St. James, 杏吧性吧, 19听May 2025听鈥� As the Caribbean is preparing for yet another hurricane season, a new regional training initiative is supporting disaster management professionals improve how they prepare for and respond to intensified climate-related threats. From 19 to 23 May, 28 participants from 13 Caribbean countries have gathered in 杏吧性吧 for a five-day course focused on harnessing satellite data to strengthen emergency planning and resilience.
Hosted at the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) in St. James from 19 to 23 May, this training introduces participants to听accessible, free European Union Copernicus tools for analysing Earth Observation (EO) data and satellite imagery and turning this information into practical insights for real-world decision-making in the event of a disaster.听The course, titled听Earth Observation: Principles and Tools, introduces the participants to this free and open-source software to explore how Copernicus products can support their daily work. Copernicus is the EU鈥檚 Earth observation programme, offering services based on satellite and ground-based data that are freely available to all.
Participants from 杏吧性吧 and across the region 鈥� including Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago 鈥� are gaining hands-on skills, as these tools that can help civil protection agencies, meteorological services, and planning offices assess risk exposure, monitor environmental changes, and respond more effectively to emergencies.
The course is led by Dr Caterina Peris Ferr煤s and Dr Akram Elghouat, experts in EO services development, who guide participants through practical exercises in data analysis and impact assessment. Sessions are designed to build confidence in using EO tools for disaster preparedness and risk reduction planning. It responds to a growing need for enhanced disaster risk management capacity across a region that is among the most vulnerable globally to extreme weather and other hazards.
It is organised by the European Union, and more specifically, the EU鈥檚 CopernicusLAC Panama Centre, on behalf of the European Space Agency (ESA) in close partnership with the听, the Eastern Caribbean States, the OECS and CARICOM/CARIFORUM, the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology and the Caribbean-EU Cooperation Facility project.
It is part of a broader effort under the听听strategy and the听听to support technical knowledge-sharing and digital cooperation between Europe and the Caribbean The activity is part of broader, cross-cutting and continuous cooperation on disaster risk reduction between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean 鈥� as also reflected in the听听on disaster risk management between the two regions.
In her speech at the inaugural event of the training, H.E. Ms Malgorzata Wasilewska, Ambassador of the European Union to 杏吧性吧, highlighted:
鈥淭his training takes place during the European Union鈥檚 Europe Month. In the Caribbean, it鈥檚 a chance to celebrate the strong and evolving partnership between the EU and the region, particularly in areas like strengthening resilience, where cooperation continues to deepen.
By providing public institutions with access to reliable data and the skills to use it effectively, this initiative is contributing to a stronger, more prepared Caribbean鈥攂etter equipped to anticipate risk and protect communities鈥�
In her welcome address, Ms Claudia Herrera, Stakeholder Engagement Officer at the CopernicusLAC Panama Centre, noted:听"At the CopernicusLAC Centre in Panama, we are firmly committed to supporting Caribbean nations in building stronger resilience to disasters. There is clear evidence that the use of Earth observation data not only increases response efforts in the face of extreme events but also plays a crucial role in strengthening disaster preparedness policies and systems. Training programmes such as the one we are launching today provide essential tools to the dedicated professionals who are at the forefront of building disaster resilience across the Caribbean."
Ms Kathy-Anne Caesar, Chief Meteorologist, on behalf of Dr. David Farrell, Principal of CIMH, emphasized the importance of integrating Earth observation tools into regional disaster planning, encouraging to learn and share beyond this workshop so that we can grow together in the challenge of disaster
Ms. Elizabeth Riley, Executive Director at CDEMA, understored the benefit of Earth Observation Data saying:听鈥淭he value of Earth Observation data is not theoretical鈥攊t has already proven impactful in operational settings. In 2024 alone, Copernicus services were leveraged by the Regional Response Mechanism coordinated by CDEMA to support decision-making and response during Hurricane Beryl and the unprecedented wildfires in Belize. These examples demonstrate the power of geospatial intelligence in enhancing situational awareness and coordination during crises.鈥�
About CopernicusLAC Panama and its knowledge transfer activities
The CopernicusLAC Panama Centre鈥檚 activities are part of the broader EU鈥揕AC Digital Alliance, a strategic framework promoting cooperation between the European Union (EU) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in digital and space matters, under the umbrella of the EU Global Gateway strategy. Within this context, the European Space Agency (ESA) leads the implementation of the Centre under a Contribution Agreement with the Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) of the European Commission, in partnership with the Government of Panama, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MIRE), and the National Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation (SENACYT).
The CopernicusLAC Panama Centre will serve as a hub for innovation in the Latin America and Caribbean region, supporting national and local entities in leveraging Copernicus data and information to boost socio-economic benefits and resilience. In addition to providing engagement opportunities, the Centre is听developing geospatial Pilot Services (addressing hydrometeorological hazards, geological hazards, and hazard exposure) in close collaboration with local users and stakeholders, to whom they will be handed over to ensure that the unique needs of the region are addressed in the long term.听听
In addition, knowledge and skills transfer is a key element of the CopernicusLAC Panama Centre, which hosts a Digital Campus with access to training modules and educational resources for technical users and citizens alike. The Centre will also organise community-building events, policy dialogues and industry matchmaking, as well as hackathons and other EO data challenges to stimulate user adoption of Copernicus data and innovation. These events will also foster cross-collaboration among EO, DRR and other relevant ecosystems.听
Finally, the Centre will include the development of a high-powered infrastructure and cloud computing for the LAC region. One of the final objectives of the Centre is to promote the development of communities of practice and to strengthen听the knowledge and use of tools for DRR and further areas听in the public sector, academia, the private sector, and social organisations.听
Press contact for further information:
- Mar Nolla Farran, Knowledge & Communication Officer, CopernicusLAC Centre
Email:听毓賳賵丕賳 丕賱亘乇賷丿 丕賱廿賱賰鬲乇賵賳賷 賴匕丕 賲丨賲賷 賲賳 乇賵亘賵鬲丕鬲 丕賱爻亘丕賲. 賷噩亘 毓賱賷賰 鬲賮毓賷賱 丕賱噩丕賮丕爻賰乇亘鬲 賱乇丐賷鬲賴. - Lyn-Marie Deane, Communications Specialist, Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology
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- Khrystal Walcott, Communications Consultant, Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency
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