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Course date
July 5–9, 2022
Application deadline
ECTS Credits
1.0
Course delivery
In-person
Disciplines
Demography
Geographic information systems (GIS)
Remote sensing
Satellite technologies
Sustainable development
Downloads
SUN Packages
Fee-Paying
Tuition Waiver
With the latest call by UN Secretary General for a “revolution” in the use of data for sustainable development, geospatial technologies have tremendous potential to boost the movement towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to improve monitoring of relevant SDGs’ targets and indicators.
Geospatial technologies and remote sensing offer a crucial location element to the monitoring of SDGs . The unprecedented “power of where” allows for unbiased observation and analysis across borders, administrative boundaries, and nations.
Yet there is still a gap between the technology world and the world of environmental decision- and policy-makers. Despite the tremendous potential digital technologies offer, there are still traditional fears among practitioners that prevent their uptake. Furthermore, these technologies are constantly changing and improving, making it even more difficult for practitioners to track the updates about the potential use and application of technologies, such as geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing.
This course is part of a series of ISEPEI’s “Bridging ICTs and the Environment” workshops that aim to address that gap through providing in-service education and professional training. This annual workshop series provides an opportunity for non-specialists to get updated on the latest advances in relevant technologies and to learn how these tools can be applied in SDG monitoring. The series have been successfully conducted at CEU since 2014 in cooperation with various UN agencies (UNEP, UNDP, UNOOSA, UNFPA, UNECE, UN FAO, etc.) and global key stakeholders in digital technologies (European Commissions Joint Research Center, Airbus, Esri, Google, MAXAR, etc).
Geospatial technologies can be employed in achieving and monitoring most of, if not all, SDGs, particularly: no poverty (Goal 1); zero hunger (Goal 2), clean water and sanitation (Goal 6); sustainable cities and communities (Goal 11); climate action (Goal 13). The goal of this course is to equip practitioners and researchers working on demographic aspects of SDGs with knowledge and skills of using digital technologies to make more informed, data-driven decisions and to conduct studies.
This year’s course is organized in cooperation with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), so the primary focus in presentations and case studies will be given to demography, as well as health and poverty issues. A large number of the SDG indicators are linked to population and demographic data, or could be derived from census data.
The workshop will cover a number of technologies including remote sensing, geospatial technologies, data collection, and decision-support systems, among others. In particular, the role of satellite-based earth monitoring and remote sensing in achieving SDGs will be discussed, highlighting their potential and limitations.
Theoretical presentations and best use practices in geospatial technologies will be accompanied by practical sessions on their application (e.g. satellite imagery analysis, use of mobile technologies, mapping).
The course consists of 2 online components: preparatory asynchronous stage with prerecorded practical sessions familiarizing participants with basics of geospatial technologies (in June); and week-long synchronous stage (July 5-9th, 3 hours daily, 9-12 am CET) with live online presentations by renowned experts and practitioners accompanied by group discussions and practical exercises. To pass the course participants are expected to attend all online sessions and complete a series of individual assignments.
The course is open for both non-technical practitioners and academia. Previous knowledge of GIS and remote sensing is not required.
About ISEPEI
The Introduction to Geospatial Technologies for Achieving SDGs – Demographic Considerations workshop continues the series of joint UN-CEU training events under the ISEPEI Project “Bridging ICTs and the Environment”. The ISEPEI Project aims to address the gap between geospatial industry and practitioners by providing in-service education and professional training for environmental decision-makers and practitioners, who are in a position to greatly benefit from this data revolution to better shape management strategies and to make more informed, data-driven decisions.
For more information about ISEPEI courses http://isepei.org/workshops.
Former participants said
"The course provided great ideas, opportunities, and experiences to integrate geospatial technology into my further research and profession."
"The course is excellent, very practical, and overall eye-opening."
"The course conveyed the most recent trends in the area keeping its participants up-to-date in the field of expertise. The level of the course was high."
Eligibility
The target group for this course includes academia, both students and faculty, junior professionals from national governmental or affiliated agencies and international organizations, academia and relevant NGO representatives. Within academia the priority will be given to graduate students in public policy and environmental management from OSUN and CIVICA partner institutions. The mixture of professional and student groups should facilitate students / youth / future leaders' engagement at the high-level professional event and stimulate interest in the topic.
We also invite applications from advanced undergraduate students who have adequate prior study or experience on the subject and make a compelling case in their application/statement of interest.
Pre-requisites
- Proven professional and/or academic focus on demography related topic (census, poverty, inequality, etc) or geospatial technologies;
- Intermediate computer user skills;
Application requirements
Please read the following directions carefully.
Below is the list of the documents you need to prepare or arrange for submission:
- Completed online SUN Application Form (see notes below)
- Full curriculum vitae or resume, including a list of publications, if any
Please upload your Curriculum Vitae or resume, including a list of publications, if any. - Statement of purpose (max. 1 page)
In the Statement of Purpose, please describe your relevant professional experience and qualifications (SDG-related), how the course is relevant to your professional work, and in what way you6 your organization expect to benefit from it. Please list relevant organization activities, the tasksk you are responsible for, and how the program will contribute to those.
Please provide a name, contact email, and phone number of a person (a faculty member, job supervisor, etc.) who can be contacted by the course directors to attest to your abilities, qualifications, and academic/professional performance.
Optional attachments:
- You can upload further optional documents on the Qualifications page such as academic documents that you think may be relevant to support your application in the 'Other Supporting Documents' section. All documents should be merged into a single PDF file not exceeding the size 2 MB. No passwords and encryption are allowed.
How to apply
Completed CEU Summer University Application Form
We strongly advise the use of Google Chrome to enable the full functionality of the form.
Notes:
- You may apply to a maximum of two summer courses. In case of being admitted, you can only attend both if the two courses do not overlap in time. Financial aid, if available, is only granted to attend one course.
- If you applied to CEU before, please use your existing login and password to start a new application. If you do not remember your password from last year click on Forgotten Password. With technical problems, bugs, or errors related to the online application forms please contact the CEU IT Help Desk.
- Right after login, please select ”Summer University” radiobutton from the "Type of course" list, and leave all other fields empty.
- All application materials must be submitted with the online application form(s). Materials sent by postal mail, electronic mail, or fax are not considered.
- The maximum allowable file size for upload is 2MB per file and the acceptable file formats are PDF, JPG, and JPEG. Ensure all security features (e.g. passwords and encryption) are removed from the documents before uploading them.
- Applications cannot be edited after submission. Please submit your application only when it is 100% final and complete.
- Further user instructions for the online application are included in the form itself. Should you have questions regarding the application form, check the relevant Frequently Asked Questions.
- Applications submitted after the deadline will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Inquiries
If you need help or more information during the application process, please feel free to contact the SUN staff via email.
Notification
The SUN Office will notify applicants about the selection results in April. Please check the 'Dates and deadlines' section on the relevant course websites for notification deadlines planned earlier or later. The final decision is not open to appeal.