1. GEOCRI – GEO Cold Regions Initiative
Yubao QIU*, Hannele Savela, Peter L. Pulsifer
*Instiute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, CAS, China
University of Oulu / INTERACT, Finland
National Snow and Ice Data Center, CIRES, University of Colorado
INTAROS
Side Event: GEOGLOWS and the Harmonization of GEO Water Activities

2. Earth’s Cold Region

3. View From Northern Pole Frozen Water and Phase changing High Latitude
High Altitude
PEEX

4. Why GEO Cold Regions? Scientific and Societal Importance
More than 100 countries around the world have cryospheric elements. These elements are a main source of fresh water.
Cold regions are the most ecologically and environmentally sensitive areas, and changes to these areas comprehensively affect the dynamic earth system, impacting many aspects of society in all parts of the world.
The cold regions of our planet influence our entire world's climate

5. Activates related to Earth Observations and GEOCRI by domain
Numbers for the activities arranged by Regions

6. Environmental and socio-political challenges
Specific Earth observation needs and requirements
Climate & Weather
Biodiversity & Ecosystems
International Relations & Cooperation
Sustainable Development, Indigenous Communities & Traditional Practices
Health
Agriculture, Fisheries, Hunting & Food
Water
Pollution & Environmental Protection
Hazards
Built Environment, Infrastructure & Transport
Energy
Mining & Fossil Fuels
Forestry
Shipping
Tourism

7. GEOCRI links to other SBAs
GECO
GEO-GNOME
GEO-DARMA
GEO Cold Regions focused on information services and Earth observations to provide societal benefits over a vast Cold Regions area including the North Pole, South Pole, Himalaya-Third Pole and Mountain areas
GEOCRI: within the Water Resources Management SBA  cross cutting (Whats happen in the pole doesn’t stay in the poles
Monitor Biodiversity + Ecosystem in cold region
Build DR for vulnerable regions and pop.
Inform better use of energy and mineral resources  improve sustainability, reduce impacts
Improve food security for CR pop. By collaborationg with GEOGLAM
Adress issues including infrastructure and transportation related to extrem temperature, permafrost, slope instability, …
Monitor health risks and reduce illness in cold region
Urban decision
Water ressource management
GEO-GNOME: Global Network for Observation and Information in Mountain Environments
CLIMATE: COPERNICUS ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SERVICE (CAMS)
Regional GEOSS

8. Global Activities with Dimensions

9. An Information Service for Cold Regions (or GEO Cold Regions), exploiting the GEOSS information system, is needed to provide easy access to observations and environmental information products by users across the globe.

10. GEOCRI – GEO Cold Regions Initiative
Aiming to coordinates global joint efforts for Earth observations and information services over a vast Cold Regions area including the North Pole, South Pole, High Latitude Ocean, Himalaya-Third Pole and Mountain Cold Regions.
The GEO Cold Region Initiative (GEOCRI) is an initiated initiative in GEO XII at Nov. 2015, listed at GI-11: GEOCR imitative.
The AOS summit featured the GEO Cold Region Initiative (GEOCRI) that aims to identify, address and fill observational gaps and improve networks through coordinated observation practices and information services worldwide. See the Statement on the GEO Cold Region Initiative(GEOCRI).

11. GEOCRI – GEO Cold Regions Initiative
Aiming to share the vision of GEO to address the global environmental change, and its resulting impacts and challenges on all aspects of society, an Information Service for Cold Regions was established to broaden and share Earth observations for societal benefits, and inform the decision makers, through strengthening coordination with diverse communities, engagement and collaboration of stakeholders including decision makers and etc..
Scope - Global Cold Regions: Including the Arctic, Antarctic, Himalaya-Third Pole, high-latitude oceans and high-mountain cold region areas
GEO Cold Regions Initiative > recommended to GEO WP , which is the legacy of Information Service for Cold Regions in Water SBA.

12. GEOCRI Mission and Objectives
Mission: Develop a user-driven approach for Cold Regions information services to complement the mainly current science-driven effort, and foster the collaboration for improved earth observations and information on a global scale.
Objectives
Integrating, Brokering and Promoting Earth Observations over Earth Cold Regions
Advocating and Practicing Data Sharing
Building Community Portal and Services
Strengthening Capacity building and Partnerships

13. GEOCRI Task and Implentation Plan
Tasks:
Infrastructures
Monitoring Network and Data
Integrating in situ and Remote Sensing Observations
User Engagement and Communication
Capacity Buidling and Knowledge Transfer
Management and Monitoring
Hierarchy structure of the activities
6 tasks:
Support SAON in maintain an inventory of existing cold region EO initiative (programme, projects, organizations, network, system…)
Leverage GEO’s international position to align other activities with artic Observing System efforts and SAON (GCW, INTERACT)
Support observing system networks

