A Few Words From the NSGIC President: What We've Been Talking About

The following is the fifth in a series of monthly guest-posts from 2008-2009 NSGIC President Learon Dalby, of Arkansas.

Sorry if we missed you at the NSGIC Midyear Conference in Annapolis, Maryland last month. We spent a good deal of time on the NSGIC Advocacy Agenda (PDF). I want to take a moment to provide you a quick summary of the NSGIC Issues Briefing so I can relay a few points that I feel passionate about.

The focus of this discussion was on communications. Technology is not our challenge. It is how people communicate (or don't communicate) that is our single biggest challenge. There was a sense in these discussions that NSGIC is somehow against the idea of "Elevation for the Nation." This is an example of missed communication.

NSGIC is not against LiDAR or against elevation data. NSGIC recognizes the need to provide all of the framework data sets. That said, efforts to create nationwide imagery and parcel products have been fully vetted in the community. We have viable plans in place for these data sets -- if only we continue to work together, and follow through on those plans.

The elevation data theme has not yet gone through a similar process. It will, we have no doubt. And when it does it will be successful.

Additional money for orthos does not equate to a successful Imagery for the Nation (IFTN). We know what needs to happen for IFTN to be deemed a success:

• Full funding is appropriated for the initiative;
• That funding is sustained into the future;
• Imagery plans include high resolution and 1-meter products;
• Effective management or governance is in place;
• IFTN provides benefits to all levels of government; and
• Imagery products are in the public domain.
  

As a community, we must avoid the many traps that can doom a "for the Nation" effort before it can become a part of our tradition. These include:

• Rushing to address an issue with a single purpose;
• Failing to obtain community buy-in;
• Spending taxpayer money and investing time without purpose;
• Failing to meet the needs of the full community;
• Not doing the job right the first time, and having to do it all again at additional costs; and
• Completely losing credibility in the process.

And so we must continue working to make Imagery for the Nation and Parcels for the Nation successes while we also work to prepare other important data initiatives such as Elevation for the Nation. We have a big job to do; careful planning and a deliberate, well-guided process will help us get it done.