United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (Iranian Space Agency)

Date Released: Thursday, May 06, 2004 Source: United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

United Nations Workshop on the Use of Space Technology For Environmental Security, Disaster Rehabilitation And Sustainable Development

VIENNA, 6 May (UN Information Service) -- The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA), within the framework of the United Nations Programme on Space Applications, is organizing a five-day Regional Workshop on the Use of Space Technology for Environmental Security, Disaster Rehabilitation and Sustainable Development. The Workshop, which is being jointly organized with the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) on behalf of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, will be held in Tehran from 8 to 12 May 2004. The other co-organizers of the workshop are the Secretariat for the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the European Space Agency (ESA).

Earth observation satellites and other space technologies provide significant and unique solutions in all areas of disaster management, including mitigation, preparedness and prevention, disaster relief and also disaster rehabilitation. Similarly, space-based solutions play an important role in environmental security, which is defined as the relative safety from environmental dangers, such as pollution and sea-level change, caused by natural or human processes due to ignorance, accident, mismanagement or design, and originating within or across national borders.

The objectives of this Workshop are to: (a) increase awareness about the potential benefits of using space technologies within the areas of environmental security, disaster management and sustainable development among managers and decision makers who deal with such issues; (b) determine the types of information and communications needed in activities in those areas and the extent to which space technologies could meet those needs; (c) develop a plan of action with recommendations that will guide the incorporation of space technologies in environmental security, disaster management and sustainable development, and; (d) define and establish a regional database for knowledge and data sharing on the environment and disasters, as well as on their sound management and monitoring.

The Workshop will be divided into presentation sessions, discussion panels and discussion sessions. The presentation sessions will demonstrate the successful use of space technologies in areas including environmental security, natural hazards, disaster rehabilitation, post-conflict reconstruction and refugee support. The panels will bring together experts to focus on specific aspects of space technology applied in those areas. During the discussion sessions, the participants will form smaller groups to discuss specific topics that will lead to the development of an action plan with recommendations and guidelines, as well as profiles for possible pilot projects.

The Workshop will be attended by technical personnel and decision makers from the following countries and international organizations: Afghanistan, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Cuba, Egypt, France, India, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Nepal, Netherlands, Pakistan, Qatar, Russian Federation, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, United States of America, Uzbekistan, Yemen, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and OOSA.

The United Nations Programme on Space Applications is implemented by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and works to improve the use of space science and technology for the economic and social development of all nations, in particular developing countries. Under the Programme, the Office conducts training courses, workshops, seminars and other activities on applications and capacity building in subjects such as remote sensing, communications, satellite meteorology, search and rescue, basic space science, satellite navigation and space law.

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) implements the decisions of the General Assembly and of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and its two Subcommittees, the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee and the Legal Subcommittee. The Office is responsible for promoting international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, and assisting developing countries in using space science technology. Located in Vienna, Austria, OOSA maintains a website at http://www.oosa.unvienna.org.

United Nations Information Service Vienna (UNIS) P.O.Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria Tel.: (+43-1) 26060 4666, FAX: (+43-1) 26060 5899 Email: UNIS@unvienna.org

Date Released: Thursday, May 06, 2004
Source: United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

United Nations Space Body Holds Training Course On Remote Sensing Education

VIENNA, 6 May (UN Information Service) -- The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA), within the framework of the United Nations Programme on Space Applications, is holding a six-week International Training Course on Remote Sensing Education for Educators in Stockholm and Kiruna, Sweden. The Training Course, which began this week and will last until 11 June 2004, is being held in co-operation with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and hosted by the University of Stockholm and Metria, a Swedish company specialising in land surveying, mapping and geographic information techniques.

The Training Course is the fourteenth in a series of successful courses held by the same organizers and will provide representatives of various academic institutions from developing countries with basic training in remote sensing technology. It aims to familiarise participants with both the theoretical aspects and practical uses of remote sensing in order to enable them to integrate the subject into their institutions’ curricula.

United Nations-sponsored space-technology related training courses and long-term fellowship programmes are intended to help countries develop national capacity to benefit fully from the growing international body of know-how derived from space research. Participants at this Training Course will be instructed in how to use satellite data in a variety of development activities such as natural resource management, agriculture and environmental protection. By the end of the course, participants are expected to have gained enough training and skills to begin conducting introductory courses on remote sensing in their respective institutions.

Twenty-seven participants are attending the current course from the following countries: Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Malawi, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

Instructors from the European Space Agency, Sida, Stockholm University, Uppsala University, the Swedish Royal College of Technology, the Swedish National Space Board, the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, L&L Monitor AB, Metria and OOSA will lend their expertise at the Training Course.

The United Nations Programme on Space Applications is implemented by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and works to improve the use of space science and technology for the economic and social development of all nations, in particular developing countries. Under the Programme, the Office conducts training courses, workshops, seminars and other activities on applications and capacity building in subjects such as remote sensing, communications, satellite meteorology, search and rescue, basic space science, satellite navigation and space law.

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) implements the decisions of the General Assembly and of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and its two Subcommittees, the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee and the Legal Subcommittee. The Office is responsible for promoting international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, and assisting developing countries in using space science technology. Located in Vienna, Austria, OOSA maintains a website at http://www.oosa.unvienna.org.

United Nations Information Service Vienna (UNIS)
P.O.Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria
Tel.: (+43-1) 26060 4666, FAX: (+43-1) 26060 5899
Email: UNIS@unvienna.org

Visit our home page: www.unis.unvienna.org

May 6, 2004 at 2:46PM MST
State Senate rejects measure to rebuke United Nations

The Arizona House voted to urge Congress to pull the United States out of the United Nations, but the Senate decided it didn't want to even scold the multinational organization.

The House had passed a memorial urging a pullout but it was watered down in the Senate to merely urge Congress to rebuke the United States for usurping American powers.

The Senate rejected it Thursday on a 15-14 vote, one short of the 16 votes needed for passage by the 30-member Senate.

Most Republicans voted for the memorial while most Democrats voted against it.

Several opponents said the measure could be interpreted as a rebuke to President Bush because his administration is now seeking greater United Nations involvement in Iraq.

"I'm going to stand with my president," said Sen. Carolyn Allen, R-Scottsdale. Sen. Robert Blendu, R-Litchfield Park, defended the memorial, saying the United Nations deserved to be scolded because of allegations of corruption in the organization's oil-for-food program for Iraq.

"It's completely proper that we as Americans monitor those organizations to which we belong," Blendu said. "I'm for accountability."

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