San Francisco (January 30, 2008) – Conference programming and exhibition details for the 22nd annual GeoTec Event are now online at www.geoplace.com/gt. Sponsored by GeoTec Media, publisher of GeoWorld magazine and developer of the Web portal geoplace.com, the event is scheduled for June 2-5, 2008, at the Ottawa Congress Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

“People, Policies and Progress” is this year’s event theme, chosen to address the critical issues facing today’s geospatial practitioners from all industry sectors and from around the globe. These issues—emergency and disaster management; data availability; health care; infrastructure planning and management; homeland security; and government’s role in defense—will be discussed, analyzed and debated through a combination of presentations, workshops and panel discussions.

Programming Highlights
In addition to a full schedule of timely and educational technical sessions, the 2008 GeoTec Event also includes hands-on, pre-conference workshops on topics such as:
• Surviving and improving the user experience
• Integrating GPS and GIS
• Quantitative geospatial data integration
• GPS techniques for 3-D positioning
• Understanding ISO-19115
• GIS at your service
• 3-D geospatial (URISA certified)
• Proving value from IT/GIS across the enterprise
• Geovisualization

Keynote
Jim Geringer
Director of policy and public sector strategies, Environmental Systems Research Institute

Former Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer has long been a champion of IT and e-government. During his two terms as governor, from 1995 to 2003, he advocated wider use of technologies, such as smart cards, electronic benefits transfer and GIS that are now integral to government. After serving as governor, he joined ESRI as director of policy and public sector strategies.

Panel Discussions
Highlights of this year’s panel discussion series include:
• Who's Responsible: the Data Debate
Designed to address the broad topic of data/mapping, this timely panel discussion will also drill down to geographic dissemination, privacy issues, access, accuracy, legal aspects and the role of industry and government in these areas. Panelists include, Don Cook, Tele Atlas chief scientist and founder of GDT; John Fisher, CTO and chairman of DMTI Spatial; Ed Parsons, geospatial technologist, Google; and Alex Miller, president of ESRI Canada. Additional panelists will soon be announced at www.geoplace.com/gt.

• Industry Outlook
GeoWorld magazine editor, Todd Danielson, will be facilitating this panel discussion developed to take the popular annual magazine feature to a live and highly interactive level. GeoWorld magazine’s editorial advisory board members will be on hand to provide insights into what they think are the most important issues of the near future and how they will affect the geospatial technology industry, as well as to answer questions from the audience.

Exhibition
• More than 23,000 square feet of exhibition space in Congress Hall
• Expanded non-compete exhibit time
• Internet café located on show floor
• Map Gallery competition
• Vendor sessions on show floor
• GeoRally, Win a Wii and other fun competitions!

Social
• Exhibit Reception and Beer Tasting, Tuesday, June 3, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Accommodations
The host hotel, Fairmont Château Laurier, located in the heart of Canada’s capital, is across the street from the 2008 GeoTec Event conference and exhibition at Ottawa Congress Centre. Attendees of the GeoTec 2008 will receive discounted rates on rooms.

For further conference information, visit http://www.geoplace.com/gt or contact Kathleen Hastings at 225-218-9025. For information about the exhibition, contact Sutton Annas at 760-318-7000 ext. 360.