Проект EnviroGRIDS:

Building Capacity for a Black Sea Catchment Observation and Assessment System supporting Sustainable Development

Создание условий для работы Системы Наблюдений и Оценки региона Черного моря с целью поддержки устойчивого развития

Научная цель проекта EnviroGRIDS@Black Sea Catchment – начало создания наблюдательной системы получения различной информации об окружающей среде Черноморского региона в рамках исследований изменения климата. Эта система будет включать распределенные системы информации, которые действуют в научных и технических организациях прибрежных стран, у потребителей геоинформационных данных и у общественности. Она будет содержать систему раннего оповещения, способную экстренно информировать управленческий аппарат и общественность о рисках здоровью людей, биоразнообразию и экосистемной целостности, сельскохозяйственной продукции или энергетическому обеспечению вследствие климатических, демографических и региональных изменений в течение 50 лет.

Объявлен конкурс на вакансию эксперта.

Персональные требования: Высшее образование в области морских и экологических наук; опыт не менее 10 лет работы с обработкой и анализом данных по окружающей среде, разработке СУБД в океанографии и руководство проектами; языки – беглый английский, желательно знание одного из причерноморских языков.

Проживание в Стамбуле в течение 24 месяца. Зарплата 3 250 евро в месяц, плюс 1000 евро налоги и 700 евро социальная страховка.

Дата подачи документов – до 20 марта 2009 г. Далее - до заполнения вакансии.

Для получения дополнительной информации www.blacksea-commission.org или у

Ms Sabina Salpagarova ( Этот e-mail адрес защищен от спам-ботов, для его просмотра у Вас должен быть включен Javascript ).

Expert to work on the ENVIROGRIDS Project of Building Capacity for a Black Sea Catchment Observation and Assessment System supporting Sustainable Development

Background

Institutional context

Established in implementation of the Convention on the Protection of the Black Sea Against Pollution, (as defined in Article XVII), the Commission on the Protection of the Black Sea Against Pollution (hereafter referred to as the Black Sea Commission or BSC) acts to (a) Promote the implementation of this Convention and inform the Contracting Parties of its work, (b) make recommendations on measures necessary for achieving the aims of this Convention, (c) consider questions relating to the implementation of this Convention and recommend such amendments to the Convention and to the Protocols as may be required, including amendments to Annexes of this Convention and the Protocols, (d) elaborate criteria pertaining to the prevention, reduction and control of pollution of the marine environment of the Black Sea and to the elimination of the effects of pollution, as well as recommendations on measures to this effect, (e) promote the adoption by the Contracting Parties of additional measures needed to protect the marine environment of the Black Sea, and to that end receive, process and disseminate to the Contracting Parties relevant scientific, technical and statistical information and promote scientific and technical research and (e) cooperate with competent international organizations, especially with a view to developing appropriate programmes or obtaining assistance in order to achieve the purposes of this Convention. The Black Sea Commission’s activities, functions and representation on an operative basis is realized through its Permanent Secretariat, stationed in Istanbul, Turkey. The Strategic Action Plan for the Rehabilitation and Protection of the Black Sea (SAP), outlining the necessary steps that would contribute significantly to the recovery and protection of the Black Sea was signed on 31 October 1996 and updated in 2002. It is currently undergoing major revisions and changes. This major revision was due to the changing management practices and new emerging priorities, including global challenges. The revised Black Sea Strategic Action Plan lays out the major priority policy fields, actions and the necessary institutional structure to implement them. The core Secretariat comprising of (at present) 2 officials was established and is operational since 15th October 2000. The Advisory Groups, defined in the SAP, provide technical, scientific expertise as well as provide data within the annual reporting procedures of the Black Sea Commission. Six Advisory Groups are established in the priority policy areas as defined in the BSSAP – 1) Conservation of Biodiversity (CBD), 2) Pollution Monitoring and Assessment (PMA), 3) Land Based Sources (LBS), 4) Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), 5) Fisheries and Marine Living Resources (FOMLR) and 6) Environmental and Safety Aspects of Shipping (ESAS). The activities are further supported by corresponding six Activity Centers in the countries. In addition there have been established Working Groups for the Water Framework Directive, and a Joint Technical Working Group in implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding concluded with the International Commission on the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR).

