GIS-IDEAS March 2003

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[Gisideas] International Transdisciplinary Conference on Development and Conservation of Karst Regions - TransKarst2004, Hanoi, Vietnam
by Vern Weitzel 22 Mar '03

22 Mar '03

Subject: International Transdisciplinary Conference on Development and Conservation of Karst Regions - TransKarst2004, Hanoi, Vietnam Date: Fri, 21 Mar 2003 15:15:56 +0700 From: "tran tan van" <trantv(a)hn.vnn.vn> Trans-KARST 2004 International Transdisciplinary Conference On Development and Conservation of Karst Regions Hanoi, Vietnam 13 Â 18 September 2004 Under the auspices of UNESCO (IGCP Project 448 and IHP) Under the patronage of the UIS (Union Internationale de SpÃ©lÃ©ologie) With the support of: Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR), Belgium Katholic University Leuven (KUL), Belgium Free University Brussels (VUB), Belgium Geological Survey of Belgium (GSB), Belgium Fauna & Flora International (FFI), Vietnam International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Organization: - Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources (RIGMR) (Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment), Vietnam - Institute of Ethnology (IE), (National Center for Social Sciences and Humanities), Vietnam - Forest Protection Department (FPD), (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), Vietnam Rationale: The policies and practice of sustainable development often meet considerable difficulty in implementation due to the many interests at stake. Political, social, cultural, environmental and economic considerations must all be met. This is particularly the case in karst areas where communities are often poor. Despite their magnificent scenery and cultural and natural diversity their development is defined primarly in economic terms, generally to the detriment of the karst environment. The findings of two transdisciplinary research projects in karst areas in Vietnam confirm that sustainable development is not simply a question of controlling natural conditions and designing technical interventions. The cultural context, social organization and learning processes of the socio-cultural systems and communities must be understood and taken into account. The tensions between socio-economic development and conservation require integrated natural and social science approaches. Aims of the conference: Natural and social scientists all over the world interested in the development and conservation of karst regions are invited to Hanoi to present and discuss the findings of their projects through papers and posters. Trans-KARST 2004 will: - Offer a forum to discuss basic and applied research findings and research methodologies which can contribute to the management and development of karst areas; - Help strengthen interest in the preservation of geodiversity, biodiversity and cultural diversity through promotion of sustainable relationships between them; - Stimulate communication between researchers, practitioners and policy makers working in karst landscapes; - Explore ways to integrate natural and social sciences approaches in the management of karst systems. Themes and topics: Conference sessions will be organized around 4 major themes. Each theme will refer to a set of issues of particular relevance to or concern for the development and conservation of karst regions. I. Policy and management of land and water resources Topics: Balancing public and private responsibilities; reconciling economic development and nature conservation in land-use planning; the technical and social requirements for water supply, soil conservation and flood protection. II. Development of infrastructure and assessment of environmental risks and hazards Topics: Karst dissolution and collapse; the effects of climate change; flooding, flood controls and dam construction; environmental mitigation of infrastructure development; managing