UNEP/GRID-Sioux Falls: About UsReportsMultimediaData

About GRID-Sioux Falls

EROS

The North American node of UNEP's Global Resource Information Database (GRID), designated as GRID-Sioux Falls, is located at the EROS Data Center of the United States Geological Survey in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA. GRID-Sioux Falls has been operational since 1991 and functions as a partnership between the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The activities of GRiD-Sioux Falls are guided by an advisory committee with membership from several US federal agencies, representatives from Mexican and Canadian agencies, academic institutions, international scientific bodies, NGO's, UNEP, and the UN Development Programme.

The developments in space technology and its applications during the last four decades have provided important tools for environmental planning, management and policy formulation. However, providing this complex information to decision-makers in a timely and understandable format has been a daunting challenge. GRID-Sioux Falls is very active in the development and design of scientifically credible products to support decision-making in areas where the international community is actively engaged, such as the Great Lakes region of Africa and the Mesopotamia Marshlands. The programme has also facilitated the flow of developing country data to the North American scientific community and vice versa. It is in the forefront of providing information technology tools such as remote sensing, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), data management and advanced Internet technologies to address sustainable development issues.

GRID-Sioux Falls is a part of the UNEP's Division of Early Warning and Assessment.