In this opening keynote at the Geospatial World Forum 2026 in Amsterdam, Cora Smelik — Member of the Executive Board of Kadaster — delivers a thought-provoking opening address on digital sovereignty, open strategic autonomy, and the role of geospatial data in modern society.
Speaking on King’s Day, she draws a powerful parallel between Dutch civic values and the forum’s central theme: that sovereignty is not about isolation or protectionism, but about maintaining control, accountability, and the freedom to cooperate on your own terms.
She argues that in a world shaped by geopolitical shifts and growing dependency on large technology providers, public institutions must pursue open strategic autonomy — retaining the ability to make independent choices while avoiding unwanted dependencies. For organizations like the Kadaster, digital sovereignty is not an abstract concept but a practical necessity, underpinning legal certainty, public trust, and the functioning of the wider economy.
Rather than a retreat behind borders, she presents sovereignty as an invitation to cooperate — built on shared standards, reliable partnerships, and interoperability across European and international networks. True resilience, she argues, is only achieved when strengths are combined. And behind every dataset, algorithm, and system, there are human choices and human values that shape the society we live in.
