President’s Blog: A gathering of the ICA people – the ICA Retreat in Vienna

Many persons are involved in our organization. They have different roles, different background and different ideas. In order to learn to know each other better, to synchronize our understanding of “our” ICA and to allow for taking on board all those rich ideas, perspectives and thoughts all Executive Committee Members, Commission Chairs and Co-Chairs, Working Group Chairs and further ICA officers met at the Technische Universität Wien in Vienna, Austria from 22.3.2024 to 24.3.2024 for an intense working meeting.

The agenda included several information presentations on issues of mutual concern, several group-works and workshops and simply time to meet, discuss and be part of ICA.

In the unique venue of the “Kuppelsaal” of the Technical University of Vienna we found enough space and inspiration to gather and work together.

At the ICA retreat at TU Wien Kuppelsaal, Vienna, Austria 2024

The meeting started with an introduction from President Georg Gartner on the nature, aims and scope and mission of the International Cartographic Association. It is really the global voice for Cartography and GIScience and the motto “We love maps” is a common nominator for all of us.

In order to learn to know each other better we performed a group work, where we paired in two to be able to introduce always the other person accordingly.

We then collected ideas about the questions:

What would you like to give to the ICA community?
What would you like to get from ICA?

which resulted in a long and rich list of relevant items.

Dusan Petrovic, Pyry Kettunen and Francis Harvey working hard and having fun at the retreat at TU Wien Kuppelsaal, Vienna, Austria 2024

Having set the tone for the meeting with this we then dived into several existing structures, instruments and elements of ICA, such as the ICA Webservices (presented by Webmaster Manuela Schmidt), the International Journal of Cartography (presented online from the Editors Anne Ruas and William Cartwright), the ICA Publication Regime (presented online from Publication Committee Chair Menno-Jan Kraak), the ICA Executive Committee (presented by President Georg Gartner and Secretary-General Thomas Schulz), the ICA Commissions and their Administration (presented by Secretary-General Thomas Schulz), the ICA Conferences (presented by Vice-President Serena Coetzee), the ICA memberships, MoUs and relations to other organisations (presented by Past-President Tim Trainor), the ICA Research Agenda (presented by Vice-President Haosheng Huang), the ICA Body of Knowledge (presented by Working Group Chair Terje Mitbo).

Inbetween further group interventions took place, refering to the idea of synchronizing our understanding of the core concept of our organization (What is a map?), identifying and presenting commission and working group plans and synergies (led by Vice-President Dusan Petrovic), a SWOT (Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threads) – Analysis of ICA (led by Vice-President Alex Kent), a open mic session on ideas and visions (led by Vice-Presidents Amy Griffin, Jiping Liu and Dariusz Dukaczewski).

The ICA “people” in front of the Karlskirche during the ICA retreat, Vienna 2024

Socializing opportunities despite the amical, fruitful and constructive working atmosphere have been taken on a joined short “CartoWalk” around Karlsplatz and joined meals.

Participants of the ICA retreat in front of the Technische Universität Wien, Vienna 2024

The event proofs my feeling right again, that ICA is really more like a family – it is such a privilege to be able to cooperate with so many bright, motivated, enthusiastic, fantastic scholars and persons!

List of Participants

Executive Committee

President: Georg Gartner
Past President: Timothy Trainor
Secretary-General and Treasurer: Thomas Schulz
Vice President: Serena Coetzee
Vice President: Dariusz Dukaczewski
Vice President: Amy Griffin
Vice President: Dusan Petrovic
Vice President: Haosheng Huang
Vice President: Alexander Kent
Vice President: Jiping Liu

Commission Chairs and Co-Chairs

Art and Cartography: Taien Ng-Chan
Atlases: Vitek Vozenilek, Eric Losang
Cartographic Heritage into the Digital: Matyas Gede
Cartography and Children: Silvia Marinova
Cartography and Sustainable Development: Britta Ricker
Cartography in Early Warning and Crisis Mgmt: Christophe Lienert, Jie Shen
Cognitive Issues: Tumasch Reichenbacher, Pyry Kettunen, Petr Kubicek
Digital Transformation of Mapping Agencies: Bin Jiang
Education and Training: Tao Wang
Ethics in Cartography: Aileen Buckley
GeoAI: Samantha Arundel
Geospatial Analysis and Modelling: Xintao Liu
Geospatial Semantics and Ontology: Francis Harvey
Geovisualization: Florian Ledermann, Arzu Cöltekin
High-Definition Maps: Qingyun Du
Integrated Geospatial Information: Anja Hopfstock, Kathryn Arnold
Location Based Services: Jukka Krisp
Map Design: Ian Muehlenhaus
Map Projections: Krisztian Kerkovits
Maps and the Internet: Otakar Cerba
Marine Cartography: Ron Furness, Lysandros Tsoulos
Mountain Cartography: Patrick Kennelly
Multi-scale Cartography: Guillaume Touya, Izabela Karsznia
Topographic Mapping: David Forrest, Lukas Halik
Toponomy: Matjaz Gersic
Ubiquitious Mapping: Toru Ishikawa, Angela Schwering, Armand Kapaj
User Experiences: Robert Roth

