A More Formal COGO Announcement

The URISA Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) page now features a formal announcement of the "officialization" of COGO. The announcement includes a more complete list of founding member organizations and founding advisory organizations and a word from NSGIC president (and COGO Chair) Cy Smith, of Oregon:

"I know I speak for all organizations that have joined this coalition when I say that we are excited and optimistic about the potential to accelerate the advancement of a variety of national geospatial issues."

NSGIC is among the founding members, so we'll keep an eye on, and link to, COGO developements as they occur.

Coalition of Geospatial Organizations Becomes Official

The Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) came into official being during a regularly scheduled meeting on August 4, 2008, at the ESRI User's Conference in San Diego. Representatives of several organizations attended via conference call and WebEx.

The following founding member organizations voted unanimously to approve a set of Rules of Operation and Procedure that brought COGO into existence:

• American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM)
• American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS)
• Association of American Geographers (AAG)
• Cartography and Geographic Information Society (CAGIS)
• Geospatial Information Technology Association (GITA)
• GIS Certification Institute (GISCI)
• International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO)
• Management Association for Private Photogrammetric Surveyors (MAPPS)
• National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC)
• University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS)
• Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA)

The group also elected its first group of officers:

• Chair: Cyril R. Smith (NSGIC)
  
• Chair-Elect: Curtis W. Sumner (ACSM)
  
• Secretary: George Donatello (IAAO)

The next meeting of COGO is expected to be held in conjunction with the next meeting of the Federal Geographic Data Committee, in October.

More details on COGO

Matteo Luccio has posted a comprehensive overview of the new Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) on The MetaCarta Blog. In Geospatial Organizations Form a Coalition, Luccio offers a list of the organizations that have come together to form COGO (including NSGIC) and has interviewed several of the leaders of those organizations about their goals for COGO. and he discusses the thinking behind the formation of the new group, and some thoughts about how it will work.

COGO Sparks Interest and Curiosity

This week's Directions Magazine Podcast takes a look at the new Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO). Adena Schutzberg has been following the development of COGO and takes the opportunity to reflect on the purpose and organizing principles of the group.

In general, she is interested and supportive, though she's waiting for more details and information. Further information will become available as COGO becomes formally established and organizations ratify their membership.

COGO is just getting started, based on input from a wide variety of organizations, including NSGIC, whose leadership team has been involved from the start. The NSGIC states are voting now on whether or not the Council should affiliate with COGO and become a founding member, as recommended by NSGIC leadership.

We are watching the birth of a new organization. And, if Adena's take on COGO is representative, we are watching intently.