Pre-Conference Workshops at GISCA'11

With support from the Eurasia-Pacific Uninet and from GIS industry, and in close cooperation with the Tempus GEM project, the organisers of the 2011 GIS in Central Asia conference are proud to announce an extensive pre-conference program of workshops.
These offerings are directed at junior faculty and advanced students from Central Asian universities. Workshops will cover working with GPS, open content and open source technologies, advanced ArcGIS, FME from SAFE and will offer an introduction to SDI frameworks.
Detailed information is available through http://gisca11.aca-giscience.org/schedule and http://www.cuas.at/gis_workshop2011. Candidates need to pre-qualify and fully register for GISCA 2011.

GSDI recognizes work at KgGISA

The Global Spatial Data Infrastructure organisation for the second time awarded a 'Small Project Grant' to the Kyrgyz GIS Association. Based on an application developed and submitted by Dr. Ainura Nazarkulova, this project will support the development of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) Awareness training, implemented jointly with the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) represented by Mariana Belgiu, MSc from the ÖAW GIScience Institute in Salzburg.

Spatial Data Infrastructures are increasingly evolving into critically important infrastructures for managing livelihoods, environments and societies. Much more than just online maps and satellite imagery, an SDI provides the foundations for each country, region or municipality as well as NGOs to organize and coordinate its resources and assets in a 'spatially intelligent' way. SDIs now are rapidly becoming state-of-the-art toolsets for planning, logistics, environmental monitoring and general spatial development.

The first prototype SDI awareness course will be offered as a GISCA preconference workshop in Almaty. Participants will have the opportunity not only to work with Geoportals, but to learn about SDI architectures, standards, organisational frameworks and how to leverage the potential of spatial information for a range of application domains.

Successful Tempus GEM kick-off meeting at KSUCTA

On Dec 10 and 11, project partner representatives from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Hungary, the Netherlands and Austria met at KSUCTA in Bishkek to launch the development and implementation of an international Master’s program in ‘Geoinformatics Management’.

First students will start their studies in the academic year 2011/12, aiming at advanced qualifications in Geoinformatics with a special emphasis on “Managing Energy, Resources and Environment”. The initial goals are curriculum development and teacher training. Program implementation will be supported with computer classroom installations, and accompanied by quality and integrity control as well as outreach to potential employers and prospective students.

Offering an English language postgraduate program in an important Science & Technology discipline is a first in the Central Asia region and an ambitious undertaking. Motivated efforts by all partner institutions will be required not only to launch, but also to sustain this program!

'Geoinformatics Management' MSc Development Started

A new Tempus curriculum development project with participants from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan has started in October and will be officially launched Dec 10-11 at KSUCTA in Bishkek. From the fall of 2011 Masters students in "Geoinformatics: Managing Energy, Resources, Environment" will start their education at several Central Asian partner universities, with additional universities joining in the following year.
This international MSc programme is aiming at addressing the urgent need for graduates qualified in technology, methods and applications of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The definitive curriculum will be presented at GISCA 2011 in Almaty, with registration for students opening shortly thereafter.

GISCA 2011 - Call for Papers

The annual GIS-in-Central Asia Conference now has opened its 2011 Call for Papers and registration. The conference is scheduled for May 19-20 in Almaty, Kazakhstan and will be preceded by a range of workshops and tutorials. Again, it is expected that this event will bring together all key players in the Geoinformatics and GIScience disciplines from Central Asia and beyond!

The main theme of GISCA 2011 will be "Geoinformatics: Managing Environment, Resources and Risk", and contributions are welcome addressing this theme from the entire range of Geoinformatics and Spatial Sciences backgrounds.

The 2011 conference will simultaneously serve as this year's key coordination  and training event for the Tempus GEM curriculum development project for Geoinformatics Management, and as a venue for various user groups and special interest communities.

GISCA 2011 is being jointly organized by the Austria-Central Asia Centre for GIScience and the Kazakh National University named after Al-Farabi as a local host. The conference will be supported by the Eurasia-Pacific Uninet and several sponsors from the Geoinformatics industry.

Dr Nazarkulova presenting at Global SDI Conference, Singapore

At the GSDI Conference, held in Singapore Oct 19-22, Dr Ainura Nazarkulova was invited to present the results of her work in  a presentation titled "Building an SDI as a Community Project - Challenges in Emerging Economies". After being nominated as a recipient of the GSDI small grants program in 2008, this paper and poster presentation acknowledged her efforts towards establishing several key elements of a Spatial Data Infrastructure for Central Asia.

During the conference Kyrgyz 'insignia' were presented to Dr Al Stevens, administrator of the SDI small grants program. "Dr Nazarkulova's presentation was one of my personal highlights during the Singapore conference", Dr Stevens commented.

Mark Your Calendars: GISCA 2011 for May 19/20 in Almaty!

The annual GIS in Central Asia conference will be organised in Almaty at the Kazakh National University named after Al-Farabi on May 19/20, 2011. Workshops and project meetings will be scheduled on the days before the conference.
A Call for Papers will be issued later this month, suggestions and offers for enhancing the conference program are welcome!