pollution of water resources in karst systems; monitoring karst water resources; karst structure, groundwater modeling and hydrological cycles; water tracing and vulnerability mapping; cave exploration and structural geology. III. Conservation of eco-systems Topics: Managing tourism in sensitive areas; developing and protecting show caves; cave exploration; conserving karst specific biodiversity; bio-diversity quantification and monitoring; sustainable forest management; impacts of land-use changes on cultural heritage and landscape; environmental impact and mitigation assessment. IV. Integration of natural and social science approaches Topics: Transdisciplinary research collaborations; multi-stakeholder collaboration in policy and practice; education and social learning; participatory research methodologies; social and geoscientific applications of GIS and remote sensing. Conference sessions will be organized to stimulate a transdisciplinary reflection and discussion. The conference language will be English. There will be a pre-conference workshop on new developments in karst research methodologies. There will also be a training workshop on karst ecosystem management and a post-conference fieldtrip to famous karst areas of Cuc Phuong National Park and Ha Long Bay World Heritage Site. A program for accompanying persons will also be organized. Venue: Hanoi National University is located in the historical center of VietnamÂs capital city, within walking distance of hotels, restaurants and museums. Organizing committee: - Dr. Nguyen Xuan Khien, RIGMR - Dr. Pham Cong Hoan, IE - Dr. Do Tuyet, RIGMR - Dr. Tran Tan Van, RIGMR - Prof. Dr. Jan Masschelein, KUL - Prof. Dr. Danny Wildemeersch, KUL - Fadi Nader, UIS - Dr. Michiel Dusar, GSB - Drs. Okke Batelaan, VUB - Drs. Olivier Tessier, IE - Dr. Mark Infield, FFI International scientific committee: - Prof. Dr. Phan Cu Tien, RIGMR - Prof. Dr. Duong Duc Kiem, RIGMR - Prof. Dr. Khong Dien, IE - Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang My, VietnamÂs Karst/Cave Association, Hanoi National University - Prof. Dr. Camille Ek, Liege Univ., Belgium - Prof. Dr. Chris Groves, Kentucky Univ., USA - Prof. Dr. Alain Dassargues, Liege Univ., - Prof. Dr. Cees Leeuwis, Wageningen Univ., Netherlands - Prof. Dr. Rudy Swennen, KUL - Prof. Dr. Hilaire De Smedt, VUB - Prof. Dr. Song, Linhua, Beijing Academy of Sciences, China - Prof. Dr. Pavel Bosak, Prague Academy of Sciences, Czech Republic - Prof. Dr. Elery Hamilton-Smith, Chair IUCN/ WCPA Task Force on Cave/Karst Protection - Prof. Dr. F. Zwahlen, NeuchÃ¢tel Univ, Switzerland Calendar with deadlines: - 1st circular March 2003 - 2nd circular Sept. 2003 - Submission of abstracts for papers and posters Dec. 2003 - Notification of acceptance Feb. 2004 - Submission of full papers and booking of excursions June 2004 Abstracts for Papers/Posters Abstracts for a paper/poster must include authorsÂ names, postal address, telephone number, e-mail address, title of the abstract and a summary of the proposed paper/poster (maximum 250 words). Papers will be published in proceedings. Excellent papers will be published in a referenced journal. The registration fee for the conference will be 200 US$. A reduced fee of 50% will apply for students and local participants. The fee will cover the proceedings, all conference sessions, daily lunches and tea and coffee breaks. All correspondence to conference secretariat: Dr. Tran Tan Van, RIGMR Tel: 84-4-854-3107 / Fax: 84-4-854-2125 Email: trantv(a)hn.vnn.vn http://www.vub.ac.be/trans-karst2004 http://www.trans-karst2004.org _________________________________ Tran Tan Van, D.Eng. Geologist-Geotechnical Engineer Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources (RIGMR) Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) Thanh Xuan, Hanoi, Vietnam Tel: 84-4-854-3107 Fax: 84-4-854-2125 Mob: 0913-37-19-27 Email: trantv(a)hn.vnn.vn __________________________________

