compatibility of the core EuroSpec activities at three main
levels :
* Coordination with all other EuroGeographics activities.
e Compatibility and alignment with the evolution of the
NMCAs own strategies, and
e Integration within the wider European context.
External context (INSPIRE, etc.) ANS
need
RAN cé trim ii MO N
NMCAs activities =" e
d
| EuroGeographics activities e
| 0%
X9
EuroSpec activities
Pricing & licensing |
EuroSpec Schema
Architecture
ES
Requirements
Partnerships
2.5 Conclusion
In a 20-page report titled “Geographic Information Systems:
Challenges to Effective Data Sharing" published on 10" June
2003, by the US government's General Accounting Office one
can read that *.... ro date, the potential of GIS has not been fullv
realized. While steps have been taken to improve the
coordination of government GIS efforts, much more work still
needs to be done to round out a comprehensive set of standards
and to ensure that they are being broadly applied. Geospatial
One-Stop, in particular, while addressing useful near-term
tasks, has not focused on the need for a longer-term strategy for
facing the challenges of implementing the NSDI. ... significant
investments have already been made in existing non-standard
systems, and the task of replacing those systems and migrating
their data to new standards cannot be accomplished overnight.
until these challenges are addressed, the goal of a single,
International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol XXXV, Part B4. Istanbul 2004
coordinated, nationwide system of geospatial data will remain
out of reach.”
This may tend to show that the US federal investments for their
NSDI, much higher than its equivalent in Europe, has not been
sufficient — or not appropriately focused — for giving life to the
expected operational infrastructure. The ESDI will also not
arise spontaneously, and the US experience helps us to
understand that central (European) vision and investments are a
key to future savings.
Now is the right time: what mechanisms could allow to allocate
a relatively small budget (eg. a small portion of Galilleo or of
GMES) to fund this necessary first step that is a prerequisite for
future much larger savings in data collection, maintenance and
exploitation?
The concepts of EuroSpec are not original: they flow naturally
from previous research work related to defining an operational
SDI in general, and more particularly to the implementation of
the ESDI. What EuroSpec proposes as a new approach,
following a long period of talks is: *now let's start doing it!”.
EuroSpec, as a fundamental part of the setting-up of the
infrastructure, is a long-term process, which cannot be grasped
in its entirety from the start. Therefore the “talking” must
continue in parallel with the “doing”. However some doing is
necessary to give substance and relevance to the talking, and
more importantly to satisfy needs that are already there.
The main challenge is not technical, but — as usual — political.
Will Europe be capable of the adopting the vision and of taking
the political decisions — which go with organising and providing
the resources — that will allow this prerequisite to
interoperability to be developed within an appropriate
timescale?
» References:
ETeMII : http://www.ec-gis.org/etemii/
EUREF : http://www.igeo.pt/euref/
EuroGeographics : http://www.eurogcographics.org/eng/01 about.asp
EuroGlobalMap : http;//www.eurogeographics.org/eng/04 products globalmap.asp
EuroRegionalMap : http://www.eurogeographics.org/eng/04 products regionalmap.asp
EuroRoadS : http://www.euroroads.com/php/start.php
“Geographic Information Systems: Challenges to Effective Data Sharing" : htip://Www.gao.gov/new.items/d03874t.pdf
GiMoDig : http://gimodig.fgi.fi/
INSPIRE : http://www.ec-gis.org/inspire/
SABE : http://www.eurogeographics.org/eng/04_sabe.asp
>
State of the Art at the National Mapping and Cadastral Agencies (NMCAs), Antti Jakobsson :
http://www.eurogeographics.org/eng/03 projects eurospec docs.asp
