Combined Use of EGNSS and Copernicus Data to Develop Innovative Downstream Services for the Users from Chile and Colombia

Projektinformationen

COMUNIDAD

ID Finanzhilfevereinbarung: 101131859

DOI

10.3030/101131859

Projekt abgeschlossen

EK-Unterschriftsdatum 4 Dezember 2023

Startdatum 1 März 2024

Enddatum 28 Februar 2026

Finanziert unter

• Digital, Industry and Space

Gesamtkosten

€ 1 499 893,75

EU-Beitrag

€ 1 499 893,75

Koordiniert durch

LESPROJEKT SLUZBY SRO
Czechia

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - COMUNIDAD (Combined Use of EGNSS and Copernicus Data to Develop Innovative Downstream Services for the Users from Chile and Colombia)

Berichtszeitraum: 2025-03-01 bis 2026-02-28

Zusammenfassung vom Kontext und den Gesamtzielen des Projekts

COMUNIDAD was created to bridge the gap between the growing availability of Earth Observation and geospatial data and the limited capacity of many institutions to turn that data into practical decision-support solutions. It addresses this challenge through an open, modular and user-oriented framework combining Copernicus data, EGNSS, AI, Big Data technologies and numerical modelling to respond to operational needs in Chile and Colombia while enabling wider replication across CELAC.
The project went beyond isolated pilot applications by creating a shared platform and practical workflow for transforming satellite-based information into usable services. Chile and Colombia therefore served as demonstrators of how EO- and EGNSS-based services can be co-designed, validated and embedded in local contexts, generating a blueprint for how other organisations in CELAC can use the COMUNIDAD platform to address unresolved territorial problems.
Within this framework, COMUNIDAD focused on two pilot territories of high practical relevance. In Colombia, it addressed coffee-related challenges such as landslide risk, hydrological balance, environmental footprint, agronomic mapping and deforestation-related monitoring. In Chile, it addressed territorial and environmental needs in Patagonia, including snow monitoring, land use/land cover classification and exploratory fire-risk-related services. These pilots were selected for both their local importance and their value in showing how Copernicus-based services can support climate adaptation, environmental sustainability and more evidence-based territorial decision-making.
The pathway to impact is based on three connected elements: building a common infrastructure and platform, validating concrete applications in real territorial settings, and creating conditions for uptake through training, stakeholder interaction and an exploitation approach centred on service provision and problem-driven micro-projects. In parallel, COMUNIDAD developed targeted promotion actions across CELAC, including a final event in Brazil to support expansion in the region’s largest market. In this way, the project contributes not only to technological innovation, but also to knowledge transfer, institutional capacity building, international cooperation and the more effective use of European space data for sustainable development in Latin America.

Arbeit, die ab Beginn des Projekts bis zum Ende des durch den Bericht erfassten Berichtszeitraums geleistet wurde, und die wichtigsten bis dahin erzielten Ergebnisse

The technical work of COMUNIDAD was structured around the design of a common infrastructure and platform, the definition and implementation of pilot applications in Chile and Colombia, and the validation of these applications in relevant territorial contexts. The project first collected and processed user and stakeholder requirements in both pilot countries, with local partners playing a key role in identifying operational needs, contextual constraints and priority use cases. These inputs were used to define the COMUNIDAD infrastructure and the platform built on top of it, as well as the pilot-specific applications to be developed and deployed.
A major achievement of the project was the deployment of the COMUNIDAD platform as a cloud-based environment integrating data access, publication, analytics and application hosting. The platform combines components for content management, web mapping, metadata access, sensor data visualisation and computational analysis in a single workspace, and was progressively adapted to support the development and deployment of pilot services. In parallel, WP3 produced a complete package of training and support materials, including tutorials, FAQs, infographics, explanatory videos, guided task diagrams and demo datasets, which helped facilitate platform onboarding and user autonomy.
In Chile, the project implemented and validated a “Remote App” ecosystem for the Aysén River Basin, where Snow Cover Monitoring and Land Use / Land Cover Classification reached validated demonstrator status, while a fire-risk component generated a useful roadmap for future development. In Colombia, COMUNIDAD validated five use cases for coffee-growing regions, including one fully operational application (landslides), three functional services requiring further interface or data-integration improvements, and one use case in data-collection phase with a strong baseline for future model training. Overall, the project moved from requirements gathering and platform definition to the deployment and validation of multiple pilot services under real territorial conditions.

Fortschritte, die über den aktuellen Stand der Technik hinausgehen und voraussichtliche potenzielle Auswirkungen (einschließlich der bis dato erzielten sozioökonomischen Auswirkungen und weiter gefassten gesellschaftlichen Auswirkungen des Projekts)

COMUNIDAD has gone beyond the state of the art not only by developing individual pilot applications, but by validating a broader framework for turning Copernicus and EGNSS data into operational, user-oriented services in Latin American contexts. Rather than delivering isolated tools, the project has produced a modular and interoperable platform environment that combines data access, analytics, publication, metadata management and application hosting in a shared workspace. This is a relevant advance over fragmented or one-off approaches, because it creates a reusable basis for developing, deploying and adapting services across different regions and domains. The platform is complemented by structured training and support materials that reduce entry barriers and make adoption more realistic for heterogeneous user groups.
At application level, the project has demonstrated that this common framework can support locally adapted services in two very different territorial contexts. In Chile, COMUNIDAD validated operational snow-monitoring and land-use/land-cover services in Patagonia, while also generating a technically grounded roadmap for future fire-risk-related development. In Colombia, it validated a portfolio of five use cases for coffee-growing regions, including one fully operational landslide application, three functional services requiring further interface or data-integration improvements, and one deforestation-related use case with a robust baseline established for future model training. Together, these results show that COMUNIDAD has advanced beyond generic EO demonstration by combining platform infrastructure, locally adapted algorithms, field validation and user-oriented deployment in real institutional environments.
A further result beyond the state of the art is the project’s combination of technical outputs with a clearer pathway for uptake. The COMUNIDAD Platform is positioned as the primary exploitable result, supported by validated services and a service-based model centred on problem-driven micro-projects, offering a more realistic route to adoption than a software-only logic. To ensure further uptake, important needs remain, including continued technical maturation of some applications, local or hybrid hosting aligned with institutional requirements, continued capacity building, follow-up funding for micro-projects, and governance and interoperability conditions enabling integration into existing institutional workflows.