WMO DATA CONFERENCE: EARTH SYSTEM DATA EXCHANGE IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Background
The WMO Data Conference aims to develop a common understanding among entities from all sectors of society of the roles, requirements and arrangements for international exchange of observations and other data for monitoring and prediction of the Earth System environment, including weather, climate and water.
The World Meteorological Organization and its predecessor, the International Meteorological Organization, have coordinated and regulated the free and unrestricted international exchange of observations and other meteorological data for the last 150 years. Building on this exchange, dramatic progress has been made in weather forecast and climate analysis capabilities over the last few decades.
Since the establishment of WMO in 1950, the activities of the organization have expanded into areas such as atmospheric composition, hydrology and space weather, leading to a holistic approach to Earth system modelling and prediction being adopted as a strategic priority of the organization. In parallel, the explosive growth in demand for weather, climate and other environmental data from all sectors of society has led to a dramatic increase in the involvement of entities outside the traditional group of WMO National Hydrological and Meteorological Services in monitoring and prediction efforts.
In view of these developments, it is timely to review the WMO requirements and arrangements for data exchange, and the Data Conference is intended to provide a venue for involving a broad group of stakeholders in this review.
Conference Themes
THEME 1: The Changing Landscape of Weather, Climate and Water Data
• Data exchange in the 1960’s and today; what has changed, and what will need to change?
• WMO data policy for Members or for their National Meteorological and Hydrological Services?
THEME 2: Business Models and Data Policy Issues
• External views on WMO data policy; what works and what does not work?
• Increasing the amount of data available to all users; policy as enabler and as a roadblock.
THEME 3: Filling the Gaps in Global Data Coverage
• Strengths and weaknesses of WMO’s efforts to address this (Res. 40, RBSN, VCP);
• Global Basic Observing Network (GBON)/Systematic Observation Financing Facility (SOFF) paradigm; extensions to other domains and disciplines?
• Access to prediction and analysis products.
THEME 4: Data Exchange for Earth System Monitoring and Prediction
• Earth system prediction as a policy driver;
• Data requirements; data maturity;
• Moving from requirements to policy.
Flyer Announcement and call for abstracts for the WMO Data Conference, 16-18 November 2020, Geneva, Switzerland
Conference summary statement
The final conference summary statement is available here: 
Conference summary statement.pdf
Watch the Video of the WMO Unified Data Policy.
To see some photos from the conference, please see the Flickr album.
The INFCOM information brochure: عربى 中文 English Français Pусский Español
The draft text of the data policy resolution as submitted to INFCOM-1(III)
Draft Recommendation 5.1.5/1 (INFCOM-1(III))
Main Session of the WMO DATA CONFERENCE
The agenda for the main session of the WMO DATA CONFERENCE is available HERE.
Presentations and detailed outcomes for the main session are available HERE.
Virtual posters for the main session THEME 1, THEME 2, THEME 3, THEME 4.
Expected Outcomes
The conference is expected to formulate recommendations to WMO and its partner organizations and stakeholders regarding current needs and modalities for data exchange and specifically regarding the ongoing WMO review of its data policies.
The conference is expected to lead to:
• Common understanding among all sectors of data exchange and its role in supporting the goals laid out in the WMO convention and the global agenda as articulated in the UN Sustainable Development Goals;
• Improved understanding of the role of the private sector in data provision; stronger links between the public and private sectors;
• Identification of the main obstacles to increased exchange of data and specific opportunities or activities to try to overcome them;
• Recommendations for decision-making at the WMO Executive Council and the World Meteorological Congress in 2021.
Format
The conference will be fully virtual from 13h00 to 16h00 CET on 16, 17, 18 and 19 November 2020.
Each of the four theme sessions will feature guest speakers and contributed papers and will conclude with a moderated panel discussion with audience participation.
The closing session will formalize the conference outputs. Interpretation in official UN languages will be provided.
Intended Participants
Representatives from:
• WMO Members
• Space agencies
• Private sectors
• Global data users
• Academia
• Development partner organizations
• Other United Nations agencies and international organizations
Preparatory Workshops
In preparation for the WMO Data Conference a schedule of workshops and stakeholder consultations have been prepared during Sept to Oct 2020.
The agenda and presentations for the Preparatory Workshops are available HERE.
Email contact:
DataConference@wmo.int