14. GEO Cold Regions participations
Countries
Canada
China
Finland
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Netherlands
Norway
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States
Organisations/Projects
CAFF CBMP: Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna - Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program
CCIN: Canadian Cryospheric Information Network – Polar Data Catalogue
CliC: Climate and Cryosphere
CryoClim Cryosphere Climate Monitoring Service
ICIMOD: International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development
INTERACT: International Network for Terrestrial Research and Monitoring in the Arctic
PEEX: Pan-Eurasian Experiment
SAON: Sustaining Arctic Observing Network
SIOS: Svalbard Integrated Earth Observing System
SwissEx: Swiss Experiment Platform
TPE: Third Pole Environment
WMO GCW: Global Cryosphere Watch
WMO WWRP PPP/YOPP

15. GEOCRI Side Event in GEO XIII, Russia
Recent Progress
GEOCRI Side Event in GEO XIII, Russia
8th November, 2016
Reinforcing the development and implementation of the GEO Cold Regions Initiative

16. Finished the 1st Round Teleconf. in Jan., 2017
Progress of Tasks
Finished the 1st Round Teleconf. in Jan., 2017
Identify the Priorities
Community Portal Development – GEOCRI
Essential Variables for Cold Regions
Integration: In-situ, Remote Sensing and Model
Meeting on 4th, March, 2017

17. Earth Three Poles and Mega Transect Project
Comparative study on the environment changing trend direction, amplitude and rate of Three Poles.
Considering Three Poles as a whole, study their spatial-temporal varieties, interconnections and relationships of environmental parameters.
Understanding the effects and responses of Three Poles to global change, and analyze their synchronism and asynchronism mechanisms.

18. INTAROS overall objective
to develop an efficient integrated Arctic Observation System by
extending,
improving and
unifying
existing and evolving systems in the different regions of the Arctic

19. Earth Three Poles and Mega Transect Project

20. Earth Three Poles and Mega Transect Project
Desert
Mountain
Taiga
Tundra
Steppes
Earth Three Poles and Mega Transect Project
Mega Transect Research Stations
Mega Transect Environments
Khanymey (frozen flat-mound bogs – palsas, thermokarst lakes, rivers, and in the discontinuous permafrost zone)
Kaibasovo (Ob river middle course and flood plain)
Zapolyarnyi (polygonal tundra in the continuouse permafrost zone )
Great Vasiugan Mire (the biggest peatland at the World) in the south-taiga zone
Aktru (High Altai Mountains)

21. Why this Ad Hoc Committee?
IEEE Ad Hoc Committee on N&S
Why this Ad Hoc Committee?
Impact on transportation
Impact on Ecology
Impact on Security and Health
To identify ways in which IEEE can efficiently contribute to the different ongoing and planned initiatives to study and address changes that the North and South poles are experiencing from the environmental, communications, transportation, educational, and outreach points of view

22. IEEE Ad Hoc Committee on N&S
Focus:
new in-situ and remote sensors or networks of sensors,
communications issues from these sensors for later processing,
communication and transportation issues of local communities,
ecological issues associated to an increased human presence in a, so far, pristine environment, and
education and outreach on the changes that these regions are undergoing and associated engineering challenges.
… 4. Definition of road map for new sensors, instruments, communication systems … that may contribute to Societal Benefit Areas identified within the CRI Initiative or to take the lead in designing and  developing an operational "Information Service for Cold Regions" (read portal) for strengthening synergies and partnerships for scientists and agencies to fill observational gaps and provide rapid information. …

23. IEEE Ad Hoc Committee on N&S
IEEE N&S and High Mountain Session

24. HiMAC 2017 Arrangement
Review the scientific motivations of an observation network of High Mountains and northern Cold Regions, promote the integration of in-situ and space observations, and .
This will produce a basis for the document of existing knowledge on observation, and scientific understanding of changes that link with the High Mountain and Northern Cold Regions.
Outline the need for Essential Cold Region Variables (ECRVs) and required preparatory work to support the Group on Earth Observation Cold Region Initiative (GEOCRI). (In the afternoon time of 4th, March)

25. IASC-SAON Data Activities in Contribution to GEOCRI
Formed Nov‘14
IASC-SAON partnership
National, organizational and voluntary members + Indigenous (2017)
Promote and enable:
Understanding the system
Effective data policy
Infrastructure
Ethically open access
Attribution
Standards and interoperability

26. Arctic Data Ecosystem Initiative
Nov – Arctic Data Committee establishes Mapping Arctic Data Ecosystem initiative
June 2016 – Complementary interests in Pan-Arctic Options Project (PAO) identified
RESULT: PAO will lead initiative while sharing results with ADC, and many others (World Data Systems, Belmont Forum, CODATA, Research Data Alliance, SAON, EU-Polarnet)

27. Arctic Data Ecosystem Initiative

28. Thank You
Contact details