Project context

The Project title is Building Capacity for a Black Sea Catchment Observation and Assessment System supporting Sustainable Development (briefly EnviroGRIDS) which is supported by the SEVENTH FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME (Theme 6: Environment (including climate change) of the EC. The Black Sea has several environmental, social and economic problems. The EnviroGRIDS @ Black Sea Catchment project addresses these issues by bringing several emerging information technologies that are revolutionizing the way we are able to observe our planet. The Group on Earth Observation Systems of Systems (GEOSS) is building a data-driven view of our planet that feeds into models and scenarios to explore our past, present and future. EnviroGRIDS aims at building the capacity of scientist to assemble such a system in the Black Sea Catchment, the capacity of decision-makers to use it, and the capacity of the general public to understand the important environmental, social and economic issues at stake. EnviroGRIDS will particularly target the needs of the Black Sea Commission (BSC) and the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) in order to help bridging the gap between science and policy. EnviroGRIDS @ Black Sea Catchment aims at building capacities in the Black Sea region to use new international standards to gather, store, distribute, analyze, visualize and disseminate crucial information on past, present and future states of this region, in order to assess its sustainability and vulnerability. To achieve its objectives, EnviroGRIDS will build an ultra-modern Grid enabled Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI) that will become one of the systems within in the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), compatible with the new EU directive on Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Union (INSPIRE) (see figure below).

Project Objectives

The overall project objectives are provided below: The scientific aim of the EnviroGRIDS @ Black Sea Catchment project is to start building an observation system that will address several GEO Societal Benefit Areas within a changing climate framework. This system will incorporate a shared information system that operates on the boundary of scientific/technical partners, stakeholders and the public. It will contain an early warning system able to inform in advance decision-makers and the public about risks to human health, biodiversity and ecosystems integrity, agriculture production or energy supply caused by climatic, demographic and land cover changes on a 50- year time horizon. The generic technical objectives of the EnviroGRIDS project are to:· run a gap analysis of existing regional observation systems to prepare recommendations for improvement of networks of data acquisition in each region/country,· build capacity on observation systems in the Black Sea catchment,· improve regional network to coordinate the efforts of partners active in observation systems· link, gather, store, manage and distribute key environmental data,· develop the access to real time data from sensors and satellites,· create spatially explicit scenarios of key changes in land cover, climate and demography,· distribute large calculations and datasets on large computer clusters,· streamline the production of indicators on sustainability and vulnerability of societal benefits,· provide a standard for integrating data, models and information and communication tools,· provide policy-makers and citizens with early warning and decision support tools at regional, national and local levels.· produce innovative tools to visualize and interpret data and results of integrated models,· alert citizens concerning exposure to environmental risks,· · build capacities in the implementation of many new standards and frameworks (INSPIRE, GEOSS, OGC etc.)The current of Terms of Reference for the Expert on observation systems is to complete the task of running a gap analysis of existing regional observation systems to prepare recommendations for improvement of networks of data acquisition in each BS country, within the scope, requirements, timeframe and resources of the project to facilitate building capacity in observation systems, support the collection and quality control of BSC data and implementation of new standards/frameworks (INSPIRE, GEOSS, OGS etc).

