Amanda L Clayton | Search NASA

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

TPSAS-NF1676L-35202-DND

On March 20th, 2019, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (SICA, Central American Integration System) issued a joint statement sharing their mutual desire to make Earth observations and remote sensing data and products more readily available to SICA member countries to inform their decision making. Regional capacity building in the use of Earth observations was one of the many opportunities for collaboration highlighted in this joint statement. As an initial capacity building effort, NASA deployed a series of feasibility projects through the DEVELOP Program to engage emerging and transitioning professionals with SICA member state partner agencies. The initial projects in summer 2019 addressed landslides in the Dominican Republic, near-coastal flooding in Guatemala and El Salvador, and environmental challenges to the Mesoamerican Reef off the coast of Belize. Additional projects were planned for fall 2019 with the objective of impacting environmental challenges for the remaining SICA member states. This presentation will summarize the results of projects conducted to date, address the lessons learned in the process of rapid engagement with regional entities, and consider how the partnership may evolve over time.

Kenton Ross↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Feasibility Studies as Catalysts for Capacity Building: The DEVELOP Experience from Local to National Scale

The NASA DEVELOP National Program occupies a unique niche in the capacity development ecosystem. It is not a traditional training or educational program primarily focused on individual capacity, nor is it a full-scale co-development program focused on institutional capacity. NASA DEVELOP conducts 10-week feasibility studies that bring together teams of participants and decision making partners. The participants are competitively selected students and emerging or transitioning professionals, who build their STEM and professional skillsets. The partners are groups that have decision making requirements that may benefit from insights that Earth observations can provide. The interaction of the participants and partners over the intense 10-week time period is especially well adapted to building capacity at smaller scales. DEVELOP projects have shown good results when working at municipal and smaller administrative levels like U.S. counties. Even when working with higher administrative levels like provinces, U.S states, or even national or federal levels, DEVELOP has shown most success when working with more localized institutions like state forests or national parks. This presentation will recount case studies of how DEVELOP projects worked with more local or “localized” partners and compare with outcomes with partners at other scales: state/provincial and federal/national levels.

Capacity Building↗