ESA teams up with UNESCO in gorilla observation scheme
The European Space Agency (ESA) has teamed up with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to monitor gorilla habitats in eastern and central Africa using space technology. The joint pilot project was presented at the 52nd International Astronaut Congress in Toulouse, France, on 2 October. The initiative is part of a wider collaborative effort between the two organisations to monitor UNESCO World Heritage sites using Earth observation satellites and other space technology. UNESCO aims to use data from the scheme to expand the World Heritage site information database. The aims of the pilot project are: - to test and select which space technologies are most appropriate for monitoring purposes; - to demonstrate the feasibility of using advanced tools to both UNESCO Member States and the wider international community; - to define the most adequate institutional and technical framework, such as human and project resource needs and the roles of different partners. The pilot project is likely to be expanded to cover selected natural and cultural heritage sites. The World Heritage Convention was adopted at the UNESCO general conference of November 1972 by a group of countries committed to the conservation of sites of outstanding cultural, historical or natural value. Today, 164 countries are party to the convention, helping to conserve 690 world sites.