GeoIgnite - A New Event and Agenda for Canada’s Geospatial Sector

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Canada has a proud history in the realm of geospatial and location technology. In fact, an Ottawa-based geographer, the late Dr. Roger Tomlinson, is universally recognized as the “father” of what is now known as geospatial information services, or GIS. Despite Canada’s prominence in the history of GIS, the country has lacked a vendor-neutral annual geospatial and location technology event in the nation’s capital that could serve to convene domestic and international thought leaders.

Forward looking and Uniquely Canadian

That’s changing this summer. Canada has a new location technology event and it will take place in the nation’s capital, Ottawa, June 18-19th. Aptly named “GeoIgnite”, Canada’s new national “go-to” event will focus on the critically important foundational role that geospatial and location related data, applications, technology, and services play across every sector of the economy in the ongoing global tech revolution.

The theme of the conference is “Leadership, Innovation, and next-level Technology.”

The conference committee is working closely with a broad swath of leaders across government, industry, and academia to establish a world-class event. The inaugural GeoIgnite is already attracting significant attention both in Canada and abroad, and is sure to grow rapidly in the years to come.

Important Confirmed keynote speakers

Confirmed keynote speakers demonstrate the immediately recognized stature and value of the event. These include several internationally-recognized geospatial industry giants: Sanjay Kumar, Founder and CEO of Geospatial Media & Communications, who was conferred the ‘Global Geospatial Industry Ambassador’ Award by UN-GGIM; Keith Masback, the Vice Chairman of the United States Department of Interior’s National Geospatial Advisory Committee; and Geoff Zeiss, the Principal at Between the Poles who received the Geospatial Ambassador Award at Geospatial World Forum 2014.

Important Participation from Government

Participation from the public sector is expected to be high GeoIgnite. With confirmed speakers from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) the geospatial leader in Canada on the location technology along with other federal departments, leading Canadian geospatial decision makers in government, industry and social enterprise have officially joined the roster. Jonathan Murphy is the Managing Director of GoGeomatics Canada; Amina Deiab has worked on key energy policy issues with the Government of Alberta, and is currently the Senior Director Economic Policy in Economic Development and Trade; Bilyana Anicic is presently working as Enterprise Architect and IM Lead on Canada’s Privy Council Office (PCO) IM-IT Modernization initiative and serves on the Board of Directors of The Data Warehousing Institute (TDWI), Transforming Data with Intelligence.

An Ambitious Geospatial Agenda

The ambition for the trade show and exhibition portion of the event is to be a one-stop shop for attendees to see and experience the latest technologies, data, applications, and services. GeoIgnite’s will cast a wide net in terms of content and participation, reaching across sectors like banking, transportation, logistics, insurance, telecoms, mining, and agriculture. Companies and organisations looking to get in front of a motivated Canadian audience interested in location technology should consider participating in GeoIgnite.

GeoIgnite will provide a unique window into the Canadian geospatial community, including a showcase of impressive technological accomplishments and leadership in geospatial and location related technology. Canadian geospatial practitioners will have an opportunity to meet and network, sustaining existing relationships while fostering new ones. GeoIgnite will be the annual opportunity for the development of a vibrant Canadian Geospatial Community, integrally linked to global initiatives. The excitement is already building, and it’s likely the inaugural event will sell to capacity. Follow the event on GeoIgnite.ca as new details are announced.