It’s no secret that our industry is facing challenges, just check out the stories on the various Geomatics groups on social media sites such as LinkedIn.  From attracting students, to hiring talented professionals, to the quick advancements of technology – our industry’s challenges are starting to take their toll and what have we, members of the community, done to help?

In the fall of 2013, the Board of Directors of the Alberta Geomatics Group acknowledged that our members were experiencing a variety of these challenges and that as an association, we wanted to help. After all, our survival is directly connected to a healthy and engaged Geomatics Community.

Some of the challenges that we indicated were marketing, public awareness, availability of staff and support for students entering the industry after postsecondary. To this end, we hosted a two- month public art gallery entitled “What is Geomatics?” in downtown Calgary and received only positive feedback. We also began conversations with both the public and separate Boards of Education in Calgary, and have been presented at several career events throughout the city. What next?

We determined that to solve any issue, dialogue between the involved parties was required.

To assist with this commencement of dialogue, we began the organization of a Geomatics Education Symposium in Calgary, which is to be held in May.  Invitations have been sent out to members, industry partners and education experts, in hopes of bringing together a group of people passionately interested in these topics. The intention of the event is to discuss work being done nationally by the CGCRT, better define both the challenges and successes of our educational establishments and the role industry can play in the future.

This dialogue will of course only be the start.  We have no intention of solving all of the challenges in one meeting, but hope that there will be adequate interest from attendees to participate in future meetings. These challenges may face each person differently, but at a high level, our industry will only be stronger through discussion.

Note: The Geomatics Education Symposium has been sponsored by TECTERRA.  A white paper on the discussion will be written and presented in the fall of 2014 for those unable to attend.

Brad Ashley
President – Alberta Geomatics Group
Technical Coordinator – MMM Group Limited

Who is the AGG?
The main purpose of the AGG is to promote the Geomatics industry by facilitating and fostering opportunities for information-sharing and networking among the members of its community through its website and newsletter and through hosting educational and social events.