April 2009 eNews
Highlights include: WALIS International Forum 2009 - Call for Papers, Environmental Information Initiatives Stocktake and Assessment Workshop; Assisting Victorian Bushfire Recovery with Location Intelligence, Tracing Jam back to the Strawberry Farm, GIS used to Link Pesticides to Parkinson's Risk and Virtual Jogging through Tokyo.
What’s Happening in the WALIS Community?
WALIS International Forum 2009 – Call for Papers
Environmental Information Initiatives Stocktake and Assessment Workshop
The Data Group (Formerly the Metadata Group)
Get Your Entries in for WA Spatial Excellence Awards
WALIS Stakeholders in the News
Organisation Administration - Coming Soon
ASIBA Changes its Name to SIBA
Assisting Victorian Bushfire Recovery with Location Intelligence
DAFWA Undertake Biosecurity Architecture Review
Two New Online Products Available From Landgate
Recent Satellite Imagery Over Pacific Islands - Available Now
Australian Angle
Tracing Jam Back to the Strawberry Farm
LINZ Accepts Mapping Award Honour in India
Canberra Through Time: From Past to Present
Aerial Whale Surveys a First in the Antarctic Pack Ice
Long-Term Rainfall Deficiencies Persist Over South-Eastern Australia
Update on Geophysical Data Releases
News from Around the Globe
GIS Used to Link Pesticides to Parkinson’s Risk
Making Digital Maps More Current and Accurate
Turn Online Social Networks Into Real World Interactions
Chimps Use Geometry to Navigate the Jungle
China to Offer Free Global Navigation by 2020
Upcoming Events
Details of events in Australia and around the world
Interesting Website of the Month
What’s Happening in the WALIS Community?
WALIS International Forum 2009 - Call for Papers
WALIS is pleased to announce the call for papers for Forum 2009, to be held at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre.
Share your knowledge, experience and insight with over 650 delegates by presenting a paper at the Forum. Presenters are given the opportunity to present their work-in-progress and completed projects. Papers will be published after the conference.
If you are interested in presenting at the WALIS International Forum 2009, abstracts should not be more than 250 words and can be submitted online at www.walis.wa.gov.au/forum.
If you have any queries about your paper, please contact Melissah MacKenzie on +61 8 9273 7042 or email forum@walis.wa.gov.au.
The closing date for abstracts is 19 June 2009, with author notification to be finalised by 30 June 2009.
WALIS will be hosting a half-day workshop on Referential Topology. The workshop will focus on what issues each agency has; which is the most appropriate agency to take the lead – Landgate or DPI; and what is the way forward?
The workshop will be held on 29th April, 8:45am – 12:00noon at the Landgate Office in Midland.
Those who would like to be involved please contact Jenny Smith via jenny.smith@walis.wa.gov.au or on 9273 7093.
Environmental Initiatives Stocktake and Assessment Workshop
The Federal Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) is undertaking The Environmental Information Initiatives Stocktake and Assessment Project. On behalf of DEWHA WALIS will be hosting a half-day focus group will be held in Perth on 30th April, 9:30am – 1:30pm at the Landgate Office in Midland.
Those who would like to be involved please contact Jenny Smith jenny.smith@walis.wa.gov.au or 9273 7093.
The Data Group (Formerly the Metadata Group)
The Group will next meet on 8 June 2009. For details from the last meeting, including two fantastic presentations on Creative Commons and Data Quality Framework, please visit http://www.walis.wa.gov.au/interragator/data-and-metadata-group.
If you would like to attend the next meeting or for further information, please contact Jade George at jade.george@walis.wa.gov.au or on 9273 7039.
We are very pleased to announce that Interragator+ is back online.
Contact Jade George at the WALIS office on 9273 7039 if you have any difficulties.
If you are interested in joining a SLICP Policy working group to create a policy for the Shared Land Information Capture Program please contact Jade George on 9273 7039 or slicp@walis.wa.gov.au. The group will meet on 8 May 2009.
