APRSAF-18

Recommendations

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Recommendations of the Eighteenth Session of
the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-18)
6-9 December 2011
in Singapore

Recognizing a regional collaboration for tomorrow's environment as the overall theme of APRSAF-18,

Recognizing the importance of regional cooperation to cope with disaster management, environmental issues, capacity building, quality of human life, health, and other regional issues on the basis of utilization needs,

We, the participants of APRSAF-18;

<APRSAF Initiatives>

[Sentinel Asia]

1. Welcome the launch of the final phase Step-3 of Sentinel Asia starting from 2013 with the concept; to promote further collaboration for Sentinel Asia operation; to expand preparedness and mitigation phase by Working Group activities for Tsunami, Flood, Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF), and Wildfire; and others.

2. Expect that lessons learned from emergency operations such as the Great East Japan Earthquake will be shared and utilized through Sentinel Asia activities and others.

[SAFE (Space Applications For Environment)]

3. Affirm the revision of SAFE Terms of Reference (TOR) to hold a stakeholder meeting to confirm, share and transfer the outcome of prototypes towards the operational use and to add the rule of SAFE prototype suspension/termination. (recognize the success stories)

4. Welcome the new Sri Lankan prototyping for mapping and change detection of wetlands, and promote knowledge sharing about the two successfully completed prototypings.

[STAR Program (Satellite Technology for the Asia-Pacific Region Program) and UNIFORM (University International Formation Mission)]

5. Confirm that 16 engineers and researchers from 6 organizations (ANGKASA, GISTDA, ISRO, KARI, LAPAN, and VAST/STI) in Asia and the Pacific region have participated in the STAR program hosted by JAXA since the STAR Program started.

6. Recognize that engineers and researchers in Asia and the Pacific region participated in the UNIFORM through the STAR Program, and capacity building by micro satellite development is shifting from the STAR Program to the UNIFORM smoothly.

7. Encourage young engineers and researchers who are interested in micro satellite development in Asia and the Pacific region to join the UNIFORM.

8. Encourage participation in the satellite development and the ground station network of the UNIFORM and utilization of the earth observation data taken by the UNIFORM satellites.

<APRSAF Working Groups>

[Earth Observation (EO)]

(APRSAF in support of Climate Change)

9.　Confirm that the APRSAF Regional Readiness Review for Key Climate Missions (Climate R³) has been adopted as an ongoing initiative of APRSAF.

(EO Applications in Water Issues)

10. Recognize the importance of tackling water issues induced by climate change using space technology in Asia and the Pacific region; and encourage planning of a technical session in the 2^nd Asia-Pacific Water Forum next year (in consultation with UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation (UNSGAB) and other related entities) in order to promote the application of space technology to water issues and knowledge sharing.

(EO Applications in Food Security Issues)

11. Encourage the inclusion of rice crop monitoring in Asia within the GEO Global Agricultural Monitoring (GEO-GLAM) Initiative Work Plan.

[Communication Satellite Applications]

12. Recognize the significance and effectiveness of satellite communications in the disaster relief and restoration activities, and share the experiences learned from the recent activities.

13. Encourage more active interactions among space agencies, research institutions and private sectors with the aim of expansion of the communications satellite applications and researches including the space-based Automatic Identification System (AIS) for maritime activities.

14. Welcome the sound progress of the Multi-GNSS demonstration campaign such as the adoption of the first Multi-GNSS joint experiments including the QZS-1 satellite "MICHIBIKI" utilization, and look forward to the further deployment of the Multi-GNSS joint experiments in Asia and the Pacific region.

[Space Education and Awareness]

15. Encourage to enhance space education for youth development through continuous activities, such as collaboration with other working groups, enriching educational materials and tools, and implementing poster contest and water rocket competitions.

16. Encourage to promote awareness of space education by collaborating with all groups and organizations involved in space education activities and to share information on space education materials and tools through all means including internet and social media.

[Space Environment Utilization]

17. Confirm to launch the new initiative in order to promote the utilization of　ISS/Kibo.

18. Recommend to enhance the efforts to create new cooperative projects through the new initiative in science, education and outreach of the space environment utilization, taking into account the progress of the cooperative activities such as the protein crystallization experiment, the Space Seeds for Asian Future (SSAF) 2010-2011, the parabolic flight micro-gravity experiments, the bilateral feasibility studies and the Try Zero G experimental demonstrations.

19. Recommend the agencies participated in the SSAF project started last year to continue their efforts to complete the project by making the best use of the seeds returned from space.

20. Recommend to enhance Earth observation of natural disasters and environment from ISS, sharing its importance through the joint session held by SEUWG, SEAWG and EOWG.

<APRSAF Supporting Programs and Activities>

[Asia Oceania Multi-GNSS Demonstration Campaign]

21. Welcome the establishment of the Multi-GNSS Asia (MGA) which is an international organization to promote the Multi-GNSS Demonstration Campaign; and encourage organizations in Asia and the Pacific region to participate in the MGA.

[Special Event: "Asians in Space: Achievements of Human Spaceflight in Asian Countries"]

22. Welcome that the event, hosted by APRSAF and Association of Space Explorers (ASE), took place in the 50th milestone year of human spaceflight in Asia.

23. Recognize that the expansion of space development and utilization and the accomplishment by Asian astronauts have mutually contributed to each other.

24. Recommend to ASE to consider jointly organizing similar events with APRSAF in the future, starting from APRSAF-19.

<Other Topics>

[International Organizations]

25. Welcome presentations from UNESCAP, UNCOPUOS, ASEAN-SCOSA and IAF that recognized the contribution from APRSAF, and hope that they will continuously participate in APRSAF to share further information.

[Reporting to UNCOPUOS]

26. Wish that the outcomes of APRSAF-18 be presented by the Chairman of UNCOPUOS at the meetings of the UNCOPUOS and others in 2012.

[Towards enhanced operation of APRSAF]

27. Note with satisfaction the success of APRSAF as shown by the growing number of participants from more countries and by the results of APRSAF Initiatives and other joint activities.

28. Endorse the establishment of a task force, consisting of organizations having experience with APRSAF sessions, to consider the continuous success of APRSAF and ways and means to make APRSAF more dynamic, with a view to making recommendations to APRSAF-19.

End