GEOCRADLE. Minerals4EU is the most comprehensive source of minerals statistics for Europe. It presents, for the first time, official national level statistical data for 40 European countries, including all European Union (EU) Member States, countries in accession and potential candidates, as well as European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members. All the data is accessible digitally only, through the European Minerals Knowledge Data Platform. The Minerals Yearbook published last year contains a unique and invaluable series of in-situ data, which will be freely served to GEOSS. The sustainability of Minerals4EU is now guaranteed by the set up of the Minerals4EU Foundation that can be a major pillar to the success of the GEOSS Energy and Mineral Resources SBA. The GEOSS Energy and Mineral Resources SBA is supported also by a new project, FORAM, which will establish a World Forum on Raw Materials, bringing together all major global players in the field and where EuroGeoSurveys is one of the partners involved. Concerning the marine environment, EuroGeoSurveys runs the geological component of the European Marine Observation Data Network...

The Group on Earth Observation XII Plenary and the 2015 Mexico City Ministerial Summit, as well as all associated meetings and events, will be hosted by the Government of Mexico and will take place in Mexico City from 9 to 13 November 2015. The AfriGEOSS Side Event will take place on the 10th of November 2015, (14.00 – 18.00 PM). The AfriGEOSS initiative, developed within the GEO framework, aims to enhance Africa’s capacity for producing, managing and using Earth observations data and information and to strengthen the link between GEO activities and existing capabilities and initiatives in Africa. The Side Event will review progress made towards the implementation of AfriGEOSS since its launch, including progress on developing the concept for data access and dissemination in Africa. The Workshop aims at creating synergies and coordination with a number of activities contributing to AfriGEOSS in order to strengthen efforts. In particular the side event will use the recently awarded PanAfGeo project to explore harmonization with existing efforts, especially in the area of mapping and training. PanAfGeo will enhance the capacity and role of African National Geological Surveys (i.e. regional mapping and exploration, mineral resources assessments, trainings, etc.), and therefore represents an opportunity for many African GEOSS stakeholders involved in the geosciences to have their concerns addressed. In this framework the session has the scope to initiate discussions on the involvement and role of non-Geological Survey stakeholders and the benefits to GEOSS. GEO has been formally listed as a key PanAfGeo stakeholder, and its opinion will be taken into consideration during the project development. Moreover PanAfGeo will partially continue the AEGOS (Africa-Europe Geoscientific Observation Network) Project, which was contributing to AfriGEOSS. If you are interested in attending the workshop, it is necessary to register at the following...