January 2012: The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), in collaboration with the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Multilateral Wind and Solar Working Group, has published a report titled “Implementation Strategy for a Global Solar and Wind Atlas.”

The Strategy highlights the outcome of a collaboration to design a Global Solar and Wind Atlas as an open internet-based Geographic Information System (GIS), connecting major databases and information sources to map solar and wind energy sources globally. The Strategy highlights areas in which use of a global atlas on solar and wind would be important, including for policymaking, energy planning, market screening, and general awareness. Outlining the working structure that would be effected to operationalize the atlas, the Strategy describes four streams of work including the definition of the end-users’ requirements; the data to be available within the atlas; the creation of a backbone of collaborative information systems and the set-up of user interfaces; and managing activities related to the atlas.

The Strategy contains sections on the collaboration between IRENA and the CEM Multilateral Working Group on Solar and Wind Energy Technologies, the management structure including issues related to finance, the extra value provided by the atlas, and the strategic positioning of the atlas globally. [Publication: Implementation Strategy for a Global Solar and Wind Atlas]