Joshua Knauer, president and CEO of Rhiza Labs, presented "Collaboration, Participation and Innovation: The Future of GIS," and Maurie Kelly from Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access (PASDA) provided an update on PASDA initiatives as the keynote speakers at Clarion University's Fourth Annual Northwest Pennsylvania Geographic Information System (GIS) Conference. The conference theme was "GIS for Our Communities."

 

Joshua Knauer

           Over 140 people attended the two-day conference, which featured a series of lectures, presentations, exhibits, and hands-on workshops presented by a distinguished group of professionals. GIS is used throughout the world to solve problems related to emergency response services, land use, business efficiency, education, and public safety. Clarion University and the Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission sponsored the conference.

            Knauer listed fear of being blamed for why data collaborations fail. "There are a lot of competing mandates, including transparency, security, cost recovery, and demand from community," he said. "The real problem is technical solutions are applied before there is an understanding of what problems need to be solved."

            As a solution to this problem Knauer suggested knowing the end users and making sure GIS tools are useful and not too complicated. He gave examples of how Rhiza Labs has accomplished these goals by displaying web sites developed for tracking the Swine Flu and a project completed with the Surui tribe in the Amazon jungle.

            Kelly presented the latest initiatives at the PASDA clearinghouse including new data and services. PASDA is Pennsylvania's official public access geospatial information clearinghouse. PASDA was developed as a research and outreach program by the Pennsylvania State University as a service to the citizens, governments, and businesses of the Commonwealth. PASDA is a cooperative project of the Governor's Office of Administration, Office for Information Technology, Geospatial Technologies Office and Penn State Institutes of Energy and the Environment of the Pennsylvania State University. 

            Dr. Yasser Ayad, professor of geography at Clarion University, welcomed to the participants and presented a preview of an upcoming PBS television program, "Geospatial Revolution Project." Ayad

Dr. Yasser Ayad

 was also a two-time presenter at the conference offering sessions on ArcGIS Model Builder: How to Improve Your Everyday Workflow and All About Geodatabases.

            Additional presenters from Clarion University were:

            Dr. David Howes, professor of geography, What's New in Satellite Imaging of the Earth?; Christopher Owens,  myGIS: An Introduction to Using Visual Basic for Applications to Customize and Personalize ArcGIS; and Danielle Cicero, Examining Changes in Road Density around Sheffield, Pennsylvania in the  Allegheny National Forest.

            Owens received his degree in biology in May 2009. He is a son of Cynthia Owens of Cranberry Township and is a graduate of Seneca Valley High School.

            Cicero, a senior environmental biology major, is a daughter of Catherine Cicero of Portage and is a graduate of Bishop Carroll High School.

            Additional programs and presenters at the conference were:  QA/QC Best Practices:  Principles and Techniques for Small and Mid-Size GIS Projects, presented by Susan Zwillinger, 4CTechnologies/4CGeoWorks; ArcGIS Online Solutions for Local Governments presented by Rick Lawson, ESRI; Mobile GIS to Mobile LIDAR:  Tools and Approaches for Infrastructure Inspection, presented by Sam Shamsi, Michael Baker Jr. Inc.; Forest Cover and Farm Abandonment in Erie County, Justin Stangl, Edinboro University; GPS for GIS - Accuracies and Errors, Christine Iksic, Precision Laser & Instrument Inc.; FarmMap:  Online Tool for Agricultural Marketing and Land Assessment, Rick Day, Penn State University; PAMAP Program Update, Chris Markel, geographIT; Linear Referencing Systems for Pipeline Data, David Nichter, Fisher Associates; GIS and its Everyday Municipal Use, Dave Carner, Fairview Township; GIS use in Public Safety, Phil Baranyai, Crawford County OES; Exploring Open Source Spatial ETL Tools, Eric Randall, County of Erie; and Stream Modeling Using LiDar Data for the Allegheny National Forest, George Baumer and Tina Enderlein from Penn State University.

            Several screenings of "Spies That FlyThe World in a Box" were presented. The World in a Box explains GIS and how it's changing people's lives.

             Three technical workshops were held in the new GIS laboratory in Clarion University's recently opened science and technology center - An Introduction to LiDAR Data - Getting the Most from PAMAP Products, Using Post GIS: From Installation to Application, and Managing ArcGIS Server Map Caches. The presenters were George Baumer and Tina Enderlein from Penn State University, Eric Randall from Erie County, and Joshua Lapp from geographIT.

            Clarion University is the high-achieving, nationally recognized, comprehensive university that delivers a personal and challenging academic experience.

Conference attendees visit with the vendors.	George Baumer (standing) presents in the new GIS laboratory.