Jade George recently attended ANZLIC and Australia Government in Canberra to discuss the Discovery and Access Program and Registries. The Discovery and Access Program will release a metadata toolkit in June including a stand alone Metadata Entry Tool. This tool may then be redeveloped as an alternative front end for GeoNetwork with the help of Simon Pigot. There will be an ANZLIC Discovery and Access Roadshow coming to Perth on 16 July 2009. If you are interested in further information please email jade.george@walis.wa.gov.au.
ANZLIC are currently considering whether to progress with a national GeoNetwork. Please look out for an article on this and other GeoNetwork news in the autumn edition of WALIS News.
Get Your Entries in for WA Spatial Excellence Awards
Don’t forget to nominate your best people and projects for the WA Spatial Excellence Awards 2009. Applications for the 2009 Awards are invited from Individuals and Industries. Applications close on Friday 29th May 2009 at the SSIWA Office, 2/154 Hampden Road, Nedlands, 6009 telephone: 9386 6601, email ssiwa@iinet.net.auThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Please contact the SSIWA Office to obtain application forms for both categories of the Awards.
For more information visit the link: http://www.spatialsciences.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=304&Itemid=1
WALIS Stakeholders in the News
The Votes to wind up SSI and ISA are happening next Thursday in Canberra. Members of SSI and ISA, if they are not attending the meeting in person, should make their vote count by sending in their proxy forms, which need to arrive in Canberra before noon on Tuesday, 28 April (they can be faxed). SSI members may nominate the Institute President (and WALIS Director) Marnie Leybourne, who will be voting in favour of the merger. ISA members wishing to vote in favour may nominate the ISA President, Jonathan Saxon, who will also be voting in favour of the merger.
Organisation Administration - Coming Soon
Organisation Administration, for client organisations wishing to participate, will enable the management of internal staff access to SLIP services. Organisations will be able to add, modify or delete user access to available restricted or subscription SLIP services.The management of staff access to SLIP will be able to be carried out by a designated individual in an organisation, known as the Delegated Administrator.
The role of the Delegated Administrator will be to:
- create SLIP Enabler user accounts for users within their organisation;
- modify, as appropriate, user access to restricted or subscription services for which the organisation is the custodian agency or has pre-arranged access; and
- delete SLIP Enabler user accounts when users leave their organisation.
The benefits of Organisation Administration will be to:
- Improve the SLIP Enabler registration process;
- Allow the identification of user relationships to organisations within SLIP;
- Enable Organisations to maintain their SLIP users and access to subscription services;
- Reduced duplication of effort for both registered organisations and Landgate in maintaining secure access to SLIP Enabler data; and
- Enable the provision of reporting information at an organisational level.
If you would like to participate in Organisation Administration, please contact your SLIP Account Manager or SLIP Enabler Online Support for more information.
Phone: 08 9273 7832
Email: SLIPEnabler@landgate.wa.gov.au
Assisting Victorian Bushfire Recovery with Location Intelligence
In the devastating aftermath of the Victorian bushfires, the massive task of implementing a wide-reaching recovery program included a requirement to manage enormous amounts of geographic information.
To assist, ESRI Australia and ESRI Inc. pooled resources to provide location intelligence software and services to our clients involved in the recovery efforts. Along with ArcPad developers Maptel, ESRI Australia provided resources to assist the Victorian Water Police and Search and Rescue team with their field GIS tasks.
As well as significant time savings, this enabled operational commanders to work with more up-to-date data and more closely analyse the search and recovery program using location intelligence.
Web link for full article: http://www.esriaustralia.com.au/esri/167_4755.html
Source: ESRI Australia
ASIBA Changes its Name to SIBA
For over eight years, the Australian Spatial Information Business Association (ASIBA) has represented a growing number of companies that support growth in the geospatial technology sector. It was originally formed to consolidate several professional organisations and to speak with a single voice for this community.
But effective on May 1, 2009, ASIBA will now be known as the Spatial Industries Business Association (SIBA), a change that association CEO David Hocking says "will ensure that the association remains relevant to what is a rapidly shifting spatial landscape."
