RawMatCop Academy
The home of Copernicus for
Raw Materials courses

Advanced Applications of Remote Sensing in Raw Materials 2024

Course Details

Learn how to effectively use satellite imagery to tackle complex challenges in the raw materials industry. Gain the expertise to excel in this exciting and rapidly evolving domain!

Earth Observation provides innovation potential in the raw materials sector. RawMatCop Alliance offers an advanced course with hands-on learning to demonstrate the ability of Copernicus to provide efficient solutions while complying with environmental regulations. Advanced approaches highlighting scalability, accuracy assessment, and time-series of imagery are offered in the course.

The 3 days in-person course is particularly beneficial for professionals with a preliminary background in the raw materials value chain and in Earth Observation.

The course has been developed by the RawMatCop Alliance partners, with financial support from the EIT RawMaterials.

RawMatCop Alliance aims to transform the advanced scientific knowledge integrated with the industrial expertise to support the whole mining life-cycle needs and requirements. This course offers a unique blend of expert lectures from both industrial and research communities, as well as hands-on case studies. Participants will develop skills in efficiently managing large datasets, with a particular emphasis on Copernicus data, and will gain expertise in fusing various datasets to achieve cost-effective and environmentally compliant outcomes.

The course will take place in-person at the University of Liège, Belgium. Participants will have a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in a comprehensive and advanced learning schedule focused on promoting a safe and sustainable supply of mineral resources. In addition, attendees will have the chance to meet other participants in-person, network, and foster new ideas and potential collaborations

The course is restricted to a maximum of 50 participants.

Course Topics

This 3-day in-person course, endorsed by the European Federation of Geologists, equips raw materials professionals in the advanced utilization of Earth Observation (EO) skills for application in the mining environmental sectors as well as in their research activities. The diverse applications of EO data in the raw materials’ sector, in combination with timeless data supply and complete land coverage, provide the end-users with new possibilities. The expert use of EO data is beneficial for EU industrial goals under the Critical Raw Materials Act, enhancing exploration efforts in the raw material sector.

Within the advanced Course you will learn:

• Efficient handling of time-series and large datasets
• Scalable analysis of satellite data for raw materials
• Best practices of data integration
• Leveraging Copernicus data and open tools

The learning objectives are integrated with group working on specific case studies & exercises on:

• Mineral exploration - opportunities & challenges
• Acid mine drainage - temporal analysis
• Open pit mining - monitoring activities & material
• Ground deformation - mapping using InSAR temporal series

Participants will moreover get to meet other professionals and experts who are transforming the sector.

The course integrates expert lectures from both industry and research communities, offering hands-on experience through case studies to illustrate Copernicus applications.

• Mineral exploration and mapping of deposits
• Group projects working on hyperspectral-multispectral images within Case studies
• Monitoring of mining activities including waste management
• Environmental impact monitoring Water detection

Who should apply

The course is particularly beneficial for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and industry professionals from the exploration, mining, and processing sectors. If you are looking for innovative techniques to monitor and manage raw materials in your organization, then the RawMatCop Academy is for you!

We also welcome applications from:

• Geoscientists
• Development and environmental experts
• Geologists
• Researchers, masters and doctoral students working in the raw materials sector
• Remote sensing practitioners interested in learning raw materials applications

Prerequisites

• Basic coding experience (knowledge about any programing language such as R, Python, C++)
• Basic knowledge of remote sensing, geology and mining
• Participants to the RawMatCop Academy introductory courses will be automatically admitted.

Expected Dedication

• Pre-course readings, preparation of exercises

Deadline for Application and Fees

Early bird registration by the deadline of 5 July 2024 (23:59 CET)

Early bird fee:

• 750 EUR - regular
• 550 EUR - EIT RawMaterials partners and European Geologists (EFG members), start-ups
• 250 EUR - Students from EIT RawMaterials partner universities, employees of publicly funded organisations from the EIT RIS countries and regions

Regular registration by the deadline of 23 August 2024 (23:59 CET)

Regular fee:

• 850 EUR - regular
• 650 EUR - EIT RawMaterials partners and European Geologists (EFG members), start-ups
• 300 EUR - Students from EIT RawMaterials partner universities, employees of publicly funded organisations from the EIT RIS countries and regions

Participants in the “Introduction to Copernicus Data for Raw Materials” course will be eligible for a 10% discount.

All fees are inclusive of VAT.

EIT RIS Countries and Regions (2021-2024):

• EU Member States: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain.
• Horizon Europe Associated Countries: Montenegro, Republic of North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine.
• Outermost Regions: Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Réunion, Martinique, Mayotte and Saint-Martin (France), the Azores and Madeira (Portugal), and the Canary Islands (Spain).

