The Third International Training Workshop on Space Technology for Disaster Mitigation was held in the city of Sanya in Hainan, China from November 23 to December 4, 2015. Hosted by the CAS-TWAS Centre of Excellence on Space Technology for Disaster Mitigation (SDIM), the two-week workshop was attended by some 20 participants from 17 countries including Pakistan, Burma, Malaysia, Nepal, Mongolia, and Kyrgyzstan.

Director of SDIM, Prof. GUO Huadong gave opening remarks, stressing that the Earth observation technology is a powerful tool to rapidly monitor damages and impacts during rescue operations, and the training workshop is an effective approach to help the developing countries boost their capabilities in disaster mitigation.

Themed “Earth observations for Disaster Risk Management in Developing Countries: Technical Practice and Scientific Application”, this workshop features the following topics: the progress on space technology for disaster mitigation, theory and practice of remote sensing, Earth observation data receiving and processing, comprehensive management of natural hazards including disaster prevention, emergency response and assessment, and the issues about the post-disaster recovery and reconstruction.

The workshop as a series is initiated by SDIM in 2013. So far, three workshops have been organized by SDIM with an objective of providing a scientific and practical guide on space technologies for disaster mitigation to the participants from the developing countries.

SDIM was formally established and hosted by RADI in 2013, jointly sponsored by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). The goal of SDIM is to conduct much-needed research on disaster mitigation through advanced space technologies, especially space-borne Earth observation technology and provide knowledge transfer in developing countries through joint research, education, training workshop and advisory services. Currently, SDIM has launched 11 joint projects with seven developing countries including Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Mongolia, and Thailand, concerning major disasters in Asia, such as earthquake, droughts, floods, wildfire, and typhoon. Through collaboration, a series of Earth observation based application systems have been transferred to various developing countries.

Group photo of the Workshop.