Scope of work

The timing of all project packages and their components is given in Annex 1. The Expert shall ensure in particular timely delivery of the work under 2.1 Gap Analysis.The aim of the gap analysis is to establish the list of existing observation systems within the Black Sea Catchment and to assess their level of compatibility with the INSPIRE AND GEO standards of interoperability. The expert shall work in close cooperation with the Project Coordinator and Task Leader to organize this information on an internet web page linked to the EnviroGRIDS project and work interactively with all partners. The expert shall also work to identify and develop project concepts for proposals that address the identified gaps in the activities of the BSC. More specifically the expert shall: · Acquaint himself with the EC INSPIRE Directive (DIRECTIVE 2007/2/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 14 March 2007 establishing an Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community (INSPIRE)), as well as most recent developments in its related documents/specifications and its implementation; · Liaise and work closely with the expert performing a similar task at the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) to ensure consistency of the final reports between the two project partners.· Compile a list of data sources, including their access modes to their information in the Black Sea Catchment.· Compile a list of observation systems in the Black Sea Catchment and compare this with the data sources. The expert shall prepare a detailed technical description of the observation systems regarding: a) data storage facilities, b) database formats; c) data/information flows, d) information exchange protocols, e) reporting capacities, f) system bottlenecks and limitations (based on existing information); · Evaluate the existing observation systems and their data sources as to their level of compatibility with the INSPIRE and GEO standards of interoperability (in terms of metadata for spatial data, spatial data, their specificationss and harmonization, network services and interoperability, technical aspects of monitoring, ).· Identify the gaps for interoperability and propose technical, procedural, legal or other solutions for achieving interoperability.· Prepare a Gap Analysis Report after agreeing and coordinating scope, structure, contents of the report with the task leader and expert working on a similar task at the ICPDR· Facilitate capacity building toward:a) Network of GEO partners in the BS region;b) Decision-makers training in observation systems;c) Public outreach – observation systems for the public;· Support Data Collection and prepare recommendations for improvement of networks of data acquisition in each BS country.· Undertake other related tasks at the Permanent Secretariat of the Black Sea Commission in consultation with the Executive Director.

Deliverables:

The full list of project deliverables is presented in Annex 2. The Expert shall be responsible for support to the deliverables under Task D2.1 “Interoperability Guideline” and prepare the final report under Task D2.5 “Gap Analysis Reports” ” as well as for all the other deliverables, which should be prepared on behalf of the BSC PS in the frames of the project.

Personnel requirements

Education: University degree in oceanography, environmental sciences or related subjectsExperience: At least 10 years experience in environmental data processing and analyses,, development of database management systems for oceanography, as well as project management. Skills & qualities: Analytical, assessment and technical analysis skills are required. Additionally good communication skills and ability to work in a team, coordinate outputs with other entities in the project, ability to develop and implement a work plan based on the overall project structure, meet deadlines and a high technical and professional level of the delivered outputs is required. Language skills: The Expert shall be fluent in English. Knowledge of one or more of the languages of the Black Sea countries (Bulgarian, Romanian, Russian, Georgian, Turkish, Ukrainian) is an important advantage.

Reporting

The expert shall report to the Executive Director of the BSC PS on a regular basis and to the project consortium during ENVIROGRIDS workshops.

Remuneration

The Expert will be offered lump sum monthly net salary payment of 3,250 EUR/month equivalent to the level of the remuneration paid by the Commission on the Protection of the Black Sea Against Pollution to the Permanent Secretariat staff. The Secretariat will pay also monthly 1000 Euro for taxes and 700 Euro for social security (includes governmental health insurance for him/her and his/her family and pension funds).

Duration

The Project Manager shall be initially contracted for a period of 24 months starting in April 2009 for full time work at the premises of the Black Sea Commission, located in Istanbul, Turkey.

Application

Qualified candidates may submit their application, in English, including a letter of interest, complete Curriculum Vitae, via e-mail to Этот e-mail адрес защищен от спам-ботов, для его просмотра у Вас должен быть включен Javascript . Kindly indicate the post title (Expert to work on the ENVIROGRIDS) in the subject line when applying by email. The initial deadline for application is 20 March 2009 and could be extended until the position filled. Additional information is available at www.blacksea-commission.org