Click here to read Position Magazine’s interview with David Hocking on the name change.
DAFWA Undertake Biosecurity Architecture Review
The Department of Food and Agriculture have begun work on establishing a new services-based architecture for linking biosecurity information systems (including GIS) continues. An outline plan was completed in March, and the project has been taken-up by Integranet for detailed write-up. Pilot implementation of a services-based approach was successfully piloted in February and March.
Two New Online Products Available From Landgate
Landgate has released two new online products through the online shop: Premium Property Reports; and Valuation Roll Extracts.
Premium Property Report for an individual property – includes – full land details including zoning & valuation (GRV & UV past 3 valuations), sales history and lists sales of comparable properties in the suburb for the past 6 months, suburb demographics (based on 2006 census and sourced from ABS), nearest schools, transport services, hospitals etc (using points of interest data), sale and rental trends for the suburb and a survey and title for the property. Incredible value at $79.95!
Valuation Roll extracts (for an individual property only) – previously only available over the counter, the public can now order valuation roll extracts (GRV & UV) online. Searchable by street address. This is a regulated product made available under the Valuation of Land Act.
Recent Satellite Imagery Over Pacific Islands - Available Now
Areas in the Pacific Islands have recently been captured and placed in the IKONOS Satellite archive, ready for immediate purchase by governments and the private sector. Of interest to many is the low cloud, colour IKONOS imagery with submetre spatial resolution which has been captured in the last 18 months.
"These new datasets are an exciting and rare opportunity to cost-effectively access recent, high resolution imagery" said Gail Kelly, Business Development Manager. "AAMHatch has been very active in the Pacific region and is pleased to offer this valuable imagery from the GeoEye Satellite archives.”
Web link to full article: http://www.aamhatch.com/news.cfm?itemId=ACE71C4D-19B9-EFA7-D64C0F1A4CB1ED4E
Source: AAMHatch
Australian Angle
Tracing Jam Back to the Strawberry Farm
Ever wondered where the strawberry in your strawberry jam came from, or who cooked the tomato sauce you’re eating?
In a trend that continues to pick up steam, condiment maker Beerenberg’s has introduced Provenance Pathway, an online tool that lets customers trace their jam or sauce from ‘soil to shelf’.
After purchasing a Beerenberg product, customers enter the item’s barcode and expiration date on the company’s website. An overview of the product appears, including photos of the people who made it, full product specifications, and an elegant implementation of Google Earth to map the farms where the main ingredients originated.
Web link to full article: http://www.springwise.com/food_beverage/provenancepathway/
Source: Springwise
EnergyAustralia is tackling the challenge of improving its Digital Cadastre Datatbase (DCDB) from Waterfall in south Sydney to the upper Hunter Valley in the north. The area is administered by over 40 local government authorities, and the related DCDB contains over 1.3 million land parcels.
The project has delivered significant benefits in the area of data capture, information sharing and service delivery for EnergyAustralia, NSW Land Property Information and the local government authorities of the Central Coast.
Follow the link http://gita.org.au/newsletters.php and click on the 2009 March-April Newsletter for the full article.
Source: Geospatial Information and Technology Association
LINZ Accepts Mapping Award Honour in India
In February this year, Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) was honoured to accept the award for best national mapping agency at the Map World Forum in Hyderabad, India. The award recognises LINZ’s contributions as a national mapping agency towards national development and services to citizens of the country at large.
The theme of the forum was ‘Geospatial Technology for Sustainable Planet Earth’.
Web link to full article: http://www.linz.govt.nz/survey-titles/stats-projects-notices/news-notices/2009/0416-linz-accepts-mapping-award-in-india/index.aspx
Source: Land Information New Zealand
Canberra Through Time: From Past to Present
Geoscience Australia will host a display of maps, satellite images and aerial photography illustrating how the nation's capital has taken shape over the past 70 years. This display will contribute to the 2009 Canberra and Region Heritage Festival being held between Saturday 4 - Sunday 19 April.