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[Gisideas] Agent Orange: New Geographic Information System Tracks Military Herbicides
by Vern Weitzel 20 Mar '03

20 Mar '03

I've attached the abstract from the webiste below this article. The full version cannot be accessed without a password If anyone can send us the PDF version, I would be happy to reposte it to others. Vern Subject: [vnnews-l] Agent Orange: New Geographic Information System Tracks Military Herbicides sent to vnnews-l by Stephen Denney <sdenney(a)OCF.Berkeley.EDU> Copyright 2003 AScribe Inc. AScribe Newswire March 18, 2003 Tuesday 9:16 AM Eastern Time LENGTH: 644 words HEADLINE: New Geographic Information System Tracks Military Herbicides Used in Vietnam; System Studies Health Effects of Agent Orange 30 Years After Use by Modeling Military and Civilian Populations, Environmental Exposures BODY: NEW YORK, March 19 [AScribe Newswire] -- Between 1961 and 1971 U.S. military forces dispersed over 19 million gallons of herbicidal agents, including over 12 million gallons of Agent Orange, in the Republic of Vietnam. Millions of Vietnamese and a large number of the 3.2 million American men and women who served in the armed forces in Vietnam in areas defoliated by herbicides such as Agent Orange were exposed, but the health effects still are not fully known. Now, under contract to the National Academy of Sciences, researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health have developed a geographic information system [GIS] to estimate these exposures by analyzing the relationships between herbicide spraying, geography, population, and troop location. Researchers now have a tool to pursue epidemiologic and environmental studies of exposed individuals, military units, and other entities whose health might be affected by spraying activities. Co-lead investigators of the study Jeanne M. Stellman, professor of clinical health policy and management, and Steven D. Stellman, professor of clinical epidemiology, both at the Mailman School, developed the powerful GIS tool that will allow researchers to generate a quantitative measure and, therefore, estimate and assign herbicide exposure opportunity scores to troops, locations, and individuals -- critical tools for epidemiologic investigations of health outcomes. What this means for individuals is that now both Vietnam veterans and residents can determine their proximity to herbicide sprays. With its unique user-friendly software package, called the Vietnam Herbicide Exposure Assessment System at the Mailman School, the relational GIS database system provides the ability to do otherwise complex exposure model calculations with rapid, straightforward arithmetic procedures. According to Dr. Jeanne Stellman, "In the case of exposure to herbicides in Vietnam -- which began 40 years ago and ended 30 years ago -- no other reliable measure is available for large scale epidemiologic studies. While Vietnam was not uniformly sprayed, patterns we see are sufficient to justify these studies on military and civilian populations as well as studies of environmental and ecologic damage." Dr. Steven Stellman observes, "Lack of data and exposure models no longer need to be the major impediments they have been in the past to research the health of Vietnam veterans and the Vietnamese, Cambodian and Laotian people." The complete findings of the study will be published in the March issue of Environmental Health Perspectives and summarized in the Environews Section. You can access the abstract online at http://ehponline.org/orange2003/ or at http://dx.doi.org/ via doi: 10.1289/ehp.5755 . The National Academy of Sciences, as contractors of the research, will be issuing a report to the Veterans Administration in late March 2003 with recommendations for next steps and continuing epidemiologic research on the effects of Agent Orange. About the Mailman School of Public Health The only accredited school of public health in New York City, and among the first in the nation, Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health provides instruction and research opportunities to more than 800 graduate students in pursuit of masters and doctoral degrees. Its students and over 200 multi-disciplinary faculty engage in research and service in the city, nation, and around the world, concentrating on biostatistics, environmental health sciences, epidemiology, health policy and management, population and family health, and sociomedical sciences. About EHP EHP is the journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. More information is available online at http://www.ehponline.org/. CONTACT: Stephanie Berger, 212-305-4372, 212-305-5635; sb2247(a)columbia.edu ------------- A Geographic Information System for Characterizing Exposure to Agent Orange and Other Herbicides in Vietnam Jeanne Mager Stellman,1 Steven D. Stellman,2,3 Tracy Weber,1 Carrie Tomasallo,1 Andrew B. Stellman,4 and Richard Christian, Jr.5 1Department of Health Policy and Management and 2Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA; 3Institute for Cancer Prevention, Valhalla, New York, USA; 4Foundation for Worker, Veteran, and Environmental Health, Inc., Brooklyn, NY, USA; 5Lt. Col. U.S. Army (retired) and former Director U.S. Army and Joint Services Environmental Support Group, Washington DC, USA Abstract Between 1961 and 1971, U.S. military forces dispersed more than 19 million gallons of phenoxy and other herbicidal agents in the Republic of Vietnam, including more than 12 million gallons of dioxin-contaminated Agent Orange, yet only comparatively limited epidemiologic and environmental research has been carried out on the distribution and health effects of this contamination. As part of a response to a National Academy of Sciences' request for development of exposure methodologies for carrying out epidemiologic research, a conceptual framework for estimating exposure opportunity to herbicides and a geographic information system (GIS) have been developed. The GIS is based on a relational database system that integrates extensive data resources on dispersal of herbicides (e.g., HERBS records of Ranch Hand aircraft flight paths, gallonage, and chemical agent), locations of military units and bases, dynamic movement of combat troops in Vietnam, and locations of civilian population centers. The GIS can provide a variety of proximity counts for exposure to 9,141 herbicide application missions. In addition, the GIS can be used to generate a quantitative exposure opportunity index that accounts for quantity of herbicide sprayed, distance, and environmental decay of a toxic factor such as dioxin, and is flexible enough to permit substitution of other mathematical exposure models by the user. The GIS thus provides a basis for estimation of herbicide exposure for use in large-scale epidemiologic studies. To facilitate widespread use of the GIS, a user-friendly software package was developed to permit researchers to assign exposure opportunity indexes to troops, locations, or individuals. Key words: Agent Orange, cacodylic acid, defoliants, 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid, exposure opportunity, geographic information system, GIS, herbicides, military, picloram, 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy acetic acid, Vietnam. Environ Health Perspect 111:321-328 (2003). doi:10.1289/ehp.5755 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 1 November 2002] Address correspondence to S.D. Stellman, Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 630 West 168th Street - PH-18, New York, NY 10032 USA. Telephone: (212) 305-4911. Fax: (212) 305-9413. E-mail: sds91(a)columbia.edu We gratefully acknowledge the efforts of D. Hakenson and the U.S. Armed Services Center for Research of Unit Records in development of many of the data resources, F. Benjamin for her assistance with military records, and N. Heim for illustrations. J.M.S. and S.D.S. contributed equally to the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Academy of Sciences (subcontract NAS-VA-5124-98-001) and by U.S. Public Health Service grants CA-17613 and CA-68384. Received 6 May 2002; accepted 26 July 2002. Last Updated: February 19, 2002

