Europe’s flagship space programs, Copernicus (European Union’s Earth Observation Programme) and EGNOS/Galileo (European global satellite-based navigation system) have been completely deployed and provide huge amounts of input data to be transformed into useful products  and services for Society. A full ecosystem of services are being developed around these European Programmes, and lots of initiatives are spreading around Europe.

As Philippe Brunet, Director for Space Policy, Copernicus and Defence at the European Commission, just said in the last Copernicus Observer newsletter “[to] support innovation, and by consequence the creation of jobs and economic growth [is one of the objectives of Copernicus programme]. In this regard, the full, free and open access to Copernicus data and information should continue to be the cornerstone of the programme. The best way to maximise the societal and economic potential of Copernicus is to put the data in the hands of as many users, organisations or individuals as possible, so that innovative ideas and solutions can emerge. Our data policy is an enabler, a trigger of economic development, and a direct contribution to European and global welfare and sustainable development.”

GEOTEC, in representation of the Institute of New Imaging Technologies at UJI, pursues to have a role in the Copernicus ecosystem by putting in value our know-how in Geospatial technologies and taking advantage of our extensive experience in teaching. Bearing this in mind, we shown our interest and applied for being members of two networks directly related to Copernicus: NEREUS and Copernicus Academy.

In this post we happily announce that INIT has recently joined NEREUS: Network of European Regions Using Space Technologies, which “offers a dynamic platform to all Regions aiming at making a better use of space applications for the delivery of efficient public policies benefiting citizens”. INIT-UJI will serve as a link between European space matters and Valencian region, being the second Spanish member in this Association, the only one from Valencian region.

On the top of the that, we have also being appointed as member of Copernicus Academy “created to bridge the gap between skills and data use, create career-development initiatives and enable the use of Copernicus data across new sectors. It connects European and International universities, research institutions, business schools, private and non-profit organisations, as well as research-oriented start-ups and SMEs”. INIT-UJI will contribute to the dissemination of the Copernicus roadmap through our extensive and varied contact network, at all levels, from local to international.

Joining this networks GEOTEC and INIT would like to maximise our potential, to extend our network and to look for brighter opportunities.

We will keep you posted about INIT’s contribution to these initiatives.