The display shows Canberra's development since the 1940s. Worth noting is the growth of Canberra's suburbs as well as key iconic infrastructure including the Parliamentary Triangle and Lake Burley Griffin.
For more information visit the link: http://www.ga.gov.au/about-us/news-media/latest-news/index.jsp#heritage
Source: Geoscience Australia
Aerial Whale Surveys a First in the Antarctic Pack Ice
New data on minke whale distribution in pack ice in the Southern Ocean and new techniques developed by Australian scientists for researching whale abundance further advance Australia's global leadership in non-lethal whale research. The research was conducted by scientists at the Australian Marine Mammal Centre located at the Australian Antarctic Division, and scientists from CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences.
CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences Research Fellow Dr Natalie Kelly, who ran the survey operations in Antarctica, said the aerial survey program was conducted using CASA 212-400 aircraft with one flight leader and four observers onboard to count whales from the air.
"This data is then combined with information from high-definition video cameras, a high-resolution digital stills camera and an infrared camera installed in the base of the aircraft to detect whales hidden from view by the ice”.
Web link to full article: http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=36165&source=17&rank=3
Source: Australian Antarctic Division
Long-Term Rainfall Deficiencies Persist Over South-Eastern Australia
The most recent rainfall deficiency map shows a dry start to the year across south-eastern and central Australia has been followed by generally average to above average rainfall in March. In contrast, a wet start to the year across northern Australia has been followed by generally below to very much below average March rainfall.
Rainfall deficiency maps for standard periods out to three years are available from the Bureau of Metorology website.
Web link to full article: http://www.bom.gov.au/announcements/media_releases/climate/drought/20090406.shtml
Source: Bureau of Meteorology
Update on Geophysical Data Releases
The current status of Geoscience Australia's geophysical survey data acquisition is available in a comprehensive table from the Geoscience Australia website.
The Esperance, Balladonia and Cooper Basin North airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys were released via Geophysical Archive Data Delivery Systems on 26 March 2009.
For more information visit the link: http://www.ga.gov.au/about-us/news-media/minerals-alert/index.jsp
Source: Geoscience Australia
News from Around the Globe
GIS Used to Link Pesticides to Parkinson's Risk
A report in the April 15 issue of the American Journal of
Epidemiology by Beate Ritz, professor of epidemiology at the UCLA
School of Public Health, and Sadie Costello, a former doctoral student
at UCLA who is now at the University of California, Berkeley, found
that Central Valley California residents who lived within 500 meters of
fields sprayed between 1974 and 1999 had a 75-percent increased risk
for Parkinson's.
The pair, with input from other researchers,
developed a GIS model to estimate human exposure to pesticides that
used land-use maps and state pesticide-use reporting data.
Weblink to full article: http://insciences.org/article.php?article_id=4432
Source: InSciences Organisation
Saucony, the running shoe brand, has said it plans to maintain a portable toilet along a Newton stretch of the Boston Marathon route where runners training for the event have sometimes made unsanctioned back-yard "pit stops" - much to the dismay of the home owners.
The loo will be removed April 13, a week before the race; its purpose is to provide convenience for runners who want to take pre-marathon training runs on the actual marathon course.
Web link to full article: http://www.boston.com/business/ticker/2009/03/saucony_will_sp_1.html
Source: The Boston Globe
Making Digital Maps More Current and Accurate
European researchers have designed an innovative new system to help keep motorists on the right track by constantly updating their digital maps and fixing anomalies and errors. Now the partners are mapping the best route to market.
Some interactive solutions have made it to market. One example is the EU-backed ActMAP project which developed mechanisms for online, incremental updates of digital map databases using wireless technology. The system helps to shorten the time span between updates significantly. Nevertheless, there is still room for improvement in terms of detecting map errors, changes in the real world, or monitoring highly dynamic events like local warnings automatically. Addressing these ever-changing realities requires a radical rethink of the applied methodology.
