Des Plaines, IL (December 10, 2013) – URISA is now accepting presentation proposals for GIS-Pro 2014: URISA's 52nd Annual Conference to be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, September 8-11, 2014. The focus of GIS-Pro 2014 is Leveraging Spatial Technology to Support Sustainable and Resilient Communities”.  Submissions are due on or before January 27, 2014.

Though proposals for complete sessions are encouraged (with detailed learning objectives), individual presentations, lightning talks, panel discussions and interactive session formats are also welcome. The GIS-Pro 2014 Conference Committee has proposed a list of suggested topics organized according to the “3 Pillars of Sustainability”: Society, Environment, and Economy.  In addition, the Committee is inviting presentations on GIS Management to highlight best practices in support of GIS projects, and Solution Central, a track to showcase vendor-based solutions to technical challenges.  (Note that all abstracts received will be reviewed and considered for the conference program regardless of the list below...these are just suggestions).

Society

• Transportation & Transit: planning, mapping and management of transportation GIS
• Addressing: more than just a number on the side of a building
• Map communication: don't make the “normal” mistakes
• Public health: flu mapping, disease tracking, supporting healthy community initiatives
• GIS in the social sciences: How does looking at the world through spatial eyeglasses change the way we act and interact?
• GIS in the First Nations/Tribal Agencies: First Nations are embracing GIS to map cultural values, governance, and management of territorial lands. Case studies of successful implementations are encouraged.
• Civic engagement
• Open government
• Leveraging open source solutions

Environment

• GIS uses in water quality analysis and coastal management
• Habitat and wildlife management
• National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) EAs and EISs, phase I/II/III site assessments, permitting and compliance applications
• GIS in renewable energy, carbon monitoring, and atmospheric studies
• Green infrastructure, LEED, and facilities environmental management
• Crisis mapping, Humanitarian Open Street Map, GISCorps' response to disasters

Economy

• Regional Leaders in Industry: Oil & Gas/Petrochemical, Shipping and Logistics, Aerospace Support
• GIS Return on Investment (ROI): measure it, document it, communicate it
• Leveraging shared GIS investments: GIS consortiums, data sharing agreements and more
• GIS applications in marketing, business and competitive intelligence, and economic development
• Geospatial industry employment outlook and regional job growth analysis

Management

• Communicating with Maps: tell the right story in order to get the point across to decision makers
• Identifying 'champions' in your organization to propel your technology ideas forward
• PPGIS: how do you get the most out of crowd-sourced and volunteered information? And how do you manage the process?
• RFPs that work: tailoring an RFP to encourage the right proposals for the job
• GISP Certification: the ins and outs of becoming a Certified GIS Professional
• Esri Technical Certification: software certification and its merits in an ever-changing environment
• Education: how to cope with reductions in training budgets and still keep your staff on top of their game
• Professional practice standards: the foundations for defining and developing the GIS profession
• Business process re-engineering: business intelligence at its finest. How do organizations re-engineer themselves to be more agile in ever-changing markets?
• "New" Uses for GIS: Share your innovative applications for GIS.
• Geospatial Future: An incubator for next generation GIS applications.
• Managing GIS professionals: hiring, recruiting and retaining
• "Putting Out Your Shingle": how to start a consulting business

Solution Central: Vendor Technical Presentations

• Data storage methods: cloud or in-house; new methods for compression; reducing data redundancy
• Basemap updating/maintenance: best practices and lessons learned
• Maps in the Cloud: visualization and publication of GIS information
• Open Source GIS: a viable alternative to COTS in your organization?
• GIS Architecture: what are the best practices in designing an enterprise system?
• Server Technology or Cloud Computing: as a service computing in relation to GIS or server based technologies, what is best for your organization?
• Leveraging the tablet explosion: Apple iPad, Google Nexus, and Microsoft Surface are all part of the tablet explosion, how can your organization leverage these technologies?
• Mobile applications: from tablet to smartphones, what is the best way to utilize mobile technologies with your GIS?

Visit  www.gis-pro.org or  www.urisa.org for further details and an online submission form. Submissions must be received by January 27, 2014.


Contact: 

Wendy Nelson
Executive Director - URISA
847-824-6300
Email Contact   
www.urisa.org