In October 2024, the Polish - Norwegian bilateral initiative CoSky was launched under the Program "Internal Affairs", implemented within the framework of the Norwegian Financial Mechanism and the EEA Grants 2014 - 2021. The program is managed by the Polish Ministry of the Internal Affairs and Administration. Led by the Crisis Information Centre of the Space Research Centre of the Polish Academy of Sciences (CIK CBK PAN) in collaboration with Norway's Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB) and the company Tiepoint, this initiative seeks to enhance the efficiency of drone use in civil protection in Poland and Norway.

The training materials in Polish developed as part of the Localience project can be found below.

On November 26-27, 2024, the Podkarpackie Voivodeship hosted a large-scale crisis exercise “Bieszczady 2024.” Organized by the Provincial Crisis Management Team, the event aimed to strengthen collaboration among public administration, rescue services, and military in responding to diverse palette of risks.

Invitation to a training "Nature-based solutions in water retention and sediment management. Theoretical basics and examples of good practices".

In response to the worsening flood crisis in Poland, the Crisis Information Centre of the Space Research Centre of the Polish Academy of Sciences (CIK CBK PAN) launched a dedicated satellite monitoring system on Friday 13th of September. Compiled using data from the ICEYE constellation of radar satellites, information on the extent of flood water is provided every few hours to the State Fire Service, crisis management centers, and the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (IMGW). The swift access to information helps these agencies better understand the evolving situation on the ground and direct resources where they are needed most.

On Friday, in response to the deteriorating situation, the Crisis Information Centre of CBK PAN launched a special satellite monitoring system for the flood situation. This system detects areas where water has overflowed from riverbanks and where floodplains are forming. The operations are conducted in collaboration with the Polish-Finnish company ICEYE, which operates the largest civilian radar satellite constellation observing Earth. Data and reports are delivered every few hours to the State Fire Service, crisis management centers, and the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management - National Research Institute.

How can we effectively cooperate using drones and other Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)? This was one of the main questions addressed during the COLLARIS trial exercises, organized by the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) in collaboration with the Skaraborg Rescue Service (RS), the Region of Västra Götaland (RVG), and the Swedish Police. The event took place on May 22-23, 2024, at the Hasslum training grounds in Skövde, Sweden.

On 18 April 2024, the conference 'Higher Dimension of Security - GIS in Civil Protection' took place, organised by the Fire Academy and by Esri Poland.

The COLLARIS network is preparing for one of its largest trials, which will take place over two days at the Hasslum training ground in Skövde, Sweden, on 22-24 May. The event provides an excellent opportunity to assess the effectiveness of drone use in disaster management through complex exercises.

On 14.12.2023, a webinar organised by the Covalex project in collaboration with the Collaris project took place. It addressed the topic of simultaneous flights of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in a crisis situation. The speakers were members of our team: Jakub Ryzenko and Emil Wrzosek.

The snowmelt and rains observed in recent days have contributed to rising water levels and local flooding in many places in Poland. On the basis of up-to-date Sentinel-1 radar and Sentinel-2 optical imagery provided by the Copernicus programme, the Crisis Information Centre CBK PAN has developed water extent maps for areas located in the Mazowieckie, Pomorskie and Wielkopolskie Provinces.

The COLLARIS project conducted by our team was presented by Jakub Ryzenko at the DRS (Disaster Resilient Societies) event organised by CERIS (Community for European Research and Innovation for Security) in December 2023.

2023 was the final year of ProSPeReS (Protection System for large gatherings of People in Religious Sites) project. The project aimed to provide a comprehensive protection system based on cooperation between scientists, security experts and practitioners, public services and religious institutions representing the Catholic Church, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Jewish Community. ProSPeReS identified measures for increasing prevention and protection, and deterring and responding to various types of terrorist threats and incidents that may occur in religious places.

How will the COLLARIS program move forward and achieve its goal of building a sustainable network of experts related to BSP in civil protection and disaster response? This and many other issues were discussed at the first COLLARIS plenary meeting, which aimed to promote the project's activities and maximize the impact of the results achieved.

Reports “Innovation in Disaster Prevention: challenges, solutions and opportunities – post-conference paper” and “Geoinformation for crisis management: guidelines and examples” are available online