Day: January 22, 2010

GIS-Pro 2010: URISA’s 48th Annual Conference for GIS Professionals

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

September 28 – October 1, 2010
Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

New Name…New Opportunities…Amazing Value
Call for Presentations – abstracts due February 23, 2010

Since 1963, URISA members and friends from around the world have convened annually to learn about, share and discuss all things geospatial. Whether you are an established or emerging GIS Professional, the GIS-Pro Conference is for you.

Along with the new conference name, URISA has listened to you, our members and conference attendees. Through a series of surveys, interactive discussions, and a challenge set forth by Dr. Barry Wellar (2009 keynote speaker), URISA presents a series of exciting new conference themes. These themes are designed to truly reflect what GIS Professionals are looking for in a modern conference. Gone are restrictive conference tracks – what’s in are coordinated themes, designed to move the conversation forward and interactively share information among conference participants.

Dig deeper…go beyond basic technology and applications and contemplate issues related to policy, information and technology management. The Conference offers a unique multidisciplinary approach, with participation from all levels and agencies of government, academia, consultants, developers, technology providers…so you receive the benefit of a variety of viewpoints and experiences.

You likely have a preferred provider for technical training…make URISA your preferred provider for GIS professional development and management training.

Join your colleagues, peers, thinkers and doers from around the world at GIS-Pro, URISA’s Annual Conference for GIS Professionals.

Valencia Community College Campus-wide Climate Action Plan Includes Geospatial Component

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

EcoAsset Solutions announces the receipt of a contract awarded by Valencia Community College in Florida to provide technical planning and analysis for a campus-wide Climate Action Plan. EcoAsset Solutions’ will lead the comprehensive sustainability initiative by developing a baseline greenhouse gas inventory of campus facilities and operations, a geospatial database that will manage Valencia’s data, and a Climate Action Plan that will incorporate stakeholder input from college staff, faculty and students, set emissions reduction targets, and provide a detailed strategy for Valencia to meet its targets.

The goal of the contract is to bring Valencia Community College, the second largest producer of associate degree graduates among the nation’s two-year schools, into compliance as a climate neutral site, an initiative of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). Valencia is one of over 650 colleges and universities that has committed to measure and report greenhouse gas emissions and devise an action plan to reduce their carbon footprint.

“We are excited to be one of the first to take on this project,” says Helene Loiselle, assistant vice president of Facilities Management for Valencia Community College, “and we are happy to partner with EcoAsset Solutions on this very important endeavor.”

John Wakefield, senior vice president for EcoAsset Solutions, commented that “Our government, corporate and higher education clients such as Valencia expect to see value from their investment in sustainability and it is our mission to deliver that return on investment.”

The initiative began in January 2010 and is expected to be finalized in May 2010.

[Source: EcoAsset Solutions press release]

The Dying Ganges

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

…from The Daily Star…

“The Ganges, one of the largest rivers in the world, is providing fresh water to 500 million people in South Asia. The river is particularly important in delivering waters for domestic, industrial, and agricultural sustainability in the region. About 37% (area-wise) of Bangladesh depends solely on the Ganges for freshwater supply, which is not only supporting millions of lives but is also substantially important in maintaining the ecological balance of south-west Bangladesh as well as the largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans.

“In 1975, India commissioned a barrage on the Ganges at Farakka, 18 km above the India-Bangladesh border, in order to divert a portion of dry season flow to increase the navigability of Calcutta port. Right after it went into operation in 1975, the freshwater supply of the Ganges decreased considerably, with a number of consequent effects in the south-west part of Bangladesh.”

ESRI Challenges Geodevelopers in API Mashup Competition

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

Innovative Entries Can Win Prizes Totaling $20,000

With the theme “Map Your App”, ESRI’s 2010 Mashup Challenge invites members of the geodeveloper community to stretch their imaginations, test their technical skills, and develop creative geospatial Web applications.

The guidelines are simple: construct a mashup using ESRI’s ArcGIS online content and Web APIs, publish the related URL, shoot a video describing the application, and post it on YouTube.

The first-place entry will take home $10,000; second place will win $5,000; and third and fourth places will get $2,500 each. Judges will base their selections on uniqueness, utility, user experience, and analytic process.

“We are looking for applications that depict more than just points on a map,” says Michael Gould, ESRI’s director of education for industry solutions. “Online GIS is a decision-making tool and its analytic capabilities are fundamental to that process. This competition invites the world to connect new and innovative content and services to active maps.”

The deadline for submission is March 5, 2010. Additional information and details concerning the application process can be found on the ESRI 2010 Mashup Challenge Web page: www.esri.com/mashupcontest.

[Source:  ESRI press release]

Call for Presentations: Indigenous Mapping Network 2010: Restoring our Home Places

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

The Fourth Indigenous Mapping Network Conference
Kiana Lodge at the Suquamish Tribe, Suquamish, Washington on June 3-4, 2010

Call for Proposals: Presentations, Panels, Projects and Workshops
http://indigenousmapping.net/imnconference/cfp/cfp2010form.html

The Suquamish Tribe and the Indigenous Mapping Network (IMN) are organizing the fourth IMN conference. The topics of discussion are framed around IMN’s guiding principles – Plan, Protect and Preserve. This theme will provide a platform for sharing knowledge. The conference will explore past Indigenous and Tribal mapping experiences and strategies for the future. We are currently looking for speakers to share their experiences with mapping in an Indigenous/Tribal context.

The conference will explore some of the following topics:

  • Gathering and protecting community knowledge;
  • Participatory demos;
  • Native Languages;
  • Protecting Tribal Lands and Resources;
  • Various GIS software options (ESRI, Google Earth, Open Source, etc);
  • Lessons Learned;
  • Funding opportunities;
  • How technology & techniques are being employed with indigenous knowledge; and
  • Natural resource management issues.

In addition to speakers, we are also looking for people to participate in a display/poster/vendor session. This will be an informal session during the two days, giving Indigenous mapping practitioners a chance to share their own work, and the work of their communities. It is a great opportunity to showcase some of the different kinds of mapping that are happening now, in addition to the speakers and panelists.

Since registration will be limited to 100 participants, priority will be given to Indigenous/Tribal organizations, in the spirit of an Indigenous organized conference for Indigenous peoples. We request that abstracts be submitted online by April 15, 2010.

World Bank Awards Contract for Spatial Analysis of Natural Hazard and Climate Change Risks in Vietnam

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

Spatial Analysis of Natural Hazard and Climate Change Risks in Can Tho, Dong Hoi, and Hanoi cities in Viet Nam

Under a contract from the World Bank, GeoVille has performed a spatial analysis of natural hazard and climate change risks for disaster risk reduction into overall urban development in Can Tho, Dong Hoi, and Hanoi cities, Vietnam. The assessment covers satellite, topographical and multi-level GIS based generation of natural hazards and climate change hazard potential maps, description of methods and provision of statistics and description of hazard potential profiles.

The scope of the contract includes project management; satellite, topographical, and multi-level GIS based generation of natural hazards and climate change hazard potential maps; and description of methods and provision of statistics and description of hazard potential profiles.

About GeoVille

GeoVille Group is an internationally operating company providing products, services and consultancy in the environmental and geo-spatial domain, specializing in Earth observation and GIS applications.

We are dedicated to customer satisfaction and delivering quality controlled geo-information products.

We have successfully carried out projects in over 60 countries.

GeoVille Information Systems GmbH and GeoVille Environmental Services sàrl are based in Austria and Luxemburg.