There is a strong international community request for the establishment of a strategy for integrated global observations. Specific recommendations include:

Agenda 21 of the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development (1992)

Improvement of methods of data assessment and analysis "40.9 Relevant international organizations should develop practical recommendations for coordinated, harmonized collection and assessment of data at the national and international levels."

The ninth session of the commission on sustainable development (CSD9: APRIL 2001)

Decision 9/2 (Atmosphere)
8. The Commission emphasizes the importance of: (d) Encouraging relevant international organizations, especially the United Nations specialized agencies, to jointly plan and implement a strategy for integrated global observations to monitor the Earth’s atmosphere.”

Decision 9/4 (Information for Decision-making and Participation)
”The Commission: (d) Urges strengthened cooperation and coordination among global observing systems and research programmes integrated global observations taking into account, the need for sharing, among all countries, of valuable data such as ground based observation data and satellite remote sensing data.”

The Vienna declaration, adopted in 1999 at the third United Nations conference on the exploration and peaceful uses of outer space (UNISPACE III)

endorsed by the UN General Assembly through Resolution 54/68

Action should be taken:
”(i) To develop a comprehensive, worldwide, environmental monitoring strategy for long-term global observations by building on existing space and ground capabilities, through the co-ordination of the activities of various entities and organizations involved in such efforts;

(iii) To develop and implement the Integrated Global Observing Strategy so as to enable access to and the use of space-based and other Earth observation data;”

The subsidiary body for scientific and technological advice in the second part of its 13th session (SBSTA13 Part 2, The Hague, November 2000)

Co-operation with relevant international organizations.

2. Conclusions
”The SBSTA recognized the importance of the Integrated Global Observing Strategy Partnership in developing the global observing systems for the oceans and terrestrial carbon sources and sinks in the global carbon cycle, and in promoting systematic observation.”

The Vienna declaration, adopted in 1999 at the third United Nations conference on the exploration and peaceful uses of outer space (UNISPACE III)

Intergovernmental panel on climate change 17th session (IPCC17, Nairobi, April 2001)

"Further research is required to improve the ability to detect, attribute and understand climate change, to reduce uncertainties and to project future climate changes. In particular, there is a need for additional systematic and sustained observations, modeling and process studies. A serious concern is the decline of observational networks.