Published: Oct. 19, 2021

Join the University Libraries and their CU System partners to celebrate GIS Day with “Discover the world through GIS” hybrid symposium on November 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Events will take place mainly on the University of Colorado Boulder campus, with remote options available for all events except the Mapathon Social.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a scientific framework for gathering, analyzing and visualizing geographic data. Geospatial technology is crucial to making decisions about our infrastructure, natural resources and economic growth. It has also become an important collaborative tool for researchers to share data and work on projects that can reveal larger trends pertaining to all subject matter.

“GIS Day is a time when people can come together and discuss how they are using GIS, the projects they’re working on and listen to some interesting talks.” Earth, Environment and Geospatial Librarian Phil White said.

This year’s keynote address will be presented by Sele Yang, co-founder of Geochicas. Geochicas was created in OpenStreetMap in 2016 by a group of women who noticed a structural issue in data communities due to the lack of female participation and project leadership. By promoting work that analyzes how women are represented in geospatial and technological spaces, they aim to improve the overall diversity and quality of the data that goes into OpenStreetMap.

Other symposium sessions include an Open Source Showcase, a career panel, ESRI workshops, lightning talks and the Mapathon Social.

Registration is free and open now.

Symposium Organizers

Jenn Ambrose, Coordinator, Facility for Advanced Spatial Technology (FASTLab), CU Denver, jennifer.ambrose@ucdenver.edu

Alicia Cowart, Director, Geospatial Analysis and Mapping Laboratory (GAMLab), CU Denver, alicia.cowart@ucdenver.edu

Diane Fritz, Geospatial Services Specialist, Auraria Library, diane.fritz@ucdenver.edu

Matthew Gottfried, Geospatial Technologies Specialist, CU Colorado Springs, matthew.gottfried@uccs.edu

Sarah Kelly, Instructor of Geography, CU Boulder, sarah.kelly@colorado.edu

Phil White, Earth, Environment, and Geospatial Librarian, CU Boulder, philip.white@colorado.edu

Symposium Sponsors

University of Colorado Boulder

University of Colorado Denver

University of Colorado Colorado Springs

Auraria Library