The Framework for Environmental Software Systems of the European Environment Agency
Abstract
The European Environment Agency (EEA) is the authoritative European environment node and hub, and a key initiator within networks of knowledge co-creation, sharing and use in European Union (EU). It ensures the quality, availability and accessibility of environmental data and information needed to support strategic area: informing policy implementation and assessing systemic challenges. It actively communicates data, information and knowledge to policymakers, the public, research communities and others (non-governmental organizations, businesses) as well as to regional and international processes including those of the United Nation and its specialised agencies and promotes information governance as a driver of public empowerment and behavioural change. In the past few years the EEA’s environmental information systems as well as environmental modelling with the support of environmental software systems have been supporting decision making processes within the EU Systems have undergone rapid development and grew up to support the knowledgebase of European Commission and EU Member States. Specifically, new infrastructure to support supply services (collection of data); networking (knowledge management); workflows (planning, automation, quality management); development of final products and public services (reports, web sites, public data and information services) were put in place. EEA strengthens the infrastructure for environmental data and information sharing both at the EEA and in the European Environment Information and Observation Network with cooperating countries too, taking into account the Shared Environmental Information System (SEIS) and the Infrastructure for Spatial Information in Europe (INSPIRE) developments. The paper presents the framework for the of development of EEA environmental software systems and information services accepted in Multiannual Working Plan of the EEA for 2014 – 2018 and its implication for ICT.
Keywords
EEA environmental data information system environmental services environmental monitoring Eionet SEIS Copernicus and INSPIREReferences
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