SCO Initiative

Climate change is affecting every country on every continent. It is affecting lives and disrupting economies. Weather patterns are changing, sea levels are rising, and weather events are becoming more extreme. It is no longer time to speak about the “future” impacts of the changing climate. Looking ahead towards a period where significant re-thinking and re-structuring of the world is essential, humanity must use all available assets and place science, technology and innovation at the centre of all decision and policymaking.

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1 Overview

Launched during the first One Planet Summit, the Space for Climate Observatory is an international initiative created in 2019. It brings together a group of public and private entities involved in Earth observation (EO) with a view to making the most of the potential of satellite data and digital innovations to take action on climate change.

Constituted as an international network, the SCO brings together and coordinates efforts to promote the emergence of operational tools for monitoring, mitigating and adapting to climate change at the local level.

👉 For full details of the items below, please refer to the SCO Charter

2 Objectives

In support of global climate action, propose decision-making tools that enable the observation, assessment and anticipation of climate change impacts, based on spatial data in conjunction with all other available data sets. These applications must provide decision-makers with key data for accurate analysis of their environment's vulnerability to climate change.
Adapt and transfer methodologies and tools to other territories around the world. The SCO thus contributes to the adaptation component of the Paris Agreement in a coordinated manner at the international level.
A long-term objective is to help provide policy makers in all countries with the same set of tools and to develop internationally recognized models for objectively assessing the impact of public policies on climate change at the relevant scales.

In this spirit of joint effort, on December 3, 2024, SCO members reaffirmed their “shared commitment to taking concerted action at the national, regional, and international levels to scale up water management related solutions that have been developed by SCO projects” through the One Water Summit Declaration.

3 Governance

As a best-effort-based international initiative, the SCO works in a fully multilateral way. In every country, a Focal Point is designated to take part to Steering Committee meetings scheduled at least twice a year to make decisions on SCO programmes and functioning. Among these Focal Points, a subgroup forms the Programme Committee on a rotating basis to oversee SCO activities – Projects and Working Groups – carried out by all members. These committees as well as all activities are supported by the SCO Secretariat, provided by one SCO member, currently the French space agency CNES.

See the signatory members

4 SCO Projects and annual Call for Projects

SCO Projects designate satellite-based applications for climate change monitoring, mitigation and adaptation purposes.

Every year on 1 September, the SCO opens a call for projects. Within a few weeks, the Labelling Committee, composed of the signatories of the SCO Charter, reviews the applications according to specific criteria, including:

C1. Addressing the needs of end users within a specific geographic area;
C2. Proposing operational and practical software(s);
C3. Making the best use of available satellite, environmental, climate, in situ and socio-economic data, at a resolution adapted to the problem;
C4. Building on (pre-)operational and research infrastructures, services and local data provision;
C5. Having a built-in potential for extending to several geographic areas.

5 Community feedback

Certified projects become part of the SCO community and agree to contribute to its enrichment for the benefit of all. To ensure that the solutions developed can be replicated in other locations and contexts, this feedback should preferably include all data, algorithms and technical building blocks. Bilateral or multilateral collaborative projects are eligible, and collaborations involving other SCO signatories are encouraged.

👉 Consult the many Resources available, such as the Annual Activity Report, the Project Valuation Guide, the SCO Portfolio, which lists all projects since 2020, and the main access points for data and satellite products.

7 FAQ

What is the legal nature of the SCO?

The SCO is an international initiative defined by the Charter on the establishment of the Space for Climate Observatory. It is a collective effort devoid of legal personality, based on the best-efforts of its Signatories.

Who can join the SCO?

Any public or private entity involved in the Earth Observation sector and willing to contribute to SCO activities, be it the emergence of SCO Projects to the Working Groups, can join the SCO by signing the Charter.

What does it mean to be a SCO member?

Being a SCO member grants access to all SCO activities, on a best-effort basis. It is possible to get more deeply involved within the governance of the initiative by becoming Focal Point – but only one public entity by country can assume this role in a given country.

How to join the SCO?

To join the SCO, any public or private entity can sign the Charter on the establishment of the Space for Climate Observatory. Requests to join the Charter are assessed against the possibility to contribute to SCO activities and the willingness to act in favour of SCO objectives.

Can the SCO provide funding to projects?

The SCO is not a funding agency per se. However, since it is a network open to a wide array of public and private entities and that its role is to highlight the tools developed under its umbrella, the SCO aims at making it easier to find funding for such applications.