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Speech by Jeff Labonté
Director General, Data Management and Dissemination Branch
Earth Sciences Sector, Natural Resources Canada
OGC Technical Committee Meeting Gala, 18 April 2007
[Introduction]
• Good evening ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of Natural Resources Canada and GeoConnections, I would like to welcome you here tonight.
• And thank you for joining us here in Canada for this OGC meeting. We’re extremely happy that you could join us.
• I’m going to spend a few minutes paying tribute to “interoperability,” a popular theme in many of this week’s technical and planning sessions.
• And after all it is the reason for being for many…and also certainly drives the OGC….and as well important parts of our work in the GeoConnections program at Natural Resources Canada.
• Now, I have to admit – at first pass – it is difficult to generate excitement about interoperability – in fact some are reluctant to try and spell the word.
• But I recognize that we here tonight are cut from a special cloth in the sense that we appreciate both the beauty and the potential of interoperability. I therefore consider it a great privilege and opportunity to speak about such an important concept.
• According to the Oxford Canadian dictionary, “interoperate” means… “to operate in conjunction.” That which implies a relationship between two or more parts.
• When someone in the geomatics field mentions interoperability, we typically think of fitting together data and applications and services to produce a whole greater than the sum of its parts - a vital connotation.
• But from our experience in GeoConnections -- interoperability can be defined more broadly. This broader definition extends to relationships.
• In this sense, interoperability refers not only to relationships between data, but also to relationships between organizations and people.
• And it is here – in developing and building relationships between organizations and people – that the OGC and it many participants are extremely valuable. The work that all of you do so well.
Let me take a few minutes to discuss the importance of interoperability, in three ways:
- First, interoperability and GeoConnections;
- Second, as it relates to end-users;
- And third, as it pertains to people like you – the global community.
1. Interoperability and GeoConnections
To start, I’d like to put GeoConnections’ into context.
In its initial phase, from 1999 to 2005, GeoConnections worked to develop the policies, standards, technologies, and partnerships needed to build the Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure – technical interoperability.
In 2005, the program received a second five-year mandate and $60 million in federal funding, to expand and evolve the CGDI to help decision-makers in four priority areas:
- public health,
- public safety and security,
- the environment and sustainable development, and
- matters of importance to Aboriginal people.
Through its advisory committees and consultation activities, GeoConnections works with stakeholders to set priorities for the program and for the CGDI, and we then help make these priorities a reality by:
- by funding projects that deliver specific results,
- by championing data standards and partnerships,
- by building relationships between public and private sector; and
- by promoting open and common licenses and access to data.
In other words – we work at building interoperability between organizations and people.
2. Interoperability and End-Users
We can also consider interoperability in a less typical context—as it applies to our relationships with end-users.
GeoConnections is working to establish strong relationships with decision-makers who deal with public health, public safety and security, the environment and sustainable development, and matters of importance to Aboriginal people.
Our relationships with these audiences—or our interoperability with these groups—will greatly dictate our success in the coming years.
Consequently, we want to show these target audiences the benefits of using geospatial information and applications.
We are also helping end-users take advantage of the CGDI in other ways. On April 1, 2007, Natural Resources Canada began offering its topographic data for free over the Internet. This new no-fee policy will help people develop knowledge, introduce innovations, and improve productivity—giving Canadians the advantage to succeed.
Moving forward – NRCan will also be making more data accessible under this no-fee model supplied via more consistent OGC based standards.
3. Interoperability and the global community
The concept of interoperability also applies to GeoConnections’ relationships with the global community:
- the OGC,
- organizations that oversee other spatial data infrastructures (which I will mention in a minute)
- the private sector,
- non-government organizations,
- associations and the academic community.
GeoConnections strives to align CGDI standards for Canada with the global standards of the OGC. As a result, we gain from the tremendous insights and work of others, we can contribute Canadian knowledge and know-how and we can build enduring relationships within a global marketplace.
Working with the global community we can ensure that interoperability stays “fresh” and meets the needs of not only the communities we serve, but those in other countries, other disciplines and around the geospatial community.
Our relationships with other national and international organizations matter because many of our issues in Canada involve a cross-border or international aspect. In other words, air pollution and flu outbreaks don’t stop at borders, and nor do forest fires, floods, and terrorist threats.
[Conclusion]
To sum up, interoperability is fundamental from three reasons:
- First, for ensuring the technology and services harness and advance diverse geospatial applications, data and services.
- Second, for enabling the compatibility of relationships between organizations and people; and
- Third, allowing us to work effectively with the global community. Whether its OGC partners from around the corner here in Canada of those from around the world together we are creating solutions and agreements to harness the potential of geospatial data infrastructures to make a difference.
• Thank you.