Big Data for Addressing Global Environmental Challenges
Data volumes are rapidly increasing due to technological advancements in in-situ observations, satellite remote sensing, and Earth system models. The resulting big data is crucial for addressing interlinked global challenges such as climate change, air quality, and water, food, and energy supplies. However, exploding data volumes are posing challenges in the stocking, manoeuvring, and tracing of data, highlighting the need for energy-efficient and innovative cyberinfrastructures, technologies and methods for the collection, generation, storage, distribution, and use of big data. Further challenges are related to insufficient data documentation, misunderstood user needs and a lack of capacity to use big data effectively. However, global open access platforms and effective cloud/data-sharing frameworks are providing opportunities to improve the quality and traceability of data as well as bridge global data inequalities through enhanced access to data.
Text from Annex to Decision 10 (EC-78)