The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) exists to assess and mitigate the effects of desertification and drought at national and international levels through a programme of strategic international cooperation and partnership.

First recommended as part of Agenda 21, and becoming active in 1996, it is the only internationally legally binding framework set up to address the problem of desertification.

BARSC member company, Geoger Ltd, owned and run by BARSC Vice-Chair Alastair Graham, is pleased to announce a new project.

During the first half of 2020 Alastair will be working with the Group on Earth Observations (GEO), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and the UNCCD, alongside other partners, on a contract to assess and update the data quality standards advice provided to practitioners reporting into Sustainable Development Goal 15.3.1

With 10 years to go before the SDG deadline, this is a timely and crucial piece of work to ensure parity between reporting countries, enable UN member states to trust the results generated, and to allow actions to be taken in a robust and meaningful manner.

Talking about the project, Alastair said, “This is an exciting and important piece of work, and I am proud to be involved. Only a couple of weeks in and I have already become aware of so much brilliant EO and environmental work that is being done, but which isn’t highlighted in the UK EO news. This project really provides Geoger with a great start to 2020.”