Speakers 2011

Prof. José AchacheThe Group on Earth Observations (GEO)

José Achache became the first Director of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Secretariat in 2005. Of French nationality, Prof. Achache began his career at the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris as a Research Assistant and then as “Chargé de Recherche”. In 1989, he became a Professor, created the Department of Space Studies and was appointed Director of the Graduate School of Earth Sciences.In 1996, he joined the French Geological Survey (...

Adel Abdelkader Ph.D, Regional Coordinator, UNEP Division of Early Warning and Assessment (DEWA)-West Asia

Adel Abdel-Kader is currently the Officer of Charge of UNEP Regional Office for West Asia, and the Regional Coordinator of UNEP's Division of Early Warning Assessment. He is an expert in integrated environmental assessment and reporting, policy analysis, environmental information systems and knowledge management; coastal and marine environment, decision support, strategic planning and management, scenario development, and the use of remote...

Alessandro AnnoniInstitute for Environment & Sustainability

He has a degree in Physics from the University of Milan and worked in the private sector until 1996, managing companies specialising in GIS, earth observation and software development. He joined the JRC in 1997.Alessandro has more than 25 years experience in various environmental fields, working on spatial planning, spatial analysis, environmental modelling, geo-information and related technologies, remote sensing, image processing, system...

Cathrine ArmourEye on Earth

Originally from Australia, Cathrine has worked in the consulting, spatial and manufacturing industries across the Middle East, South East Asia, India and the UK. She holds responsibility for the delivering the vision, mission and objectives of Abu Dhabi Global Data Initiative (AGEDI) encompassing organisational development, local, regional and international partner engagement, operational management and developing the strategy and business plan...

Daniel EdelsonNational Geographic Society

Textbook author, software developer and educational researcher, Danny Edelson has dedicated his career to improving young people's understanding of the world they live in and their role in determining its future. In his position as vice president for education, he oversees National Geographic's outreach to educators and its efforts to improve geographic and geoscience education in the United States and abroad. This work includes the creation of...

David Jhirad John Hopkins University

Former professor and researcher at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, Brookhaven National Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Boston University and the University of Massachusetts; was special advisor on energy and climate and Vice President of Research and Evaluation at The Rockefeller Foundation and was Vice President for Science and Research at the World Resources Institute; served in the U.S. Department of Energy...

Dennis GarrityWorld Agroforestry Centre

From 1992 to 2002 Dr Garrity served as Regional Coordinator of the ICRAF Southeast Asia Programme, based in Bogor, Indonesia . He created the regional programme, and led the systems improvement research in the region to develop and evaluate agroforestry alternatives to slash-and-burn agriculture. He worked extensively on the development of conservation-oriented agroforestry systems for sloping uplands. He has been active in the development of...

Dr. Gilberto CâmaraNational Institute for Space Research, Brazil

Dr. Gilberto Câmara (born 1956) is a researcher in the areas of Geoinformatics, Spatial Databases, and Environmental Modelling. He is General Director of Brazil's National Institute for Space Research (INPE) for the period 2010 to 2013, on a second four-year mandate, and is internationally known for defending free access for geospatial data and software. Câmara set up the open access policy for the images from the CBERS China-Brazil Earth...

Dr. Mark J. PlotkinAmazon Conservation Team

Dr. Mark Plotkin is a renowned ethnobotanist and social entrepreneur who has spent almost three decades studying traditional plant use with elder Shamans (traditional healers) of tropical America. As an ethnobotanist-a scientist who studies how, and why, societies have come to use plants for different purposes-Dr. Plotkin carried out the majority of his research with the Trio Indians of southern Suriname, a small rainforest country in...

Dr. Sylvia A. Earle Leading American Oceanographer and former Chief Scientist

Sylvia A. Earle (born 1935) is a leading American oceanographer and former chief scientist. Earle is a devout advocate of public education regarding the importance of the oceans as an essential environmental habitat.Sylvia A. Earle is a former chief scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and a leading American oceanographer. She was among the first underwater explorers to make use of modern self-contained...

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Speakers 2011