Web link to full article: http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=3086
Source: Directions Magazine
Turn Online Social Networks Into Real World Interactions
ABD3 has announced the availability of YellowPin, the next generation of social lifestyle tools. Using a simple text message, the service allows users to bring their online, social network friends into their real lives by sharing their activities and locations in real time.
Launching first on Facebook, socialisers can update their selected friends or groups via the application online to show where they are and what they are doing or, when using a mobile phone, by simply sending a text message to 555888 with their location.
After adding the application, YellowPin aggregates your network of contacts on Facebook, which then enables you to pull information about the happenings around you and their whereabouts.
Web link to full article: http://www.gpsdaily.com/reports/Turn_Online_Social_Networks_Into_Real_World_Interactions_999.html
Source: GPS Daily
Chimps Use Geometry to Navigate the Jungle
New research suggests the great apes keep a geometric mental map of their home range, moving from point to point in nearly straight lines.
With the aid of GPS, two researchers shadowed the movements of 15 chimpanzees in Côte d'Ivoire's Taj National Park for a total of 217 days.Each morning, researchers woke before a chimpanzee, and then tailed the animal until it went to sleep at day's end – often in a different nest. Researchers recorded their GPS position once a minute.
"We were able to do this study now because of the new GPS technology that works perfectly in the tropical forest. That was not the case five years ago," Boesch says.
After analysing all this data, he and Normand found good evidence that the animals chose their routes using a mental map built around geometric coordinates, as opposed to a navigation style based on landmarks for well-travelled routes.
Web link to full article: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16744-chimps-use-geometry-to-navigate-the-jungle.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news
Source: New Scientist
Tokyo Jogging is a new mashup of Wii technology and Google Maps that allows users to take a virtual jog through the streets of Tokyo.
Created by software engineer Ryo Katsuma, Tokyo Jogging functions much like Wii Sports Jogging. Users begin by downloading free server software from the site. They then connect their Wiimote to Google Maps' Street View, and hold the Wiimote while jogging in place in front of their computer. Google's Street View guides them along the streets of Tokyo, giving the impression of a brisk jog through the city.
Web link to full article: http://www.springwise.com/entertainment/tokyojogging/
Source: Springwise
China to Offer Free Global Navigation by 2020
China will be able to provide free global navigation and positioning services by 2020 with its own constellation of satellites named "Compass". This contradicts earlier reports claiming that China would complete the system before 2015.
Compass would cover all of China and its adjacent regions by the end of 2010 or early 2011, and it would expand into a global network by 2020, Cao Chong, chief engineer of the China Electronics Technology Group Corp., told Xinhua News Agency.
Compass could provide civilian clients with positioning accuracy within 10 meters without charge, compared with the 5m to 6m offered by the U.S.-developed Global Positioning System (GPS).
Web link o full article: http://www.gpsdaily.com/reports/China_To_Offer_Free_Global_Navigation_By_2020_999.html
Source: GPS Daily
Upcoming Events
8-9 May, Alba Iulia, Romania
Read the First Announcement or visit the website.
19-21 May 2009, San Jose, California
Where 2.0 2009 delves into the emerging technologies surrounding the geospatial industry, particularly the way our lives are organised. Maps are everywhere now, and presented as realistically or as representationally as suits your needs.
The barriers to building location-based online and enterprise apps have been lowered, and the field is crowding with players. Now that consumers have access to incredible amounts of data and the tools to visualise it, what's considered cutting edge? Where is the next mapping frontier? Who are the hackers and early adopters backing? Is there still a first mover advantage?
You can also witness this ground breaking content first hand by attending sessions, workshops, Ignite, and the Where Fair at the 2009 event.
Visit the website for more.
2nd International Conference on Earth Observation for Global Changes (EOGC2009)
25-29 May, Chengdu, China
Knowledge about changes to the Earth's surface and the underlying processes that induce them has enormous impacts on how society responds to these changes. With its remarkable progress in the past decade, Earth observation technology has been playing a crucial role in studies on global changes.
