Eye on Earth Network – DUBLIN STATEMENT

The communities participating in the first Eye on Earth User Conference in Dublin, 4 to 6 March, expressed their intention to build on the Rio+20 outcome document "The Future We Want", the Abu Dhabi Eye on Earth Summit and the development of the Eye on Earth Network towards the following goal:

To facilitate the sharing of environmental, societal and economic data and information, provided by the diversity of knowledge communities, to support sustainable development.

Aware of the unprecedented environmental changes that are occurring at all levels around the world, including possible irreversible changes with potentially negative implications for economic and social development and well-being, especially for the poor and vulnerable groups in society;

Recognising the need to share timely, credible and relevant information provided by the diversity of knowledge communities and important global initiatives such as the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), the UN Global Geospatial Information Management (GGIM), UNEP-live and others, which will help to deliver global benefits;

Acknowledging the importance of space technology-based data, in-situ monitoring and reliable geospatial information for sustainable development and decision making at the relevant level as articulated in Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration;

Committed to empowering local, regional and global communities to manage, exchange and facilitate access to information and to undertake assessments, using the opportunities afforded by the rapid advancement of information and communications technologies including capacity building;

Decided to continue to collaborate through the Eye on Earth Network, to promote, support and improve access to data and information for sustainable development and, where appropriate, by participating in special initiatives, collaborating on related technical developments, establishing citizen science as an important source of knowledge within the diversity of knowledge communities, building capacities across the network and convening meetings to achieve this goal.

The Eye on Earth Network will base its activities, where appropriate, on the principles of a shared environment information system in which data and information is:

• Collected once and shared with others for many purposes

• Managed responsibly at source

• Readily available to easily fulfil reporting obligations

• Easily accessible for users and available in national languages

• Enabling comparisons at the appropriate geographical scale and to support citizen participation

• Supported through investment in common standards and interoperable systems

In order to catalyse and advance these activities, the participants welcomed the proposal to establish the Eye on Earth Alliance to help raise awareness and foster participation and networking across the Eye on Earth Network, to support its development and report on progress at the next Eye on Earth User Conference.