Google on Geospatial Data Sharing

Dylan Lorimer, of Google's Strategic Partnerships Team, has posted some thoughts on the Google Lat Long Blog on why and how Google would like to share data from state and local governments.

In the post (Why we believe in geospatial data sharing), he points to recent blog posts from Google about their interest in sharing data, and notes the importance of working with state and local partners:

We undertake these partnerships because, by definition, organizations like local governments are the most authoritative source of geospatial data for their jurisdiction.

But, he adds, with so many state and local government agencies now providing data, it is important for Google to work with "organizations that seek to streamline access to and simplify the sharing of geospatial data." And we're pleased to see NSGIC used as an example.

Several Google folks were with us at the NSGIC Midyear in Annapolis, and we had some good discussions about issues of data sharing between the states and Google (similar to our on-going conversation with federal partners). Mr. Lorimer points to a shared support, among Google, NSGIC and federal partners, for development of the NSDI and important initiatives such as Imagery for the Nation.

From those discussions has come a set Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about sharing data with Google, which is now posted as part of the Google Map Content Partners site.

He finishes with a look ahead:

We applaud the work of GIS agency managers and policymakers who are working, at all levels of government, to ensure that the public's investment in geospatial data is shared and thereby used across agencies and governments, but also is made readily available to the public through free services like Google Maps. We look forward to collaborating with NSGIC and other organizations to advance such efforts in data sharing.