Joint Statement by Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, EU Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science and Dr. Jane Lubchenco, Administrator of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Regarding European Commission and NOAA Scientific Cooperation

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Delegation of the European Union to the United States

Jan 18, 2012, 04:13 ET

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The European Union (EU) Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, met with NOAA Administrator, Dr. Jane Lubchenco, on January 18 in the context of her official visit to the United States. Following their meeting they issued this joint statement:

"Addressing global challenges needs international collaboration, and this is certainly a key moment to reinforce EU/US science cooperation. Our organizations have already been working together for more than two decades to better understand issues related to climate, weather, oceans and coasts, which are crucial areas not only for citizens on both sides of the Atlantic, but also for the rest of the world. Climate change, coastal hazards and space weather are concrete examples of our scientific cooperation, and they can affect any country. Science and innovation can and must play a role in these areas, as only the right data and tools will allow us to better face the associated challenges. We will continue working together to contribute to a sustainable future and we look forward to the early signature of a new implementing arrangement between the European Commission and NOAA, planned for the first quarter of this year."

EC/NOAA cooperation

The European Commission (through its in-house science service, the Joint Research Centre, JRC) and NOAA have been working together for more than 20 years in the fields of climate change, marine environment and modelling. They have, for instance, collaborated on the development of a tsunami model for early warning and a methodology to assess global warming induced changes.

Additional scientific and cooperative activities will be fostered under the implementing arrangement planned to be signed between the European Commission and NOAA during the first quarter of 2012.

The proposed implementing arrangement will cover cooperation in all areas of science and technology related to the fields of climate, weather, oceans and coasts, and it will build on the already fruitful cooperation between the two organizations. These areas of cooperation will include, among others: data collection for earth observation; climate, air and disaster monitoring; modelling tools for coastal hazards and extreme events; space weather; and fisheries. The implementing arrangement will include provisions to allow for access to laboratory facilities, exchanges of personnel, training and joint research in several specific areas on the basis of joint work programmes.

Background information

The JRC is the in-house science service of the European Commission and its mission is to provide customer-driven scientific and technical support for the conception, development and implementation and monitoring of EU policies.

NOAA's mission is to understand and predict changes in climate, weather, oceans and coasts; to share that knowledge and information with others and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources.