Friday, Nov. 12, the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Department of Geomatics joins the global celebration of GIS Day between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. in the UAA Engineering Building with presentations, demonstrations, interactive activities, lectures and most importantly – FUN!
Activities are open to everyone. GIS Day formalizes the practice of GIS users and vendors opening their doors to schools, businesses and the general public to showcase real-world applications of this globally significant technology.
Held annually, it is sponsored around the globe by the National Geographic Society, the United States Geological Survey, ESRI, the Association of American Geographers, the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science, the Library of Congress, Hewlett Packard, and Sun Microsystems.
In Alaska, local sponsors include the National Park Service, the State Department of Transportation, the Municipality of Anchorage, the Anchorage School District, the Alaska Arc User Group, and the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Department of Geomatics.
Students from several ASD high schools and middle schools will participate in events throughout the day.
Geomatics is the science-based field that includes land surveying using global positioning systems (GPS), automated mapping, computational analysis and adjustment, Geodesy, principles of boundary law, Geographic Information Systems, digital photogrammetry, and remote sensing and image analysis.
In Alaska, geomaticians work on State and Native land claims, mining claims, fishing leases, petroleum reserves, forest selections, transportation corridors, private developments, government and military projects, as well as land surveying, land development and design, mapping and tax assessment, the defense industry, environmental engineering assessment and management, public safety and welfare, health care, transportation, agriculture, business, natural sciences, facilities management, and marine environments.
Geomatics is truly a 21st Century career field and workforce predictions indicate that employment opportunities in the profession will continue to grow in Alaska and the Pacific Rim well into the next half-century.
GIS Day is part of the National Geographic Society's exciting new initiative, Geography Action! , which is a year-long initiative encompassing key educational achievements such as GIS Day and Geography Awareness Week.
The theme for 2003 was "Habitats." In addition to events such as GIS Day and Geography Awareness Week, there will also be many worldwide activities supporting geography action, with their goal being to engage people in learning and caring about geography. For more information visit GIS Day contact Steve Buchanan
