5 November 2014: The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has issued a call for individuals interested in renewable energy to join its ‘Global Atlas Virtual Advisory Network.’ The network will support the upcoming release of IRENA’s ‘Global Atlas 2.0,’ and participants will have the opportunity to be the first public users to test the new Atlas.

In an announcement issued on 5 November, IRENA informs it is seeking “renewable energy enthusiasts” to comment on and help improve the user experience of the Atlas 2.0. The Advisory Network will be invited to engage in online discussions with IRENA and interact with the online ‘IRENA Community.’

Interested candidates may register on the IRENA Community website by 15 November 2014, by submitting a post to the discussion group titled ‘Global Atlas V 2.0 User Advisory Network.’

The Global Atlas 2.0 will feature a re-designed interface, as the current Atlas web portal will be replaced with an interactive world map that displays data available for the user’s location. The new Atlas release will include inter alia: a library of 1,000 solar, wind, geothermal and bioenergy resources, and marine resource maps; and information at the global, regional and national scales, including literature references and descriptions.

The Global Atlas was launched by IRENA and the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) during the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, Rio+20) in June 2012, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Atlas became available for users online in February 2013, and aims to assist policy-makers in renewable energy policy planning and development, and investors in assessing new markets for renewable energy. [IRENA Global Atlas Webpage] [IRENA Registration to Join the Virtual Advisory Network] [IISD RS Story on IRENA Global Atlas Launch] [IISD RS Story on Global Atlas Availability]