Working Group Chairs and Co-Chairs

Next Generation Cartographers: Katarzyna Slomska-Przech, Chelsea Nestel
Inclusive Cartography: Jakub Wabinski, Vincent van Altena
Body of Knowledge: Terje Mitbo

Category: Art and Cartography, Atlases, Cartographic Body of Knowledge, Cartographic Heritage into the Digital, Cartography and Children, Cartography and Sustainable Development, Cartography in Early Warning and Crisis Management, Cognitive Issues in Geographic Information Visualization, Commission News, Digital Transformation of the National Mapping Agencies, Education and Training, Ethics in Cartography, GeoAI, Geospatial Analysis and Modeling, Geospatial Semantics and Ontology, Geovisualization, High-Definition Maps, Inclusive Cartography, Integrated Geospatial Information for Cartography, Location Based Services, Map Design, Map Projections, Maps and the Internet, Marine Cartography, Mountain Cartography, Multi-scale Cartography, Next Generation Cartographers, President's Blog, Topographic Mapping, Toponymy, Ubiquitous Mapping, User Experience, Working Group News

Tag: Austria, retreat

President’s Blog: A landmark conference in Eastern Europe

The already 9th International Conference on Cartography and GIS has taken place in Bulgaria this time in Nessebar from 16-21 June 2024. The ICCGIS is a biannual conference that started in 2006 and had attracted attendees from more than 60 countries and has published more than 700 scientific papers in its proceedings.

The event has been organized by the Bulgarian Cartographic Association and the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy of Sofia, namely by Silvia Marinova and Temenoujka Bandrova. ICA is endorsing this conference, as it gives Cartography an international platform and allows to collect knowledge and share experiences about the latest achievements of Cartography and GIS.

Despite more than 100 presentations and 31 poster presentations four ICA Commission held their meetings at Nessebar, the Commission on Cartography and Children chaired by Silvia Marinova, the Commission on Cartography in Early Warning and Crisis Management with co-chairs Shen Jie and Christophe Lienert the Commission on Maps and the Internet chaired by Otakar Čerba and the Commission on Map Projections, chaired by Krisztian Kerkovits.

The organisers managed to have the presidents of ISDE (Alessandro Annoni), ISPRS (Lena Halounova) and ICA (Georg Gartner) being present, identifying the mutual interests of those societies and associations to contribute to global challenges by the means of cartography, GIScience and the wider geospatial industries.

Participants of the 9th International Conference on Cartography and GIS, 18.6.2024, Nessebar (Bulgaria)

ISPRS President Lena Haounova and ICA President Georg Gartner at the 9th International Conference on Cartography and GIS, 18.6.2024, Nessebar (Bulgaria)

Otakar Cerba, Chair of the ICA Commission on Maps and the Internet, reporting on the commisson work and plans at the 9th International Conference on Cartography and GIS, 18.6.2024, Nessebar (Bulgaria)

Category: Maps and the Internet, Member News, President's Blog

Tag: Bulgaria

President’s Blog: Get your hands on! Check out what the pre-conference workshops of EuroCarto 2024 have to offer

The EuroCarto 2024 conference will take place from 9—11.9.2024 at Vienna, Austria. This conference will again see more then 180 contributions in oral presentations, posters and exhibitions demonstrating the wide range and contemporary character of cartography.

A number of pre-conference workshops are offered on Sunday, September 8, 2024 at TU Wien for the conference participants, covering a wide range of contemporary and highly relevant topics of cartography to be discussed in an interactive manner. I am sure there is something interesting for every cartographer included!

Barrier-Free Cartography

The ICA’s Working Group on Inclusive Cartography was established earlier this year to continue and extend the work of the former Commission on Maps and Graphics for Blind and Partially Sighted People. The primary objective of this working group is to advance the accessibility of cartographic products to all users and communities.

The idea is that special needs are not strictly related to physical aspects, and can also be related to social and educational aspects. These are also reflected in the UN’s SDGs that aim to “…ensuring that no one is left behind…”. Individuals with special needs remain underrepresented in the field of cartography. This underrepresentation may stem from the intricate and nuanced nature of their requirements, coupled with the need for highly tailored solutions. But what exactly are their needs? How can we define, develop, and promote barrier-free cartography, and who are the users that will benefit from accessible maps? We aim to provide a forum to address these questions and provide answers during the barrier-free cartography workshop.

Building the road to AI – how cartography links data integration, meaning and geospatial knowledge transmission

All countries need geospatial information to address their national strategic priorities. However, all countries have different levels of geospatial maturity. The United Nations Integrated Geospatial Information Framework (UN-IGIF) provides a basis and guide for developing, integrating and strengthening national arrangements in geospatial information management.

In this workshop, hosted by the ICA Commission on Integrated Geospatial Information for Cartography and Commission on Topographic Mapping, you will learn more about the development and activities of the UN-GGIM and UN-IGIF, how countries across Europe can adopt and implement the framework, how data can be provided via national Geoportals and how cartography builds the road to AI.

