GIslands 2012 is an International Summer School on Geotechnologies applied to Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning funded by Science, Technology and Equipment Secretary of the Azores Regional Government, and organized by the Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources (CIBIO-Azores) at University of the Azores, situated in the beautiful Azores archipelago in North Atlantic. GIslands 2012 Summer School has selected a diverse and multinational team of lecturers from Spain, United Kingdom, USA and Portugal, with significant experiences in Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP), Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Remote Sensing, Environmental Modeling and Spatial Data Infrastructure. In this 7-day course, lecturers will share their experiences. Students will also present their research related to Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning and learn through theories and hands-on experiences on how to apply Geotechnologies on Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning.

GIslands 2012 Summer School will provide students with:

• An interesting 7-day course to learn about application of Geotechnologies to Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning with experienced lecturers
• The opportunity to network and exchange knowledge among students in the related fields of Climate Change, Coastal Environmental Planning and applied Geotechnologies
• The opportunity to publish original papers in “Special Issue on Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning” in book format
• A field trip around beautiful São Miguel Island to learn about the history, culture, geology, stunning coasts and diverse marine environment of the Azores

Why are Geotechnologies important for Climate Change and Coastal Environmental Planning?

Climate change is becoming one of the most concerning threats to environment and human populations. Some of the consequences of climate change are related to seasons’ shifting, temperatures' climbing and sea levels rising with the consequents changes in landscapes, risks to the wildlife, increased risk of drought, fire and floods, stronger storms and increased storm damage and larger economic losses.

Broadly affecting shorelines, the need to manage human activities and conflicts in the coastal zones to minimize impacts on the ecosystems and villages, spatial and temporal changes on climate demonstrate the need to analyze the system from a spatial and temporal perspective.

What used to be hidden or inaccessible via traditional methods are now made available through remote sensing, tracking technologies and global positioning systems. These geotechnologies with the ability to provide decision makers with spatial and temporal analyses on the coastal environments, human activities and the overlapping uses of shoreline spaces are essential to the development of a comprehensive Coastal Environmental Planning. Moreover these technologies enable the mapping and documentation of ecosystems, urban environments and climatic characteristics as well as their interrelations, contributing to increase the quality of predictive models and the consequent forecast of future climatic effects, natural extreme events and the comprehensive Coastal Environmental Planning.