Jack Dangermond to Showcase Community Maps at Gov 2.0 Expo

ESRI Staff Will Share In-depth Development and Implementation Strategies

On Thursday, May 27, 2010, at 2:20 p.m., ESRI president Jack Dangermond will speak to government and technology enthusiasts at the Gov 2.0 Expo in Washington, D.C., about using the power of geographic information system (GIS) technology to transform government. In his presentation GeoEnabling Gov 2.0, Dangermond will highlight the new Community Maps Program, which allows governments to contribute their authoritative data to online world basemaps while retaining ownership of the data.

“Governments of all sizes benefit from integrating their accurate, up-to-date data into a quality online world map,” says Dangermond. “These fast maps with ESRI data and authoritative user-generated content [UGC] reduce the cost of making data widely available and offer a reliable way to access critical information when emergencies or disasters strike. It also establishes a valuable resource for citizens and businesses that is available all day, every day.”

The Community Maps Program has three basemaps: World Topographic Map, World Street Map, and World Imagery. Organizations that have contributed data include MassGIS, Commonwealth of Massachusetts; City of San Francisco, California; District of Columbia Geographic Information System; and Instituto Geográfico Português. The community basemaps are available on ArcGIS.com.

Conference attendees will also learn in-depth information about using geographic information for better analysis, visualization, and problem solving during the Wednesday, May 26, session The Geographic Advantage for Gov 2.0 to be held at 11:00 a.m. This presentation will show how Web developers and designers can create Web mapping solutions that harness the power of crowd-sourced and authoritative data, social media, and cloud technology.

Throughout the conference, ESRI staff will be available in the Expo Hall to talk about GIS in the cloud, crowd-sourced GIS data, and how the ArcGIS platform supports Gov 2.0 throughout all levels of government.

For more information about GIS for Gov 2.0, visit www.esri.com/gov20expo.

[Source: ESRI press release]