OGC invites you to the Disasters CDS Workshop at NASA Ames

18 April 2018: The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) invites you to the Disasters Concept Development Study Workshop on May 17-18, 2018 at NASA Ames, Moffett Field CA. The workshop is sponsored by USGS, FGDC and other US Government agencies. The workshop is hosted by NASA Ames.

The workshop marks the early stages of OGC’s Disaster Concept Development Study, and will shape future activities to be led by OGC regarding disaster preparedness & response, and to inform development of potential Disaster Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI).

In the last 10 years, Earth has experienced more than 370 annual natural disasters, causing an average of 70,000 deaths per year. So far in 2018, the United States alone has experienced three disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each.

Can we save more lives and reduce damages by providing better discovery and access to data that will improve mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery of disasters?

The ability to effectively share, use, and re-use geospatial information and applications across and between governments and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) in support of disaster response and resilience is dependent upon having a Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) already in-place when disaster strikes.

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) is bringing together key stakeholders in the natural hazards disaster communities to advance the emerging Disaster SDI by conducting a study and developing a set of pilots in the coming years. The OGC's Disasters Interoperability Concept Development Study (CDS) will assess the current state of data and product exchange technologies as used in disaster planning, response, and recovery. The information gained in the CDS will aid in developing a series of future pilots that will in turn advance the state of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs) that support disaster risk reduction across the globe.

Specifically, the purpose of this workshop is to guide future OGC Innovation Program Activities by:

1. Engaging different stakeholders in disasters
2. Helping participants better understand activities occuring at OGC and other key organizations
3. Engaging executive level participants to understand the most important challenges
4. Engaging operational and technical stakeholders to gather and share information on the current state for using geospatial data and services during natural disasters, including:
   • Understanding what data, applications, tools and services stakeholders need
   • Understanding what data, applications, tools and services are available
   • Understanding the discoverability, accessibility, and usability of resources
   • Understanding interoperability challenges and integration opportunities
   • Identifying gaps in data, applications, tools and services

For more information on the Disasters Concept Development Study visit the Disasters Interoperability Concept Development Study webpage.

For more information on the Disasters CDS Workshop, including the agenda and how to register, visit the Disaster CDS Workshop at NASA Ames event page on the OGC website. Registration for the workshop is free but mandatory.