Dear Members,
As we wrap up 2006 I want to thank everyone who is a member of our group. This year marks out 5th anniversary and I have to say that I am so proud of this group and how far we have come. I have lots of plans for SWIGIS next year including revamping the webpage, starting regional chapters and making SWIGIS a formal professional association. Please continue to support SWIGIS by recruiting members, contributing to our newsletter and forum as well as spreading the word about the organization. Thank you once again.
Best Wishes,
Noemi Mendez
noemiatswigis.org
PS: As we start to re-organize please take a look at some new logo designs by member Mara Kaminowitz http://www.silverdragon.org/swigis/swigis.html. We are both looking for feedback so feel free send me comments regarding the designs.
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GIS for Non Profits
By: Alison Hayes
GIS is a rapidly growing industry. It seems like as time goes by more and more companies jump on the bandwagon and hire their own GIS department, or hire the ever-growing contingent of GIS consultants and contractors. There are probably more GIS jobs available now than there are people qualified to fill them.
Amid all this growth, where does this leave the groups that might not have the funding utilize on newer technology? Government slowly finds a way to get the newer technologies, businesses find they have to use the new technology to keep up, and then where does that leave nonprofits? The larger, nationwide nonprofits might be able to afford a GIS person, or possibly even a GIS department, if they realize how useful they can be. But what of the smaller organizations? These nonprofits who haven’t learned of GIS, or who have thought it’s something that they can’t afford, or have realized they can’t hire somebody full time.
I have had experience working at two such organizations, and I strongly believe that there is much hope for these organizations to find cost-effective ways to do GIS work. Monmouth Conservation Foundation acknowledged that they needed GIS, went out and purchased the software, and hired a contractor to do the work for them. That contractor did not fully understand their needs as a nonprofit, and so after his contract expired, they hired me on as a part-time employee, a position I still hold. I organized the computer and data system so that if anything was needed on a day I wasn’t there, a brief phone call would make the map they needed printed available. For the most part it was also simply a matter of planning a week in advance. They had a part time employee who could talk them through their equipment any time necessary. I also was hired by the American Littoral Society. They hoped to create their own GIS system, but did not have the funding, software, hardware, or printer to fulfill their needs. I was able to make arrangements with Monmouth County’s GIS department to use their equipment over the winter and spring when there was equipment free to use. If ALS had received the funding they had hoped for, we could have easily moved the work I was doing over to their office, and set them up with a GIS system and a part-time GIS employee.
I strongly believe that there are a lot of small nonprofits out there who are unwilling or unable to take the plunge into hiring either a contractor or purchasing their own equipment because they believe the costs are going to be more than they can bear, with a possibility of worries that the work they invest will only be useful for one particular project. That all may have been true in the past, but GIS is growing in so many ways and uses as well as becoming steadily more and more inexpensive and user friendly. There is also a great amount of data freely available for them to use, which can be most advantageous.
In the 1970’s when GIS was first created, it was UNIX-based, found only in very large computers, required advanced programming knowledge, and created coverage files which could be rendered useless with one accidental deletion or movement of data. Only the government could afford it at first, and then very large companies. As computer technologies advanced, GIS software also became wieldier and less expensive. Eventually, by ArcView 3.x, the software fit easily on any desktop PC, as long as it wasn’t too old. The price dropped to the thousands. At this point, the ArcView 9.x software can be purchased for about $1500, which is around the price of a good desktop PC. Now a color printer can be purchased for $60-100. This still might seem a bit excessive to a nonprofit, but ESRI is offering a special deal especially for nonprofits– they will sell the software to nonprofits for the second year’s maintenance fee, $400. Things suddenly look a good bit more affordable on the software end. The nonprofits do need to jump through a few hoops, but they are also offered some free training and other perks for purchasing the software this way. The free training won’t make an expert, but it should train somebody well enough to maintain a project.
