Group on Earth Observations

Don't leave it until the last minute! Register now for the 2026 GEO Symposium.

Join us in Geneva on 26-27 May as we convene leaders in Earth Intelligence to explore transformative solutions for a resilient future.

Registration will close on 31 March and you have until 28 February to get your submissions in for Community Events.

Plus, sponsorship opportunities are now available to support travel for speakers from developing countries, youth networking, the GEO Innovation Fund and more. Reach out to the team to find out more ([email protected]).

Follow this link for further information ⤵️
https://earthobservations.org/about-us/events/2026-geo-symposium-geo-21-plenary

Active volcanoes, exposed communities, critical decisions. 🌋

Join us on Wednesday for the first GEO Work Programme Open House Webinar to learn about how activities in our Post-2025 GEO Work Programme are advancing hashtag .

This week's topic: weather, hazard and disaster resilience.

Speakers include Michelle Parks (Icelandic Met Office), who will talk about how the Geohazard Supersites and Natural Laboratories initiative strengthens resilience to volcanic hazards.

Find out more ⤵️
https://earthobservations.org/about-us/events/weather-hazard-and-disaster-resilience

After Japan’s devastating 2011 tsunami, Tohoku University's Shunichi Koshimura became committed to the idea that we should do everything possible to ensure people have better, real-time information in future disasters.

"That tragedy marked an important shift for tsunami science in Japan and around the world."

Today on World Tsunami Awareness Day, we’re highlighting why investments in real-time forecasting and Earth intelligence save lives.

Tsunamis move fast, so information has to move faster.

Read more in this new blog from Shunichi Koshimura, a member of GEO's Disaster Risk Reduction and Adaptation Working Group ⤵️
https://earthobservations.org/about-us/news/be-tsunami-ready-investing-in-real-time-forecasting-to-turn-earth-intelligence-into-action

AI is no longer just a tool; it’s a catalyst.

That was the message championed by the Group on Earth Observations at the recent Summit in Geneva.

Several speakers from across the GEO community, including Sara Venturini, Yifang Ban and Michele Melchiorri, helped drive important conversations.

Read more ⤵️
https://earthobservations.org/about-us/news/earth-intelligence-comes-alive-at-ai-for-good-summit

This week, Google DeepMind unveiled AlphaEarth Foundations, an advanced AI model that works like a virtual satellite, transforming how we see the planet. It efficiently maps terrestrial and coastal areas by merging Earth observation data into a unified digital “embedding” that computers can easily process.

A collection of these annual embeddings, the Satellite Embedding dataset, is now available in Google Earth Engine.

Convened by the Group on Earth Observations, the Global Ecosystems Atlas is harnessing this breakthrough to help countries classify previously unmapped ecosystems, from coastal shrublands to hyper-arid deserts.

As the first resource of its kind, the Global Ecosystems Atlas will play a critical role in helping countries better prioritise conservation areas, optimise restoration efforts and combat the loss of biodiversity.

"The Satellite Embedding dataset is revolutionizing our work by helping countries map uncharted ecosystems - this is crucial for pinpointing where to focus their conservation efforts," said Nicholas Murray, Director of the James Cook University Global Ecology Lab and global science lead of Global Ecosystems Atlas.

Read more ⤵️
https://deepmind.google/discover/blog/alphaearth-foundations-helps-map-our-planet-in-unprecedented-detail/