Satellites and environment, new Italy-Argentina agreement on space

A new agreement between Italy and Argentina in the field of space collaboration was signed in Rome, at the Italian Space Agency, on the first day of the Meeting of the space agencies of the member countries organized by ASI with the Italo-Latin-American Institute (IILA). The event is part of the joint commitment of Italy and Latin America to promote international cooperation in the space sector, as a lever for achieving the sustainable development goals of the United Nations Agenda 2030. "Cooperate to implement concrete actions and face common challenges" is the theme of the event, dedicated to exploring key issues related to the use of space technologies in the sectors of environment, health, research and innovation and capacity building. "Today, a further agreement was signed to start a high-level training program ," ASI president Teodoro Valente told ANSA. " Space governance and advanced satellite applications , for example for disaster management and food resources or for the study of climate change - he added - are among the topics of the agreement". Also in the context of the meeting, scheduled until June 6, new collaboration agreements with Latin American space agencies are expected in the context of bilateral meetings. The initiatives underway with Argentina concern the Siasge project, the satellite system for the management of environmental emergencies and economic development. Born from the collaboration between the ASI and the Argentine space agency CONAE and composed of the Italian Cosmo-SkyMed constellation and the Argentine Saocom constellation. "In the Italian government's guidelines , collaboration with Latin American countries is considered a priority ", Valente noted, referring in particular to the "initiatives in the field of high-level training conducted in collaboration with the Mario Gulich Institute for Advanced Space Studies", in particular with the Geospatial Education Center for which Italy finances scholarships. Cooperation between Italy and Argentina and the Caribbean region in the space field began in 2019 and is destined to continue: "it is an area of ​​the globe of strategic importance. Just think - concluded the president of the ASI - that there are several thousand satellites in orbit and, of these, just over 100 belong to this geographical area. We are adopting a similar principle of cooperation similar to that which is at the basis of the Mattei Plan for Africa