NOTE: Attendees are responsible for covering expenses related to their travel and accommodation.

Duration

9, 10 and 11 September 2024 (3 modules with group projects from 09:00-18:30 CET).

This course is at the same venue as the 8th International Geologica Belgica Meeting from 11 to 13 September 2024. Don't miss the opportunity to engage in both!

Catering and light lunch will be provided during the course.

Location

University of Liège
Rue de Pitteurs 31
4020 Liège
Belgium

Check the most updated details here.

Online Introduction to Copernicus Data for Raw Materials

Unlock the power of Copernicus’ data for a secure, sustainable raw materials industry

The Copernicus Hub provides access to complete, free and open access data from all Sentinel satellites with new features for visualization and data processing in various fields. Innovative breakthroughs using Copernicus data are a key tool in the enhancement of geological research and mineral exploration, mine safety, and environmental sustainability within the raw materials sector.

RawMatCop is currently the only, online course in Europe providing training in how to apply the Copernicus satellite’s earth observation data to the raw materials sector.

You will have the unique opportunity to apply the Copernicus open data to real problems in mineral exploration and mining operations including safety, environmental compliance, and more. Experts in Earth Observation will train you in how to apply this data for the improvement of critical raw materials issues such as:

• Securing the primary and secondary mineral and material resources needed to transition to a sustainable and circular economy.
• Monitoring environmental impact and increasing safety.

This all contributes to a more sustainable supply of mineral resources.

Course Details

RawMatCop Academy trainers are experts in mineral exploration, geophysical methods, and satellite data working in academia, research centres and consultancy. As a participant, you will receive exclusive access to the course material, including practical exercises and videos.

The four day, online programme is particularly beneficial for professionals with a strong background in the raw materials value chain and little to no knowledge of Earth Observation.

The RawMatCop Academy course is certified. You will receive a certificate on completion of the four modules.

The course has been developed by EIT RawMaterials, and partners, with financial support from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW).

Course Benefits for Raw Materials Professionals and Organisations

This 4-day online course, endorsed by the European Federation of Geologists, aims at preparing raw materials professionals in the utilization of remote sensing data for industrial applications, environmental monitoring, and research. The diversity with respect to applications of remote sensing data in combination with timeless data supply and complete land coverage of Sentinel data provide the end-users with new possibilities. The data are important contributions to reach the goal of the European Union Critical Raw Materials Act.

You will learn how to make the most of Copernicus open data to:

• Apply to real problems in mineral exploration and mining operations
• Generate land surface cover maps to more efficiently secure mineral and material resources
• Monitor environmental impact such as pollution in water and sensitive biological sites to meet regulatory requirements
• Increase safety
• Contribute to a more sustainable supply of mineral resources necessary for the transition to a green and circular economy

Learning how to use Copernicus data can contribute to business growth and better bottomlines, as it will lead to:

• A concrete understanding of gaps and possible business opportunities in this field
• Preliminary analysis before onsite visits on remote or unsafe lands
• Optimised sample collection, and therefore less cost of field work
• Less ground disturbance with more information from difficult or inaccessible locations
• Reducing the area of interest (lower costs for example for mineral exploration)
• Faster data access (mapping before field visits) from the areas of interest

Participants will moreover get to meet other professionals and experts who are transforming the sector.

Who should apply

The course is particularly beneficial for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and industry professionals from the exploration, mining, and processing sectors. If you are looking for innovative techniques to monitor and manage raw materials in your organisation then the RawMatCop Academy is for you!

We also welcome applications from:

• Geoscientists
• Development and environmental experts
• Geologists
• Researchers, Masters, and Doctoral students working in the raw materials sector
• Remote sensing practitioners interested in learning raw materials applications

Course content

The course combines expert lectures from the industry and research communities with hands-on work using case studies to demonstrate Copernicus applications.

Participants will learn how Copernicus can make exploiting primary and secondary raw materials more cost-effective and safer, and can help comply with environmental legislation.

• Introduction to Copernicus and Earth Observation data
• Basics of imaging technology, optical and active remote sensing in raw materials
• Optimised ways to monitor environmental impact and increase safety
• Copernicus’ tools to tackle the industrial and societal challenges of raw materials in Europe.
• Case studies & exercises
• Mineral exploration and mapping of deposits
• Monitoring of mining activities including waste management
• Environmental impact monitoring
• Water detection

Expected dedication

Pre-course readings, software installation (open source), exercises between modules

Application and Fees

• 300 EUR - regular
• 250 EUR - Employees and students of EIT RawMaterials partners and European Geologists (EFG members)

Registration fee includes access to online material for 90 days. All fees are inclusive of VAT.