Benefiting from Earth Observation:

Bridging the Data Gap for Adaptation to Climate Change in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region

In 2010, in a move that is furthering GEOSS in action, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) partnered with ICIMOD to establish SERVIR-Himalaya--the third regional SERVIR node. SERVIR (meaning “to serve” in Spanish) integrates satellite observations and predictive models with other geographic information (sensor and field-based) to monitor and forecast ecological changes and respond to extreme events. The SERVIR-Himalaya initiative is augmenting ICIMOD’s analytical expertise, data management, and training capability, as well as increasing ICIMOD’s delivery of satellite imagery and decision support tools to improve environmental decision-making in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH) region. Stakeholders for this information platform will range from decision-makers at the regional level addressing trans-boundary issues, to national governments, scientists, students, the general public, USAID, other donors, and development practitioners working in the region.