Then comes the all-important issue of training. There isn’t much point in buying software you don’t know how to use. However, that too can be remedied at a lower cost than previously. One option is to have an employee who is interested in learning add that to their workload. Take the free training, probably some other courses as well, and hope you know enough to have everything work. The second option is to hire a consultant willing to prepare the project and assist the training. This means that nonprofits will have to be especially careful in their selection of a consultant, but it does indicate much better rewards are in store for them, whether they have a consistent GIS program, or just use GIS for occasional projects. It also might be possible for nonprofits who work closely together to combine their resources to get the software, hardware, and training they need.
Nonprofits are different from all other organizations a person could work for. The stereotype is that the pay isn’t good. The truth is that the pay is most likely not the best you can get, but there are other, less tangible, perks for the work. In a field like GIS where the value of a knowledgeable person is high, even earning medium to low on the pay scale means you’ll be paid more than a decent percentage of the nation’s population. The other thing about nonprofits is that they work for a purpose, not for money. Their bottom line is whether or not they succeeded in their purchase. Most of them know that what they are doing is the right thing, and something that will give back to society. You’ll find that some of the most unique and sometimes incredibly generous people are working at the nonprofits. People are willing to give a lot to what they are working for, and many times willing to work hard with their coworkers. Also, nonprofits tend to be places where everybody does a little bit of everything. Many times there isn’t a secretary – everybody answers the phone, runs their own photocopies and other such tasks. The work is varied within the constraints of the organizations goals, and the attitude within the organization is usually positive and in many cases more casual than other working environments. All these attitude differences can be enough to more than adequately make up for not making the highest salary possible.
The next question is what do we, as individual GIS professionals, want and want to do? If we feel we have to make the best possible income, it’s not worth it to try to work at a nonprofit. There are other areas within the field that fit those needs. If we have a cause we’re already passionate about, we might want to find nonprofits that also work towards our cause, and see if we can convince them that GIS is a worthwhile use of their time and money. We might start out as volunteers if necessary- good practice and usage of our skills for a good cause and a good way for students, recent graduates, and those changing careers to get experience. Large nonprofits are another possibility for full time employment, but that requires having their headquarters within reach, or at least wherever they decide to keep their GIS people. Smaller nonprofits most likely cannot afford a full time GIS person, both because of the amount of work needed to be done, and the simple financials of hiring professionals. However, it might be possible to create several positions with several nonprofits, and figure out some kind of deal for your benefits and retirement, especially if the nonprofits you work for have a history of working together. The other option, if you want to work on the nonprofit market, is to be an inexpensive consultant and target your audience.
I personally see nonprofits as an important part of the future of GIS. Now that the big businesses and the governments from federal down to municipalities have discovered the use of GIS, its time for GIS to become an options for the groups trying to work with or take on those organizations. They deserve to have the same mapping and analyzing power as their opponents or partners or be able to use the same tools to convince a public audience. The nonprofit market is in the process of realizing their need for GIS, and so now is the time for GIS professionals to decide if nonprofits are groups they want to work for.
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Member News:
Sue Roussie
Sue Roussie won first place in the SkillsUSA national championship competition
in Geospatial Technology. The SkillsUSA Championships, held in Kansas
City, Mo., took place June 18-24, 2006, as part of the SkillsUSA 42nd
annual National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC), a showcase
of career and technical education students. College/postsecondary
students studying Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Remote
Sensing (RS), and Global Positioning System (GPS) from across the
country were invited to participate in a qualifying test from which
the top students with the highest scores were selected to compete in
Kansas City.
Students had to prepare a specified GIS project in advance to
demonstrate competency with industry-standard Geospatial Technology
software tools. In Kansas City, the contestants orally defended that
project. In addition, each student was required to take a written
and hands-on test to evaluate his or her Geospatial Technology
skills. Students also sat for the STARS GIS certification test.
During the national competition, Ms. Roussie and other students
worked against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in
occupations like electronics, computer-aided drafting, precision
machining, medical assisting and culinary arts. All contests are run
with the help of industry, trade associations, and labor
organizations, and test competencies are set by industry.
Ms. Roussie is a graduate student at the State University of New York
at Buffalo. She will receive her MA in Geography in September and
will continue with the PhD Geography program in the fall.
