Kipal Sibal, Minister of Science and Technology for India, aggressively urged his counterparts within the Indian government toward a more open data sharing policy. An early, outspoken force for the value of geospatial data within his country, The Hindureported that Sibal "voiced concern over the lack of enthusiasm shown by many government departments, except those related to security, on sharing of geospatial data for dissemination." Sibal believes in the investment of geospatial data and the value it can bring in helping India develop its infrastructure and in the overall growth to the country’s economy. "We need to convince all central government departments, state governments and the line departments of the states that technology is not an end in itself; it is a vehicle for providing information to the people,” he said, again, according to The Hindu.
See also my 2007 interview with Mr. Sibal in which he discusses his views about the democratization of data within India.
According to the Wall Street Journal, demographics and location, in addition to politics and scandal, are shaping the race for New York’s 15th Congressional District, a seat held by Charlie Rangel (D). In an article published today, the WSJ shapes the race based on the fact that there are more retailers, more non-white Hispanic voters and more home ownership. What had once had an African-American majority is slowly changing and becoming more multi-racial. See also a map of the Harlem-centered district.
Kipal Sibal, the minister of Human Resource and Development of India, and the former minister of Technology and Earth Science, has introduced a pilot program in 33 schools in which to teach geospatial technology at the secondary and vocational level. "We need to prepare our children for the 21st century, which is going to be a century of enormous challenges. Launching of these courses is also a step towards preparing the children for the challenges," said Sibal in an interview published in sify news. Does this savvy politician have vision or what? I had the chance to interview Sibal three years ago at the Map World Forum conference in Hyderabad. At the time, he was pushing to a more open data policy in India. I would say he is probably one of the single most influential politicians, certainly in India, that has pushed geospatial technology forward.
What’s different about the 2010 Decennial U.S. Census? While we’ve all received the 10 question survey from the Census Bureau, there is one big change this year…the "long form" is gone! So, if you were one of the lucky ones in the past that had to complete a more lengthy form that allowed the Census Bureau to collect more specific demographics, you will be disappointed. In 2010, the American Community Survey (ACS) officially replaces the long form. In this episode of DMTV, we look at how the ACS will be conducted for 2010 and beyond.
Adena Schutzberg, executive editor, interviewed National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC) former president Learon Dalby about the 2009 NSGIC annual conference and the organization’s advocacy agenda for the coming year. Among the topics explored: authoritative data, social media, the broadband mapping stimulus, NSDI, oversight, and Data for the Nation. This is another in a series of interviews with geospatial insiders and outsiders.