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[Gisideas] 2003 SCGIS Conference: Call for abstracts! Date:
by Vern Weitzel 15 Mar '03

15 Mar '03

Subject: 2003 SCGIS Conference: Call for abstracts! Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 16:57:23 -0800 From: Susan Miller <smiller(a)esri.com> To: consbio(a)u.washington.edu SCGIS 2003 Conference: Call for Abstracts Deadline April 10, 2003 The theme of this year's conference is Creating Community. Topics will address the community building efforts of conservation activities, emphasizing the efforts made by government agencies, academics, nonprofits, activists, and commercial groups to work together and communicate. Please address this theme and discuss the benefits and challenges of forging partnerships with local & international communities. We encourage you to communicate the pro's and con's of your networking and collaboration with the various interest groups relevant to your work. Tell us how you "broke down the barriers" and how that effort benefited your project. We are looking for abstracts that highlight one or more of the following: 1. Community building efforts of your conservation activities 2. Technical applications of GIS in conservation 3. Recurring philosophical and ethical issues faced in conservation applications 4. Solutions to the common problems in developing research, data, and solutions for GIS applications in the field of conservation 5. Networking and professional development opportunities for attendees Please consider one or more of the following activities for your participation, and when submitting your abstract, indicate which type of activity you would like to do. Paper Presentations: These will be approximately 15-minute presentations. We will group paper presentations into 1 to 2-hour blocks that will include three or four 15-minute presentations, with ample time for more in-depth discussion. Workshops: These will be 45 to 90 minute presentations that will go into more depth than traditional paper presentations. Previous years topics include International metadata standards, application development, spatial analysis, modeling, etc. Workshop topics are expected to provide an exceptional professional development experience. Hands-on Training Sessions: We are still awaiting confirmation as to the availability of appropriate computer equipment. If we are able to secure equipment, the sessions will be two to four hour blocks of time devoted to hands on GIS, GPS, and/or remote sensing training. If trainers are able to bring any needed equipment, that would insure the training could occur. Posters: These will be hard-copy posters to be displayed throughout the weekend. Authors should be present during the Poster Reception (Thursday or Friday evening) to explain their posters and field questions. Individuals presenting papers are encouraged to bring a poster as well - please indicate on your application if you wish to do both a paper and poster presentation. Additional suggestions regarding conference activities: Please feel free to submit additional suggestions for activities you would like to facilitate at the conference, we would be more then pleased to hear your suggestions and to incorporate as many of them as possible! . . . Application Procedure If you decide you would like to present a paper &/or poster, lead a workshop, or provide a hands-on training session, please send an e-mail (with SCGIS in the subject header of the e-mail) to our abstract coordinator, Laurie Williams, at laurie_williams(a)naturealum.berkeley.edu by April 10, 2003 with the following information: * Name * E-Mail Address * Physical Address * Phone Number * Website (if applicable) * Activity Type (paper presentation, poster, workshop, training) * Title of Paper/Activity (10 words or less) * Abstract (250 words or less) You will be notified of your acceptance status no later than May 7th. If your activity is accepted, you will receive an e-mail with further details regarding equipment needs. Posters will automatically be accepted if the presenter registers and attends the SCGIS conference, however, you MUST still submit an abstract for your poster. Additional Information All presenters must register for the conference. You will be able to register for the Conference online at http://www.scgis.org/conference.html <http://www.scgis.org/Registration/RegFormPricing.lasso> in April. You may pay online using your MasterCard or Visa, or if you prefer, you can print out the registration form and send it, along with a check, to the address provided on the registration form. Registration at Asilomar, during the Conference, is of course also accepted, however, PLEASE NOTE that late fees will be applied to registration forms received after June 1st, so please pre register. Also note that you will need to make hotel reservations at Asilomar - information on how to do this will be posted to the SCGIS/Conference website shortly. Please also note, rooms at the Asilomar Conference Grounds will ONLY be available by pre-registration. They will not be able to accommodate those who decide to come last minute and local accommodations are expensive so plan ahead. If you have any questions about conference related issues, please contact Susan Miller at conference(a)scgis.org <mailto:conference@scgis.org>

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[Gisideas] Society for Conservation GIS (SCGIS) Annual Conference - July 3-5 , 2003
by Vern Weitzel 15 Mar '03