SkillsUSA is a national partnership of students, teachers and
industry, working together to ensure America has a skilled
workforce. SkillsUSA chapters help students who are preparing for
careers in technical, skilled and service occupations excel.
SkillsUSA has more than 280,000 students and instructors as members.
For more information, visit http://www.skillsusa.org/.
Jessica Long: California University of Pennsylvania
This summer I have been researching under the guidance of faculty and graduate students at
the Disaster Research Center (DRC) at the University of Delaware. The research is a
part of their second year Research Experience forUndergraduates (REU) funded by the National Science Foundation in which I am one of eleven students from across the country participating in the program. I spent the first few weeks becoming familiar with the
university, the DRC, and partaking in modules designed to teach social science aspects of
disasters and research methods....I am currently working on a paper entitled "An Analysis of Incoming Information Sources Utilized By Oklahoma Emergency Managers as a First Step Towards More Effective Risk Communication." I will be continuing this research
through the completion of my undergraduate degree with the hopes of publication.
As an REU student I have enjoyed numerous benefits of having being accepted to the program including a variety of speakers from organizations including the American Red Cross,
National Academy of Science, and FEMA. I have also traveled to Colorado for the Annual
Hazards Workshop and to New York City to tour two Offices of Emergency
Management (Brooklyn and Nassau County). The 9-week program will come
to a close August 4, 2006 with the expectation of a completed research
paper for the DRC's May 25, 2007 deadline.
Debbie Gelbard
Global Dawn – A First GIS Novel
Global Dawn is the story of a GIS professional, whose ideological drive to bring Geographical Information to the world's citizens is grounded in his daily involvement with the Earth, its lines, its structure and its systems. He exposes Geographical Information as the binding force that can equalize nations and cultures, and he plans to build the Global Geospatial Data Framework that will enable it to do so.
In the writing of Global Dawn, Deborah Gelbard has drawn the threads of her inspiration from a multiplicity of sources related to cartography, global networking and belief systems old and new. The ancient concept of Mother Earth as a central energy source is cleverly knitted to such modern philosophies as those of R. Buckminster Fuller, Donald E. Ingber and former US Vice-President, Al Gore: Fuller's theories of natural synergy, Ingber's tract on the architecture of life and Gore, whose dream of constructing a Digital Earth was first developed at NASA and more recently taken up by Google Earth. The intricacy with which the author seamlessly joins these themes into the infrastructure of a lively plot with believable characters quickly draws her reader into the twists and turns of regular Israeli life against a background of war and natural disaster. In the words of Digital Earth pioneer and founder member of the International Society for Digital Earth, Dr. Timothy Foresman:
By developing Global Dawn on the foundation of the Digital Earth, the author, Deborah Gelbard, has achieved an innovative concept in her novel: She weaves science, art, mysticism and spiritual growth into an enticing drama that combines the joy and the angst of embracing a common destiny for humankind amid grim, present-day realities."
The book goes on to explore, first the history and roots of the mapping profession and then its projected future in a vision that might be viewed equally well as either technological fact or fantasy.
Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Ingram distributors. It is published by Pendium Publishing, September 2006. ISBN: 0-9724586-7-0 Global Dawn can be ordered online via the following dedicated link: http://www.webhaven.co.il/globaldawn.html
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Job Openings
Houston TX Council of Governments GIS position
Performs GIS work related to regional data mapping and analysis, within the Data Services Department's GIS Administration Group. Responsibilities will include GIS data development, mapping, analysis and documentation. Work will be performed in a Windows environment, using ESRI ArcGIS and a variety of spreadsheet and database applications. Develops and implements data topology methods and procedures. Converts data from one software platform to another. Geocodes data files; enters, corrects, and modifies data.
Go to http://www.h-gac.com/HGAC/Home/Jobs/06-126+GIS+Technician.htm for more details.
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Volunteers Needed:
SWIGIS is looking to expand our online presence! We are looking for staff members to help us keep our blog swigis.blogspot.com up to date. If you have a few hours a month and are interested in writing articles or snipets for the SWIGIS blog send an email to noemi@swigis.org. This is a great opportunitty to advertise your business, school or just contribute to our society.