Education
I want to highlight the significant value that OpenWeather’s services have brought to our research work
on the study of hurricanes in the northern coastal region of our country.
In Venezuela, as experienced, access to reliable, up-to-date, and publicly available weather data has
historically been very limited. This information gap, exacerbated by the country’s socio-economic problems
and weakened institutional capacity, creates a major obstacle to effective environmental management and
sustainable development. This lack of accessible and reliable data has several key consequences that we
have felt directly. The OpenWeather Student Initiative has provided us with an invaluable opportunity by
facilitating free access to their API. The wealth of data it offers, including current information,
detailed forecasts, and even the extensive historical archive is critical to overcoming the information
deficit we have traditionally faced.
This ability to obtain accurate and up-to-date data also hinders informed decision-making at the
government and community levels in Venezuela. By providing a reliable source of information, OpenWeather
has the potential to empower authorities and communities to make more effective decisions in territorial
planning, risk management, and response to extreme weather events. The reduction in the effectiveness of
the conservation and management of our natural resources is another direct consequence of the lack of data.
Not only are OpenWeather’s services directly benefiting our research work by providing us with the
necessary tools for rigorous analysis, but they also have the potential to generate a significant positive
impact in Venezuela by improving access to information critical to environmental management, decision-making,
conservation, and citizen participation.
Coordinator of the Geographic Information Systems and Environmental Modeling Laboratory (LSIGMA)
Simón Bolívar University in Venezuela
Carlos E González R.
