WIGICC (Wisconsin Geographic Information Coordination Council) has recently formed several working groups to investigate and make recommendations on key council issues.
The Permanence Working Group was formed to identify a pathway for the council to obtain permanency. This working group is chaired by Jon Schwichtenberg, who is Chair of WIGICC (and President-elect of WLIA). The group contains WIGICC members as well as non-members from federal, state and local governments. There are two sub-groups, one focused on research and documentation and the other on legislative outreach. One of the goals of first sub-group is to develop a legislation proposal brief that outlines the proposed structure and authority of WIGICC, including questions of composition, funding, activities, and operations. A draft of this document is to be completed before the September 15, 2011, WIGICC meeting. The legislative sub-group, meanwhile, has been tasked with identifying and outreaching to several legislative champions.The first meeting of the group was held on June 3, 2011, with the next meeting tentatively scheduled for July 19, 2011.
The Elevation Data Working Group was created in April, 2011, and is chaired by Amanda Schwoegler of the Wisconsin DNR. The group has the following goals: develop an inventory of elevation data in the state; provide access to elevation data; create standards for RFP language for data acquisition projects; create a project management team to help manage grants; provide education and outreach; and develop a set of quality control standards for elevation data. A kickoff meeting was held on April 6, 2011, with WIGICC members as well as non-members from federal, state, and local governments, and the private sector. Additional documents and details can be found on the group’s WIGICC page.
The WIGICC meeting in Milwaukee on May 24, 2011, included a discussion of GIS and economic development. The meeting attracted a fairly large crowd, and one of the outcomes was the creation of an Economic Development Working Group. A core team consisting of Janet Ady, Matt Kures, Eric Compas, Alvin Rentsch and Howard Veregin held a kickoff meeting on June 8, 2011, to begin to define the goals of the group. Janet Ady is WIGICC’s at-large economic development representative and a Board member of WEDA (Wisconsin Economic Development Association). Eric Compas and Alvin Rentsch direct UW-Whitewater’s new GIS Center, which has an economic development focus. Matt Kures is GIS Specialist for UW-Extension’s Center for Community and Economic Development. The Economic Development Working Group plans to develop a mission statement and present this at the next WIGICC meeting for feedback.
WIGICC meetings and working groups are open to non-members as well as members of WIGICC. To obtain more information about council activities please visit the council website. You can also sign up to participate on the listserv or register as a member of the WIGICC network here. Contact information for current council members can be found here.