15 Mar '03

Subject: Society for Conservation GIS (SCGIS) Annual Conference - July 3-5 , 2003 Date:Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:07:12 -0800 From: Susan Miller <smiller(a)esri.com> To: consbio(a)u.washington.edu > Announcing the 2003 SCGIS Conference > The Society for Conservation GIS (SCGIS) would like to invite you to join > us at the 6th Annual SCGIS Conference, July 3-5th* 2003, to discuss and > promote local and global conservation of natural and cultural resources > through geospatial technologies. We are busy designing a diverse > conference agenda that will explore a variety of issues ranging from the > technical applications of GIS in conservation to recurring philosophical > and ethical issues faced by conservationists throughout the world. We will > also address the role of the Society in the development of the global > Conservation Community. > New Venue > ATTENTION: We are pleased to announce this year's conference will be held > in Northern California at the Asilomar Conference Grounds > <http://www.asilomarcenter.com/> - a refuge on the Bay. Nestled along the > shoreline of California's famed Monterey Peninsula, Asilomar is a tranquil > ocean front retreat cradled by forests and white sand beaches. Designed by > acclaimed architect Julia Morgan > <http://www.asilomarcenter.com/discover/historyarchitecture/morganbio.htm> > and embracing the Arts & Crafts architectural style, Asilomar harmonizes > with its natural surroundings. Rich with history, scenic beauty and > serenity, Asilomar is the ideal location for the SCGIS Annual Conference. > The Asilomar Conference Grounds is part of the California State Park > <http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=566> system, and offers 107 > extraordinary acres of forests, dunes, and coastline situated right on the > Monterey Bay National Marine Life Sanctuary > <http://www.asilomarcenter.com/discover/nature/sea/sanctuary.html>. For > more information about the conference facility and the local environment, > go to www.asilomarcenter.com <http://www.asilomarcenter.com> > NOTE: Reservations will need to be made earlier, rather then later this > year. So please stay tuned to the website for details. A posting will be > sent to this list as soon as the venue is prepared for us to begin the > registration process. Many thanks! > Theme for 2003 > > The theme of this year's conference is 'Building Community'. Presenters > will be encouraged to address the community building efforts of their > conservation activities, emphasizing the efforts made by government > agencies, academics, nonprofits, activists, & commercial groups to work > together and communicate. Those wishing to participate in this year's > conference should address this theme and discuss the benefits and > challenges of forging partnerships with local & international communities. > Community building does not need to be the focus of your talk or poster, > however we encourage you to communicate the pro's and con's of your > networking & collaboration with the various interest groups relevant to > your work. Tell us how you 'broke down the barriers' and how that effort > benefited your project. > Conference Format > The conference format will include the following: concurrent sessions for > formal presentations; posters sessions; discussion panels for topics such > as environmental ethics, integration of GIS, and conservation science; > user group meetings; hands-on training sessions; technical workshops; a > field trip; and organized socials. > Scholarships > Limited international and domestic scholarships are available to > Conservation GIS users who require financial assistance to enable them to > attend the conference. For more details and a scholarship application, > visit www.scgis.org/scholarship.html > <http://www.scgis.org/scholarship.html>. Additional information about this > year's conference will be posted to www.scgis.org/conference.html > <http://www.scgis.org/conference.html> as it becomes available. A call for > papers will be posted within the next few weeks. For general information > about SCGIS please visit www.scgis.org <http://www.scgis.org>. > Field Trips > A filed trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium is being planned on Friday July > 3rd. The aquarium features a 3-story living kelp forest tank, Sharks and > Otters, Sea Stars, Bat Rays, Jellyfish and much more. An Outer Bay gallery > is a million-gallon indoor ocean where turtles, tuna, and oceanic whitetip > shark are exhibited. For more information please visit the Monterey Bay > Aquarium <http://www.mbayaq.org/> website. > In addition, plans are underway with a local dive shop to provide us with > a SCUBA diving trip to one of the many spectacular dive sites in the > Monetary Bay area. Please stay tuned to the Conference website > <http://www.scgis.org/conference.html> for confirmation of this trip and > for additional information. > Please post this announcement to all interested lists and individuals! > *The weekend preceding ESRI's annual International Users Conference. > >

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[Gisideas] TRAINING OPPORTUNITY: Summer School 2003 - Spatial Data Infrastructure and e-Government (Italy)
by Vern Weitzel 02 Mar '03

02 Mar '03

Development Gateway Title: TRAINING OPPORTUNITY: Summer School 2003 - Spatial Data Infrastructure and e-Government (Italy) URL: http://www.vespucci.org/ Description: This website presents the 1st Annual Summer School on Geographic Information Science this year focusing on Spatial Data Infrastructure and e-Government. The Summer School is aimed at researchers from the university, commercial, and government sectors. It provides an inspiring and productive opportunity for peer-to-peer interaction with leading international experts in the field.

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GIS-IDEAS March 2003