AGSE 2010

F.-J. Behr, M. Ngigi, A. P. Pradeepkumar, M. Zimmermann: Usage and Benefits of Geographic Information Technologies Proceedings Applied Geoinformatics for Society and Environment 2011 - Geoinformation for a better world. 15. - 19. August 2011, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Africa Institute for Capacity Development, Nairobi, Kenya

It is apt that the AGSE returns to a developing nation with high biodiversity this year, the UN’s International Year of Biodiversity. Peru with its outstanding annual growth rate of 5.3%, and very high earnings from tourist arrivals is a cradle of ancient civilization, as well as a natural biodiversity laboratory. Peru hosts one of the world’s most varied and exotic ecologically significant landscapes across terrain ranging from the sea level to the Andean high peaks. Natural phenomena and Peru’s fame and fortune are closely interlinked, the Humboldt current bringing in rich fish resources while the El Niño brings with it misery. Peruvian sense of nationality goes back to pre-historic times with the nation taking pride in Pachacútec, the emperor who expanded and consolidated the Inca Empire. And it is apt that the AGSE2010 is being hosted in Arequipa, La Ciudad Blanca, by the Universidad Catolica de Santa Maria which is at the forefront of technology as well as the host of Juanita at its Museo Santuarios Andinos, thus melding two diverse streams of human endeavour. The AGSE2010 and JINIS2010 (the XVII Jornada Internacional de Ingeniería de Sistemas), which take place in parallel, bring to the forefront the technological acumen that Peru has developed over the years.

Prof. Dr. Franz-Josef Behr, Dr. A.P. Pradeepkumar, Mirka Zimmermann M. Sc. and the staff members of the Faculty of Geomatics, Computer Science and Mathematics, Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences, César A. Beltrán Castañón, PhD. Professor at the University of San Agustín and Santa Maria Catholic University - Arequipa, Peru, and the staff members of Santa Maria Catholic University

Chair: Prof. Dr. Franz-Josef Behr, Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences Members: Prof. Dr. Dietrich Schröder, Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences Dr. Anakkathil Purushothaman Pradeepkumar, Dept of Geology, University College, Trivandrum, Kerala, India Dr. David Kuria, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenia Prof. Dr. Michael Hahn, Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences Dr. V. P. A. Weerasinghe, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka

The papers in this AGSE2010 cover scientific and application oriented tracks classed into 12 broad themes of current relevance to geoinformatics like Environmental Issues, Sustainable Development, Millennium Development Goals; Open Source Solutions and Tools; Internet-based Applications; Neogeography and Geovisualisation; Photogrammetry; SDI; LiDAR data analysis; GIS and health; GI Policy and Society, e-Government; and alumni experiences. The conference certainly will have a Latin American flavor spiced with international inputs from countries like India, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Kenya, Canada, Sri Lanka, USA etc. GIS-based papers addressing biodiversity and sustainable development in developing countries, fire hazard risk management, disaster management, share space with papers elucidating state-of-the-art GIS technologies to tackle river pollution, papers extolling Free and Open Source GIS, city GIS etc. Material from the workshops on Internet mapping, Open source Desktop GIS, Geostatistics and R, Process management, quick WMS server setup add to the pedagogic nature of the proceedings volume