Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions announced that it is sponsoring the 3rd International Digital Earth Symposium on Global Sustainability being held through September 25 in BRNO, Czech Republic. Digital Earth 2003 brings together 250 participants representing national and local government organizations, national mapping agencies, academic and research organizations, and GIS and remote sensing suppliers from around the world to examine and advance global spatial data, information and knowledge to support solutions for global problems. The symposium continues the initiative begun as an effort to help governments replicate the success of national spatial data infrastructures in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. By establishing national spatial data infrastructures, government, academia and the private sector could reduce duplication of efforts among agencies to gather and maintain geospatial data, improve quality and reduce costs related to geographic information and make geographic data more accessible to the public.
Several international organizations serve as patrons for the symposium, such as the International Cartographic Association (ICA), International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the Open GIS Consortium (OGC). In addition, several ministries of the Czech government are included in the organization of the symposium. United Nations (U.N.) organizations, such as Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) have been invited to participate. All activities of the U.N. connected with sustainable development, Information Society and global spatial data projects including Global Map, Global Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI) and Geographic Information for Sustainable Development (GISD) are included. At the European level, several Directorate Generale such as Information Society, Environment, Agriculture, Region, Enlargement and Research were asked to be part of the preparation process of the symposium and its program. This year’s conference focuses on the problems of the Earth observation and processing technologies for Digital Earth, a digital representation of the planet that will allow people to explore and interact with vast amounts of natural and cultural information. A discussion about necessary conditions, processes and barriers of creation of the Global Sustainable Information Society is also planned at the symposium. During the symposium, Intergraph executives will share insight and experiences of developing and maintaining interoperable spatial data infrastructures.
