The 2024 GEO Symposium and Open Data & Open Knowledge Workshop (ODOK), under the theme of “From Vision to Action: Crafting GEO’s Post 2025 Implementation Plan,” opened on September 23. The event was organized by the GEO (Group on Earth Observations) Secretariat and China GEO Secretariat, hosted by Hangzhou International Innovation Institute of Beihang University, and co-organized by the Tianmushan Laboratory. Around 400 people from 68 countries (regions) attended the symposium, including representatives from GEO co-chair countries, member states, international organizations, as well as representatives from academia and industry in the field of Earth observation.
At the opening ceremony, Gao Xiang, Director-General of the China Science and Technology Exchange Center (GEO China Secretariat), Li Deren, winner of the 2023 China’s top sci-tech award, academician of the CAS and CAE, Wang Yunpeng, academician of the CAE and President of Beihang University, respectively delivered speeches on behalf of the Chinese side.
Director-General Gao Xiang stated that as the co-chair member country of GEO, China will continue its engagement in and contribute its strength to GEO affairs. He announced the “GEO China Hangzhou Joint Action Initiative” at the meeting, calling on all members to further expand their resource networks, deepen cooperation and exchanges, and work together to solve urgent and common problems related to Earth observation data, knowledge, and infrastructure in response to the new needs and goals of the “Earth Intelligence for All” initiative.
Academician Li Deren, a Chinese expert who participated in the formulation of GEO's first ten-year plan, pointed out that China has made significant progress in Earth observation technology in the past 20 years. He stressed that the Earth observation in China cannot develop in isolation from the platform of GEO, and GEO also requires Chinese strength for its development.
President Wang Yunpeng warmly welcomed GEO representatives to the beautiful Hangzhou campus and highly appreciated and will surely support GEO's new development goal of “Earth Intelligence for All.” He introduced that there are many outstanding teams, scientific and educational platforms, and international cooperation networks in various fields such as Earth observation, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and big data in Beihang University. He particularly pointed out that the Regional Center for Space Science and Technology Education center in Asia Pacific and the Pacific (China) (affiliated to United Nations), which settled on the Beihang campus in 2014, has trained a large number of high-level talents for nearly 30 countries and contributed to the development of global Earth observation. He noted that Beihang University will continue to deepen cooperation with GEO, share the resources and advantages in technology, talent cultivation, and other fields with international peers, and further participate in the implementation of the "Earth Intelligence for All" initiative.
Mr. Xu Weihua, Deputy Mayor of Hangzhou, introduced the application of Hangzhou's urban brain and Earth observation in his keynote speech, especially the innovative practices of using Alibaba Cloud, GeoGPT, and Earth observation in smart government, public safety, urban governance, ecological protection, etc. He also welcomed GEO to pilot the development of Earth intelligence in Hangzhou.
Yana Gevorgyan, Director of GEO Secretariat, expressed gratitude to GEO China Secretariat and Hangzhou International Innovation Institute of Beihang University for their efforts in facilitating the smooth convening of this event in her speech. She stated that GEO, as the largest intergovernmental international organization in the field of Earth observation, calls for the joint effort of all parties to achieve the goal of making Earth intelligence accessible to all.
This event focuses on the application of Earth intelligence for better serving ecosystems, climate, energy and urbanization, biodiversity and carbon management, etc. 27 themed discussion sessions will be held.
An exhibition of worldwide Earth observation achievements was also included in this event, which brings together more than 30 exhibitors from around the world. The exhibition was divided into three main themes: Open Data, Earth Intelligence Efforts, and Earth Observation Applications. Through display boards, physical objects, videos, posters, and other forms, new achievements of GEO's different work plans, as well as China's latest achievements in geo-spatial data acquisition, artificial intelligence applications, and Earth observation technology services for government and public users, were showcased. The exhibition area also features multiple on-site demonstrations and interactive sessions, where visitors can not only have face-to-face communication with experts and scholars from the exhibition team to gain insights into the latest trends in technology and applications, but also experience firsthand the practical operation and interactive demonstrations of some cutting-edge technologies.
Written by: Tan Yumin, Jing Guifei
Reviewed by: Wan Lina
Edited by: Tan Yumin
Translated by: Xu Ran
