The Copernicus Academy and Relay Networks initiatives and recent EU-funded projects for education in space technologies and applications

Starting from the original ideas of the Virtual GMES Academy (launched at the University Mozarteum of Salzburg (Austria) on 13th - 14th September 2012) and the GMES Regional Contact Offices (firstly proposed within the project DORIS_Net, funded by European Commission within the 7^th Framework Program in 2011-2013) the Networks of Copernicus Academies and Relays are today in place, fully supported by the European Commission. Besides these initiatives, the European Commission has recently funded other projects, like EO4GEO, recently approved by the European Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), which is the first European project fully devoted to exploit the expertise of more than 60 European Academic Institutions to address the existing gap among the huge European capability to develop (through the Copernicus Program) excellent EO systems (like the recent Sentinels) and the actual capability of the European scientific and productive community to develop a correspondent downstream market. More recently, two different projects, CopHub.AC, more focused on Copernicus Academy strategy, and CorDiNet, more devoted to Relays activities (including training and education for professionals) have been both funded by European Commission within the Horizon2020 Program and will soon start their activities, trying to link each other to maximize results and outcomes. All the above mentioned initiatives are mostly devoted to fill the skill gaps between supply and demand of education and training in the EO (space/geospatial) sector, also reinforcing the existing ecosystem and fostering the uptake and integration of space/geospatial data and services in end-user applications.

The EO4GEO, CopHub.AC and CorDiNet strategies as well as their interdisciplinary ways and innovative solutions for education and training actions in the space sector, will be presented.