San José, Costa Rica, 7-10 May 2024 (with a possibility of online attendance) - streaming in UTC-8 time zone.
Hosted and supported by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
Co-sponsored by the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW)
Venue: Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture Headquarters, San José, Costa Rica
Rationale and context
The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), the Government of Costa Rica, and the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW) are jointly organizing a conference to promote the use of space technology in water management to the benefit of developing countries.
The Conference will be held in San José, Costa Rica, from 7-10 May 2024, hosted by and with the support of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) on behalf of the Government of Costa Rica.
The Conference is the sixth international event focusing on applications of space technology for water in the series of conferences organised with the financial assistance of the PSIPW.
The initial event, on space technology for water management, took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in April 2008, the second conference was organized in March 2011 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the third conference in Rabat, Morocco in April 2014, the fourth in Islamabad, Pakistan in February-March 2018 and the fifth in Accra, Ghana in May 2022.
Background
The conference series on the use of space technology for water management started in 2008 and is part of the UNOOSA Space for Water Project in cooperation with the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water. The purpose of the conferences is to increase the number of developing countries that have developed the capacity to use space science and technology, as well as related applications, for water management and water-related scientific research. With a scientific and technical focus, the conferences of this series involve experts from all world regions but have a focus on regional needs and challenges. Speakers consist of experts who will present how concrete technical actions have improved water management in their area of expertise, and experts who will debate in panel discussions about either technical or policy topics. Besides the main event, practical hands-on experience opportunities, like demonstration sessions or workshops, have taken place to complement the more theoretical and scientific presentations and panel discussions.
In 2024, UNOOSA, Costa Rica and the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW) will jointly organize the sixth conference on the use of space technology for water management with the support of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).
To feed growing a population while maintaining access to clean drinking water and sanitation, and ensuring the water needs of healthy ecosystems, humanity needs to change the way water is used in food production. Agriculture uses 70% of freshwater resources worldwide, and the World Bank estimates that we will also need a 70% higher output from agricultural production by 2050 to nourish an increasing population.
Conference objectives
The objectives of the conference are:
- To raise awareness on and expand the use of space technologies and space-based data for better application in hydrology, water resource management, ecosystem preservation and within the context of the Water-Food Nexus;
- To further the active exchange of knowledge between government authorities, technical experts and academia, the private sector and civil society via technical presentations, panel discussions and networking opportunities;
- To demonstrate how projects using space applications have successfully informed decision-making and policy;
- To demonstrate space-related activities, services and cooperation programmes among different user groups, in particular government officials, the diplomatic community, UN and international agencies as well as NGOs;
- To build capacity on topics relevant to Latin America and the Caribbean; and
- To exchange on and co-develop solutions for pressing water challenges
- To report to the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space through the Scientific and Technical Sub-committee.
Important Deadlines
24 January 2024: Deadline for applications for funding
22 February 2024: Application deadline self-funded on-site participants and for abstract submission by self-funded or online participants. Please take into account the times to receive a visa for Costa Rica at the respective embassy or consulate may take more than eight weeks, and apply early if you need a visa.
30 April 2024: Deadline for online participants.
How to register for the meeting
Indico.UN is the new UN secretariat system for conference and participant management. It is being deployed in all the UN Secretariats' duty stations.
If you don't have an account yet, kindly follow the below user guide to create your Indico.UN profile that will be needed for future events.
1. First, create your Indico.UN profile. (one-time exercise).
2. Now that you have your Indico.UN account, kindly click on the registration button and pick either of the forms available:
Registration for self-funded and online participants
or
Registration and funding application
Only a limited number of participants from developing countries can be funded. If you/your organization can fund your travels, please do so to allow participants who cannot fund their travels to attend.
Please do not apply to both forms to avoid duplicate registrations.
