Monthly Archives: April 2014

Webinar: GIS Strategic Planning for Local Government

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Overview
Strategic planning is a vital tool for local government. For the past 17 years, Geographic Technologies Group (GTG) has been helping local governments harness the power of geographic information systems through careful planning, intelligent implementation, and expert guidance at every phase of the process.

An effective strategic plan is critical to ensuring that a GIS program gets off the ground. An effective strategic plan will help you gain the approval of key decision makers and most importantly, the funding needed for the program. Additionally, an effective strategic plan will ensure that the program sees a return on investment.

This webinar will guide you through 7 Steps needed in developing a successful strategic plan. Participants will learn about the key factors essential for a successful GIS strategic plan. Whether it’s a refresh, update, or enterprise-wide plan, this webinar will help you get started.

Audience
GIS Managers, GIS Users, IT Decision Makers, executives and other professionals involved in GIS programs.

Topics Covered
• 7 Steps to Strategic Planning
• 7 Keys to Success
• GIS Return on Investment

When
Tuesday, May 6, 11am to 12pm PDT
Click Here to sign up!

Another Great Meeting!

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Thanks to all that attended.  It was a full house and a great meeting. Thanks to Mark Greninger at LA County for organizing the meeting and to LA County Public Works for hosting the location. The talk by Scott Gregory from the State of California and the Q&A was very interesting. Near the end of the meeting, Aerospace Corporation demonstrated their UAS. After some technical issues getting it started, they were able to get it off the ground and fly around in the courtyard.

Links to presentation documents should be available soon on the SoCalGIS Meetings page.

LA’s Electrical Use

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Researchers at UCLA have put together an interactive map showing electrical use in the City of Los Angeles neighborhoods.  The data is organized by block group and shows the average amount of electricity used per customer for each month over a one and a half year peroid, how that compares to other neighborhoods, and how energy use has changed over the study period.

You can hover over block groups on the map to see electricity usage (kWh) over time, switch between average use per month and percent change from one month to the next, zoom in and click to show land use, income, and other characteristics, and animate the usage over time.

The app is best viewed in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari … sorry Internet Explorer!

la_electric_use

EPA Map of California Tracks Pollution

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The California Environmental Protection Agency has released a statewide list of census tracts most burdened by pollution. Many of the worst pollution pockets identified are in the San Joaquin Valley, Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire.

The screening tool, called CalEnviroScreen, was developed by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, a branch of Cal/EPA, to pinpoint the communities with the highest exposure and vulnerability to multiple environmental hazards, including polluted air and water, waste facilities and contaminated soil.  The rankings, however, are not based only on measures of environmental exposure. They also take into account socioeconomic characteristics and health data on residents to assess the overall vulnerability of communities. Those factors include poverty, education, unemployment, rates of asthma and low-birth-weight infants.

You can read more about it in this LA Times article.

epapolutionapp

As a side note, I find the CalEPA app a little slow in Internet Explorer.  Google Chrome was a little faster.  They are using ArcGIS Online technology for their mapping.  If you do a search for “calenviroscreen” on ArcGIS.com, you will see a listing of their maps and apps for versions 1.1 and 2.0.

SoCalGIS/LA Regional GIS Meeting April 29th, 2014

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Our joint SoCalGIS and LA Regional GIS meeting will be next week on Tuesday, April 29, 2014, from 1:30pm to 4pm.  Our guest speaker will be Scott Gregory, the California State GIO. We will also have a demonstration of UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) from the Aerospace Corporation.

For more information, RSVP, and Agenda can be found on the SoCalGIS Meetings page.

Hope to see you all there next week!

ArcGIS 10.2.2 Now Available

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ArcGIS 10.2.2 is now available for download from the Esri Customer Care website.  ArcGIS 10.2.2 is a minor incremental release focused on software fixes and quality.  Issues that have been fixed are listed here.

Also, if you use an Oracle geodatabase, there is a required patch you need to install with your 10.2.2 software.

Install guides: Desktop and Server (Windows or Linux).

Tax Freedom Day 2014

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In the spirit of April 15th, tax day in the US, remember Tax Freedom Day too.  This year Tax Freedom Day falls on April 21st, three days later than last year.

Tax Freedom Day is the day when the nation as a whole has earned enough money to pay its total tax bill for the year.  We all work over 3 months for the government each year!  Click below to see a calendar-based illustration and map of the cost of government.

taxfreedomday

In California, our Tax Freedom Day falls on April 30th.  California ranks #4.

Indian Ocean Images on Google Maps

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An eagle eyed reader pointed this out to me today.  If you look on Google Maps in the Indian Ocean, you will notice a patchwork of what appears to be recent satellite photos.

 

Thanks goes to Tim Harvey for pointing this out.

This might be related to the search of flight MH370, however I could not find any articles about it.  If any of you know, please reply to this post and give us all the details.

1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the US

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In 1932, Charles O. Paullin and John K. Wright published an Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States. It was a seminal reference book, containing almost 700 maps, and now it’s been digitized for you to explore online.  It is full of fascinating data, mapped across the US, from weather, travel, population, to gold reserves, oil fields, and vegetation types.  It’s been painstakingly transcribed into digital format, which you can view georectified or as scanned plates.  Check it out!

1932atlas

Earn an MS in GISci in 1 Year

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Earn an MS in GISci in 1-year – CSULB’s MSGISci

There is still time to apply to the California State University Long Beach MS in Geographic Information Science (CSULB MSGISci). The MSGISci is a 1-year 30-unit program geared toward working professionals.

Click here for more information http://www.ccpe.csulb.edu/email/GIS.html and/or visit www.beachgis.com.

Please contact the MSGISci Program Coordinator  Ms. Beth Moody CCPE-GIS@csulb.edu and/or the MSGISci Program Director Dr. Suzanne Wechsler (Suzanne.wechsler@csulb.edu) with any questions.

April 15th is the priority application deadline.  Additional applications will be accepted through June 1st, pending remaining openings within the cohort.