The University Consortium for Geographic Information
Science
by
David M. Mark and John Bossler
Forty-two individuals representing thirty-three universities, research institutions, and the Association of American Geographers (AAG), met December 4-6, 1994, in Boulder, Colorado, to establish the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS). Representatives were invited by the presidents or chancellors of seven U.S. research universities with prominent programs in geographic information systems [1]. The UCGIS is to be a non-profit organization of universities and other research institutions dedicated to advancing our understanding of geographic processes and spatial relationships through improved theory, methods, technology, and data.
The consortium will be open to all U.S. academic and research organizations that meet the membership criteria established at the meeting. Member institutions will have the opportunity to participate in reviewing and setting national research priorities in GIS and related specialties, and they will speak with a single voice in helping to formulate national science policy at the highest levels.
The UCGIS will be open to input from scientists and scholars in all disciplines involved in geographic information science. Its objectives include expanding and strengthening geographic information science education, providing an organizational infrastructure to foster collaborative interdisciplinary research in geographic information science, and promoting the ethical use of and access to geographic information for the benefit of society.
In 1988, the U.S. National Science Foundation established the National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis. The solicitation for NCGIA proposals was the outcome of a process that had both grass-roots and top-down elements, and which lasted several years. The NCGIA, a consortium of three institutions (the University of California, Santa Barbara; the State University of New York at Buffalo; and the University of Maine) conducts basic research as its primary mission, but also has educational and outreach functions.
NCGIA is also asked, from time to time, to provide services or coordination to or for members of the broader geographic information science community in the United States. In 1990, the oversight Board of Directors of NCGIA, in discussions with NCGIA leaders, recommend that some more broadly-based organization be established to promote and support the field, especially the needs of researchers. After continued discussions in 1991, NCGIA responded by establishing an ad hoc Steering Committee consisting of 16 individuals from as many institutions, representing about seven different academic disciplines. This group discussed the issue over electronic mail, and organized a panel discussion at GIS/LIS'92 in San Jose. Subsequently a report was written and circulated, and summaries were presented at professional meetings in the first half of 1993. An all-day meeting of the Steering Committee and other interested parties was held just before GIS/LIS'93 in Minneapolis, and results were disseminated at a panel session later in the week. By this time, the idea had gained sufficient momentum, and during 1994, invitations to the Boulder meeting were launched.
UCGIS will be housed on an interim basis within the Washington, D.C. offices of the AAG, until a permanent location is chosen. John Bossler, Director of the Center for Mapping at The Ohio State University, was elected to serve as interim President, and Ron Abler, Executive Director of the AAG, was elected to serve as interim Treasurer. Four standing committees were proposed, and populated on an interim basis. One committee, chaired on an interim basis by Lyna Wiggins (Rutgers University) will examine substantive issues of research and educational agendas, and will produce the content for a UCGIS brochure. Jeff Osleeb (Hunter College, CUNY) is interim chair of the membership committee, Harlan Onsrud (University of Maine) is chairing the committee to draft formal bylaws, and Karen Kemp (UC Santa Barbara) will chair the nominating committee that will organize nominations for the first set of officers under the new bylaws.
While this article was being written, representatives of the UCGIS founding institutions met in Charlotte during the ASPRS/ACSM annual meetings. Then, on March 19th, immediately after the AAG annual meeting in Chicago, they will meet to formally adopt a set of bylaws. Until then, rules and procedures for UCGIS that were drafted in Boulder are subject to change.
Initially, membership the UCGIS is expected to be restricted to U.S.- based organizations. Some in Boulder felt that institutions from other countries should be included in UCGIS, whereas others favored a plan to encourage the establishment of parallel organization sin other nations. UCGIS membership is also planned to be restricted to educational institutions, national research labs (such as Oak Ridge, Los Alamos, or Sandia), and non-profit non-governmental organizations. Excluding private-sector corporations from full voting membership in UCGIS was a controversial decision, and could be changed in the future. UCGIS does expect close cooperation with U.S.-based industry, on both promotion of and research coordination in the geographic information sciences.
Tentative criteria for membership in UCGIS were discussed in Boulder. Prospective member institutions would have to demonstrate that they had a critical mass of GIS researchers and other professionals, and that they had a broad, multidisciplinary organization on campus or across their organization. Existence of high-quality GIS laboratories, substantial research productivity, and significant enrollments in GIS courses all would strengthen an application. Applicants would need to show how they will contribute to the mission of UCGIS, and would need support of senior officials from the campus administration or organizational leadership. Strength in some areas might compensate for weakness in others, but commitment to the mission and administrative support are crucial. The founding institutions will each have to apply for confirmation of their membership, under the criteria for new members, within the first five years.
Footnote 1: Ohio State University; State University of New York at Buffalo; University of California, Santa Barbara; University of Maine; University of Minnesota; University of South Carolina; and University of Washington