Earth's wetlands are vital to the water cycle and havens for wildlife, but they are under threat. In recent years, satellite observations have been providing unique information to support the conservation and management of wetlands.

ESA, in collaboration with the Ramsar Convention, has launched its GlobWetland II project to contribute to the setting up of a system to observe global wetlands in accordance with Ramsar’s 2009–15 plan.

The project recently held its first user workshop at ESA’s Earth observation centre, ESRIN, in Frascati, Italy. Participants from Algeria, Morocco, Libya and the Palestinian Authority attended the meeting.

During the event, ESA had a chance to speak with Nick Davidson, Deputy Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention, and ESA’s Marc Paganini, in charge of the GlobWetland II project, to find out more about these threatened ecosystems and how the project is helping.