EOGC2009 will include several presentations on the use of remote sensing applications to assess environmental changes, as well as Geospatial Data Processing and Integration for Change Detection and Environmental Monitoring by the Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS).
Visit the website for further details.
GeoTec Event 2009
1-4 June, Vancouver Convention Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
The GeoTec Event offers its attendees high calibre and timely presentations from knowledgeable industry leaders, geospatial technologists and users from Canada and the world.
Click here for details on the call for papers.
ISPRS Hannover Workshop 2009 - High-Resolution Earth Imaging for Geospatial Information
2-5 June, Hannover, Germany
Earth imaging from air and space has undergone major changes over the last years. Examples of new and significant developments comprise a growing use of digital aerial cameras, an increasing number of high-resolution and hyperspectral satellite sensors, of laser scanning and SAR/InSAR. Calibration issues are important for every sensor.
Today, all these data are used for the production of geospatial information. At the same time, updating existing geospatial databases has gained more importance, and automation has had a significant impact on the processing chain. In addition, the stunning success of Google Earth and Microsoft Virtual Earth along with developments such as GEO (intergovernmental Group of Earth Observations), GEOSS (Global Earth Observation System of Systems) and GMES (Global Monitoring of Environment and Security) have significantly changed the remote sensing arena in the last few years.
These developments form the background for the ISPRS Hannover Workshop High-Resolution Earth Imaging for Geospatial Information 2009.
spatial@gov Conference 2009
15-16 June, National Convention Centre, Canberra
Spatial capabilities offer increased value to every facet of government operations. The 2009 spatial@gov Conference is a new event for the spatial community and will focus on the importance of spatial information in enhancing the business of all tiers of government. This conference will focus on the benefits of using ‘place’ or ‘location’ as a powerful enabler to support policy development, service delivery and internal business processes. The program will cover government spatial activities in the areas of national priority including Social Inclusion, Climate Change and a range of other government activities.
Visit the website for more details.
GEOG-AN-MOD 09 and ICCSA 2009
29 June – 2 July, Kyung Hee University-Global Campus, Yongin, Korea
The Fourth International Workshop on Geographical Analysis, Urban Modeling, Spatial Statistics will be held in conjunction with the 2009 International Conference on Computational Science and its Applications (ICCSA 2009).
The growth of Spatial Data Infrastructures, geo-portals and private sector initiatives produced an increase of geographical data availability at any scale and worldwide. This growth has not been fully coupled by an increase of knowledge to support spatial decisions.
Spatial analytical techniques and geographical analysis and modelling methods are therefore required in order to analyse data and to facilitate the decision process at all levels. Old geographical issues can find an answer thanks to new methods and instruments, while new issues are developing, challenging the researchers for new solutions. This workshop is aimed at contributing to the development of new techniques and methods to improve the process on knowledge acquisition.
Click here for important dates or visit the ICCSA website for more details.
ESRI Survey and Engineering GIS Summit
11-14 July, San Diego, California
Registrations are now open.
6th International Symposium on Mobile Mapping Technology
21-24 July, São Paulo, Brazil
The main objective of the conference is to discuss the most recent technology and its application, to exchange experiences and to promote future research aiming at the development and the production in the fields related to mobile mapping.
Symposium on Mobile Mapping Technology
GITA Annual Conference
31 August - 2 September, Melbourne, Australia
The GITA Annual Conference includes presentations from leading professionals, detailed workshop sessions and site visits, as well as a comprehensive technology exhibition. The conference includes plenty of networking opportunities and attracts a wide variety of local and international speakers, delegates and exhibitors. Visit the website for more.
IAG2009, Geodesy for Planet Earth
31 August – 4 September, Buenos Aires
IAG2009 will be an event that covers the whole of geodesy in an exciting social environment that extends knowledge, improves practice and widens networks. Following the long outstanding tradition of these scientific assemblies, IAG2009 will be a major scientific event, bringing together geodesists from all over the world, and demonstrating the vital role that geodesy plays in our society.
Visit the website for more.
