EOGEO

Task Team Lead Name and Contact Information:

Purpose/Rationale:

The EOGEO TT oversees the EOGEO Workshop, an annual workshop begun in 1996 as an outreach program for CEOS WGISS.  The Workshop has been held approximately annually since then.

The EOGEO Workshop provides a forum in which technical information, primarily centered around interoperable software, can be shared among members of CEOS and the general Earth Observation industry. Each workshop brings together between 30-60 primarily technical developers to a program of about 30 short technical presentations, poster sessions, and hands-on demonstrations of current technical activities.

Implementation Strategy (or Plan of Action):

High level requirements - The EOGEO TT members must be able to devote enough time during the period leading up to an EOGEO Workshop to review and select abstracts that were submitted by workshop attendees.

Approach / strategy:

• Work schedule - The work schedule generally consists of:
• 12-18 months before a workshop: discuss and select suitable candidate locations, either for a standalone EOGEO Workshop or as part of a joint program with some other activity of WGISS or other organization. Present candidate locations to WGISS for discussion and selection. WGISS then selects a single location.
• 6-12 months before a workshop: begin planning the actual workshop with the local organizers (if any) and in partnership with a partnering organization (if any)
• 6 months before a workshop: generate a call for abstracts and send it to all relevant mailing lists
• 3-4 months before a workshop: receive submitted abstracts, select a suitable number based on the available facilities and time allotments for the workshop, notify accepted authors
• 0-3 months before a workshop: ensure that workshop logistics are provided for and that all participants and prospective participants are aware of the logistics
• during the workshop: attend the workshop, moderate sessions, help local organizers
• 1-2 weeks after a workshop: ensure all presentation materials are on line.
• Specific Responsibilities within the TT - TT members have no predefined roles other than to participate in and oversee the work outlined in the work schedule. As of the 2004 EOGEO Workshop, EOGEO.org takes a lead role in maintaining the workshop web site, working with the local organizers, and helping with logistics. TT members are invited to help with these work items. TT members must help with the selection of the venue and selection of accepted abstracts.
• Deliverables - At each WGISS meeting: deliver a status report containing information about upcoming workshops or recently completed workshops as appropriate.
• Important dates or Milestones - Listed in the Work Schedule above

Expected outcome/impact of the activity - Increased awareness of CEOS and WGISS within the international Earth Observation technical developer community. Ability for CEOS members' and non-CEOS members' technical developers to interact and learn about key requirements and developments in the technical areas of importance to CEOS.

Potential External Partnerships

Partnerships with external organizations are encouraged in order to increase the overall attendance at the EOGEO Workshops and to provide a wide forum from which to address WGISS objectives and interests. In 2001 the EOGEO Workshop was held in partnership with the Digital Earth conference in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.

Dependencies & Relationships to Other TT Activities

There are no direct relationships or dependencies. However, active participation by all WGISS participants is encouraged.

Activities and POCs:

The activities of the EOGEO TT directly support all of the WGISS Aims outlined in the WGISS 5 year plan.

In particular, the WGISS 5 year plan calls for activities that emphasize international cooperation, coordination, and that support critical interactions between technical implementers.

The EOGEO TT directly supports the following items of the WGISS 5 year plan

Section 3.5, Promotion,

"To increase the impact and benefit of WGISS activities, promotion will extend to non-CEOS countries and organizations, non-governmental organizations, commercial enterprises, and data users and providers in developing countries."

Section 4, Strategy, subsection iii,

"further involvement of user groups (spanning research, governmental and operational/commercial organizations), via workshops and demonstration projects,: with a view to establishing a good level of communication and thereby a better understanding of their requirements;"

Section 4, Strategy, subsection ix,

ensuring a high level of awareness and adoption of CEOS recommendations based on WGISS activities: through publicity material, presentations at conferences/seminars/workshops, and active promotion by members and associates, emphasizing prototype projects and WGISS Test Facilities as a key means of publicizing operational capabilities to users;

Section 5.6 Promotion,

WGISS works to promote its activities to a wide audience through:

1. the production and distribution of publicity material,

2. production and presentation of papers at conferences, seminars and workshops,

3. the creation of highly visible demonstrations projects in support of, for example, WGISS Test Facility Projects and presentations to CEOS Plenary.

WGISS also places emphasis on promoting the output of its work to its own members and associates in order to demonstrate the benefits of WGISS activities and to ensure the adoption of results and recommendations within member and associate information system and service developments.

Show the relationship of the TT activities to WGISS goals and activities. Indicate which of these activities are completed, how well they met their objectives and any lessons learned.

Expected Duration of Task Team:

The EOGEO TT is expected to continue work as long as WGISS members continue to promote EOGEO Workshops as an integral activity of WGISS.

Listserv address:

http://wgiss.ceos.org/mailman/listinfo/eogeo

Public Web Site URL:

http://www.eogeo.org/Workshops/