The second FIRE Forum was held during the Day 1 of EXPANDEO & the FIRE FORUM 2022 joint event, on the 14th of June 2022 in Brussels and online. The FIRE Forum 2022 event brought together a critical mass of actors from six key sectors – agriculture, energy, infrastructure, marine, raw materials and urban development – together with Earth Observation (EO) players to discuss EO benefits and future EO capabilities needed to address sectorial challenges. Discussions built upon findings from the first and second round of FIRE Focus Group events, as well as the first FIRE Forum which took place last June 2021.
Read the EXPANDEO & the FIRE Forum 2022 press release and browse below to view the video and graphical recordings of all sessions
The event was opened by Emmanuel Pajot, the Secretary General of EARSC, followed by powerful video message by Thierry Breton, Commissioner for the Internal Market. The keynote speech was delivered by Isabella Poldrugo, Deputy Head of Unit, DG DEFIS, European Commission.
This session highlighted where Earth Observation activities stand today and where do we want them to be. The content of the presentations built on the findings in the FIRE Focus Groups in the sectors of Agriculture, Wind Energy, Infrastructure, Marine and Maritime, Raw Materials, and Urban Development. The key highlights were presented by the EO Evangelists, a group of individuals championing the use of EO in the respective sectors.
Speakers: Eva Haas, Marine EO Evangelist; Juan Peña, Maritime EO Evangelist; Irene Benito, Raw Materials EO Evangelist; Ilias Pechlivanidis, Agriculture EO Evangelist; Miriam Gonzalez, Wind Energy EO Evangelist; Remco Timmermans, Urban Development EO Evangelist; Lucy Kennedy, Infrastructure EO Evangelist
Moderators: Benoit De Vrieze, Open Innovation Consultant & Ornella Torres Melkebeek, Consultant DesignLab, Verhaert
This session shed light on the hottest R&D trends that will drive the development of new EO solutions across the various sectors covered by FIRE.
Speakers: Evangelos Gerasopoulos, Research Director at IERSD/NOA; Regula Frauenfelder, Technical Expert, Norwegian Geotechnical Institute; Laurent Tits, Team leader Agricultural applications, VITO
Moderator: Lefteris Mamais, Co-Founder & Director, Evenflow
This session focused on how EO can support informed policy making from design to implementation and continuous monitoring. Invited experts from the six FIRE sectors discussed with the session moderator how key objectives of the EU reflected in their own policy domains can benefit from the incorporation of EO as a key enabling tool, and cover both the current uptake and future perspectives.
Speakers: Doris Marquardt, Programme officer, DG AGRI, European Commission; Luca Demicheli, Policy Officer, DG GROW, European Commission; Zoi Konstantinou, Policy Officer, DG MARE, European Commission; Christos Fragakis, Senior Policy Officer, DG RTD, European Commission; Gerardo Herrera, Policy Analyst, DG GROW, European Commission; Ilektra Papadaki, Policy Officer, DG GROW, European Commission
Moderator: Lefteris Mamais, Co-Founder & Director, Evenflow
Speakers: Grega Milcinski, General Manager, Sinergise; Stanisław Dałek, CTO, CloudFerro; Gedas Vaitkus, Director, Geomatrix
Moderator: Phillip Harwood, Senior Consultant, Evenflow
This session highlighted the key dimensions of capacity building as an essential aspect when considering the optimal uptake of EO in the different FIRE sectors. The session moderator discussed with invited experts on topics such as institutional capacity, skills availability in the workforce and best practices from recent projects.
Speakers: Peter Zeil, Senior Consultant & Co-Founder, Spatial Services; Danny Vandenbroucke, Research Manager, Spatial Applications Division, KU Leuven; Mark Higgins, Training Manager, EUMETSAT
Moderator: Phillip Harwood, Senior Consultant, Evenflow
How can EO be used to inform the public on current events of global impact? How can we raise awareness among user communities on the solutions offered by EO? What are the most impactful ways to tell “geospatial stories”? Invited experts provided their insights in relation to these topics, through a lively discussion with the session moderator.
Speakers: Remco Timmermans, Social Media Specialist for Space; Annalisa Donati, Secretary General, EURISY; Sebastian Marcu, Managing Director, DESIGN & DATA
Moderator: Dimitrios Papadakis, Co-Founder & Director, Evenflow
The last session of the day underlined impactful ways to develop the market for EO services and products. Invited experts shared best practices, analysed common challenges and discussed with the session moderator future plans towards building a thriving EO ecosystem.
After the session Natassa Antoniou, FIRE Project Coordinator, EARSC, gave the closing words of the day.
Speakers: Eduard Escalona Zorita, Space Downstream Market Officer, EUSPA; Stella Tkatchova, EIC Programme Manager for Space, EISMEA; Gordon Campbell, Head of Enterprise Section, EO Data Applications Division, EO Science, Applications and Climate Department, ESA
Moderator: Dimitrios Papadakis, Co-Founder & Director, Evenflow
Live illustrations – Paolo Masiero – Fermento.studio