10th South East Asian Survey Congress (SEASC) 2009
4-7 August, Bali International Convention Center (BICC), The Westin Resort Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia
Geospatial technology has been increasingly recognised as a vital part of our life. Geo-information as the product of this technology has found its application in various sectors. At the individual level, geo-information has now become a part of our lifestyle, with the use of digital maps and satellite based navigation systems.
Globally, the world is facing many issues that need mutual collaboration among organisations and countries, since a problem that occurs in a country may interface its neighbouring countries. Geo-information is one of the important key factors to overcome such kind of global/ regional issues holistically.
Many organisations have been collecting and managing various kind of geo-information for their own purposes. This situation creates isolated geo-information islands that are not connected and accessible to each other.
Therefore, “Integrating geo-information islands” has been chosen as the theme of the SEASC. For more information, visit the website.
Map Asia 2009
18-20 August, Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre, Singapore
The 8th annual international conference and exhibition on geospatial information, technology and applications is being organised by GIS Development and the Singapore Land Authority.
The Asia and Pacific region demands and offers scope for application of the various Geographic Information technologies like GIS, GPS, Remote Sensing and Imaging.
To meet the requirements of the Geo-informatics community in the Asian region, every year Map Asia raises a platform for the Asian Geo-informatics community to realise, recognise, and reveal the stages of dissemination of Geospatial Information.
GISCA 09
27-28 August, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Geographic Information Science and Technologies have evolved into a key instrument for managing our societies, environments and infrastructures, as well as individuals’ daily lives.
The GISCA series of conferences aims at building a Central Asian network of GIS professionals supporting the sustained development of this region into an environmentally friendly, secure and prosperous society.
iGEOMAP Conference
28-29 August, Bangalore, India
The iGEOMAP 2009 conference will address India’s urban infrastructure issues using GIS along with presenting state-of-the-art practices.
ISPRS Workshop Laserscanning 2009
1-2 September, Paris, France
Laserscanning 2009 is the 6th ISPRS workshop dedicated to the processing and the analysis of point clouds acquired and generated from active airborne and terrestrial sensors. LiDAR data has been studied for many years. They are widely used, from accurate city modelling to many thematic approaches (eg. forestry, hydrology) where the topography and the land cover are involved. Based on LiDAR data as well as data from other sensors, surveyors and scientists have built an operational framework to extract spatial information, but also are facing challenging tasks to enhance current point cloud processes.
Laserscanning 2009 will focus on new data, methodologies, algorithms and applications related to the processing of point clouds as well as sensor improvements and new sensor-driven calibration techniques.
Visit the website for more details.
6th International Symposium on Digital Earth (ISDE6)
9-12 September, Beijing, China
The theme of the conference is ‘Digital Earth in Action’ and will continue the tradition of gathering world-class scientists, engineers and educators engaged in the fields of digital earth, earth observation, geo-informatics and relevant applications to review the progress of Digital Earth during the last decade and discuss the achievements of Digital Earth and the recent developments.
Click here for details.
GIS for Oil and Gas Conference
13-17 September, Houston, Texas, USA
The conference will provide opportunities to share knowledge with an audience of hundreds of industry professionals. The GIS for Oil & Gas Conference is the only event of its kind—nowhere else can oil and gas professionals get targeted, high-quality information that will help them maximise their geospatial information. Join the prestigious group of presenters who provide valuable information about real-world applications of GIS technology in the energy industry.
The call for papers is now open.
International Conference on Geo-Spatial Solutions for Emergency Management (GSEM)
14-16 September, Beijing, China
Geo-spatial technology is one of the three emerging technologies in the 21st century. Driven by societal and economical needs, geo-spatial solutions for emergency management techniques are now in the frontiers of the geospatial technology, and have received an increasing interest in the academic, government, industries, and beyond. CASM as the largest multi-disciplined comprehensive research institute in China in the field of surveying and mapping, will strive to make this event a symposium of the highest quality.
Visit the website for all the details.
