UW ONRC HOSTS REGIONAL GIS CONFERENCE

The University of Washington Olympic Natural Resources Center (UW ONRC) will host its second regional Winter Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Conference on February 27 & 28, 2003.

The GIS Conference titled “Information Flow from Field to Management” is composed of in-depth seminars to provide knowledge of products and techniques used in GIS.  It will also explore the applications of those tools through examples and current topics.  It will revisit the ONRC Clearinghouse for the Olympic Peninsula, the Olympic Peninsula’s online data resource in the National Spatial Data Infrastructure.

GIS has deep roots in the Olympic Peninsula, beginning as a pilot program by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources in the early 1980’s.  To quote Miranda Wecker, Marine Program Manager at UW ONRC, “GIS has been applied by every major player in the environmental natural resource arena.”

The conference will showcase the diverse nature of GIS with several examples, including invasive species management of Spartina Alterniflora in Willapa Bay and the annual Native American canoe journeys.  The presentations will give attendees a better understanding of how GIS can benefit their organization.

“For the local business person, there are all kinds of applications of GIS such as real estate and tourism, where folks can integrate information from a variety of sources to address the concerns of all the stakeholders,” according to Teresa Zena Alcock, GIS Analyst at UW ONRC.

The agenda includes two in-depth seminars.  Chris Wayne will present spatial analysis techniques using the latest software from Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI).  Miles Logsdon, Associate Professor from the UW College of Ocean and Fisheries Sciences, will discuss the nuts and bolts of remote sensing techniques.  The tutorials will give a snapshot of the many features involved in producing maps and GIS. 

A primary goal of this year’s conference will be to bring together those organizations that need GIS services with organizations that provide GIS services to the Olympic Peninsula.  A discussion panel will identify the needs that are not being met and explore existing and alternative ways to obtain GIS services. 

Information collected by field researchers on the Olympic Peninsula can directly affect the decisions of policy makers 3000 miles away if that data is made available to them.  A clearinghouse is an integral part of servicing geospatial information to the public.  Instead of searching a thousand different places for information, a policy maker, manager, etc. can go to one gateway for all of their map related research needs.  Knowing how to use a clearinghouse gives people a powerful tool in research and spatial data collection.  Members from the Washington State Departments of Transportation and Natural Resources will brief the region on the National Spatial Data Infrastructure’s Framework efforts in the state of Washington. 

A special feature at the conference will be vendor displays and map exhibits.  Guests will receive important information about GIS services around the Pacific Northwest from the vendors.  The map exhibit will showcase all of the considerable features that mapping can provide, showing that a map is used for much more than just a reference tool.

To register or for further information, visit the conference web site at: http://www.onrc.washington.edu/gis/conf2003

Conference Organizer Eric Sfetku can be reached at (360) 374-3220 Ext 241 or by e-mail at sfetkue@u.washington.edu.

UW ONRC is a University of Washington research and education facility located in Forks, WA.  It is co-advised by the UW College of Forest Resources and the UW College of Ocean and Fisheries Science.

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