Spatial Sciences Institute Biennial International Conference
28 September – 2 October, Adelaide, South Australia
This biennial conference is the premier event for spatial sciences in the Australasian region. It attracts a large and diverse audience and in 2009 will embrace a new format. It will provide cutting edge developments in the application of spatial science to a diverse set of disciplines, communities and people: indeed this diversity is the inspiration for the conference theme of Spatial Diversity.
The conference theme will be delivered via plenary and keynote presentations, technical papers, symposia, workshops, competitions, awards, site visits, dinners, lunches, coffee, exhibitions, breakfasts, walks and talks. The aim is to attract key players in the industries where spatial information is important – environment, mining, defence, land administration, agriculture, disaster management and more. Together with these people, a large range of exhibitors of technology and applications will be present.
Visit www.ssc2009.com for more information.
CoastGIS 2009
30 September – 2 October, Santa Catarina, Brazil
CoastGIS, the International Symposium on GIS and Computer Mapping for Coastal Management, is a series of conferences that began in Cork, Ireland, in 1995 as a collaboration between the Commission on Coastal Systems of the International Geographical Union and the Commission on Marine Mapping of the International Cartographic Association.
In the early 1990s, both were aiming to find a vehicle through which coastal issues and technological processes could be examined and means by which recent advances in the mapping of the world's coastal zones could jointly find an outlet.
As a major event, the CoastGIS series attracts an international audience of coastal researchers, managers and practitioners who use one or more of the geospatial technologies.
Visit the website for more.
22nd CIPA Symposium (2009)
11-15 October, Kyoto, Japan
The 22nd International Committee for Documentation of Cultural Heritage (CIPA) Symposium will be an international and inter-disciplinary event on recording, documentation, preservation and restoration of cultural heritage applying information and communication technology.
To be held in Asia for the first time, the topics to be covered will include GIS, intellectual property and open source, terrestrial/ aerial photogrammetry and terrestrial/ aerial laser scanning, remote sensing and strategies for long-term archiving of digital information.
7th FIG Regional Conference
19-22 October, Hanoi, Vietnam
The theme of the 7th FIG Regional Conference is ‘Spatial Data Serving People: Land Governance and the Environment - Building the Capacity’ and is divided into three sub-themes: Land Administration; Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) and the Environment; and Capacity Building.
WALIS Forum
11-13 November, Perth Convention Exhibition Centre
WALIS Forum is one of the premier GIS events in Australia, attracting over 650 participants from a diverse range of professions. Held every 18 months, the Forum provides an opportunity to address issues related to the collection, management and application of geographic or spatial information. WALIS Forum
4th International Conference: Earth From Space – the Most Effective Solutions (2009)
1-3 December, Moscow, Russia
Rapid development of the space information technology has deprived the limited groups of specialists of the privilege to control telecommunications, navigation and remote sensing of the Earth from space. We can witness how Earth observation from space helps to resolve a wide range of practical tasks, becoming a modern public information instrument.
The International Conference "Earth from Space - the Most Effective Solutions" is the largest biennial event in sphere of Earth remote sensing in Russia and CIS countries, attended by around 350 participants from different countries. The goal of the conference is to show the experience of practical use of satellite monitoring in different branches of economy together with the recent developments in remote sensing as the backbone of cost-efficient functioning economic systems and is an opportunity to demonstrate the latest innovations, achievements and practical results in sphere of space information technologies.
Visit the website for more.
IGNSS 2009
1-3 December, Gold Coast, Queensland
This IGNSS symposium will include open forums where users can discuss the implementation and application of GNSS and other location technologies, and voice their concerns in an interactive format with representatives from all the satellite system providers, major manufacturers and applications developers.
The call for papers is now open.
Interesting Website of the Month
International Year of Astronomy 2009
The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is a global effort initiated by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and UNESCO to help the citizens of the world rediscover their place in the Universe through the day- and night-time sky, and thereby engage a personal sense of wonder and discovery.
Link to website: http://www.astronomy2009.org/general/
To find out what’s happening in Australia visit: http://www.astronomy2009.org.au/
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