Collaborative mapping of commissions beyond the International Cartographic Association (ICA)

This workshop will allow participants to critically evaluate a landscape of map conceptions shaped by the ICA commissions. Drawing upon the work of the Iconoclasistas collective, the conception of a map as a collaborative practice will be explored. Through participatory methods, this workshop will reveal cartographic spaces where the ICA has yet to venture, both geographically and epistemologically.

Indoor location-based services (Indoor LBS)

The research on indoor LBS is not trivial. On the one hand, its design closely depends on both indoor themes (e.g., airports, shopping malls) and target users (e.g., passengers under time pressure, visually impaired customers). Therefore, there is a huge need to investigate the indoor LBS requirements and guarantee its usability. On the other hand, the emergence of agents, such as air drones and service robots, results in more diverse indoor LBS with various indoor map formats, including floor plans, BIM models, depth images, and point clouds. However, this is also challenging to communicate indoor spatial information among different agents and collaboratively provide indoor LBS for human users as well as other agents. The workshop is organized by the ICA Commission on Location Based Services.

Mapping Future Courses: Bridging Old and New in Cartographic Education for Europe

The ICA Commission on Education and Training, the ICA WG on Cartographic Body of Knowledge, and the ICA Commission on Digital Transformation of National Mapping Agencies are organizing a workshop, Mapping Future Courses: Bridging Old and New in Cartographic Education for Europe. The workshop brings together experts to share their latest thoughts and best practices on how to include new digital technologies and tools in cartographic education, including GIS, remote sensing and geomatics education. It will be a combination of oral presentations and live discussions.

Multiperspective Cartography in Conflict Visualisation

This workshop explores approaches, potentials and limitations of visualising multiple perspectives in peace and conflict cartography. It addresses complexities and uncertainties in how maps politicise space, and challenges in integrating critical perspectives in day-to-day cartographic research and practice. The engagement of maps with multiple perspectives is expected to enable discussions on scientific authority, transparency, and trustworthiness, as well as inclusion of bottom up and personal perspectives. The workshop takes up a reflective practice approach, starting from discussing existing examples of multiperspectivity in maps and visualisations (via short presentations). From there, participants work in groups on collecting and reviewing cartographic practices that engage with multiple perspectives in terms of both map analysis and production. The workshop aims to deliver an outline of a multiperspective approach to visualising peace and conflict, with the ambition of gathering a cartographic community around the topic.

Online User Experiments: Seeing What Map Users See without Seeing Them

This workshop is designed for researchers, practitioners, and students interested in conducting online user experiments in cartography with a special focus on webcam eye tracking to study map users’ behavior. Building up from a previous ICA workshop on “Workshop on Adaptable Research Methods For Empirical Research with Map Users”, we aim to collaboratively explore the possibilities and boundaries of the current state of conducting online experiments to inform cartographic practice and map use. This workshop represents the joint efforts of the ICA Commissions on Geovisualization and User Experience (UX).

Participatory mapping – new approaches and technologies

Participatory mapping, a widely employed geographical method across disciplines, remains relatively underexplored within the International Cartographic Association. This workshop seeks to introduce three distinct participatory mapping apps/approaches: an in-situ participatory mobile app, a web-based participatory mapping tool, and a paper-based “paper2GIS” style app. Each method has the potential to target diverse groups and serve different mapping purposes.

Storytelling with Geographical Visualization

This workshop explores how we express and communicate a current issue to a wide audience by visualizing geographical data. After an introductory talk on the implementation of cartographic design principles in data journalism (20 min), groups of participants will be given the task of devising a method for mapping a current issue using datasets, contextual maps, and drawing materials provided (70 min). After the activity, participants will be encouraged to feedback on their approach and discuss their decisions over the methods of representation chosen (30 min). The workshop provides an opportunity to discuss ways of visualizing data within the context of a current issue and by deliberately eliminating the need for technical skills in particular software. The workshop is therefore designed to maximise inclusivity (encouraging multinational and transgenerational participation) and to allow a greater focus on the process of creativity in exploring approaches to cartographic representation.

The Future of Atlases

In this workshop, hosted by the ICA Commission on Atlases, we want to rethink atlases and develop new approaches to both atlas production and atlas research – focal points of the Atlas Commission’s work. We believe it’s about recombining content structures, technical developments, geographical information and the re-organisation of knowledge. We would like to approach this by answering the following questions:

What will be the elements (or aspects) of an atlas of the future?
How will atlases of the future be technically realised?
What other aspects need to be taken into account in the future?
What research topics need to be focused to scientifically support these points?

Web Cartography Education in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

The main goal of the workshop is to promote knowledge sharing and collaboration among experts and stakeholders in the field of AI-enabled web cartography, to inspire participants to develop innovative solutions and projects in the field and to promote advancement in web cartography education through the responsible use of AI. During the interactive workshop, we will share experiences, challenges and examples of good practice in this dynamically developing field. The workshop will take the form of an interactive discussion to encourage active participation of all participants.

This workshop is organized by the Chair of the ICA Commission on Maps and the Internet.

One workshop will already take place on Saturday, Septemer 7 in Warsaw, Poland:

ICA Workshop on AI, Geovisualization, and Analytical Reasoning

This workshop is intended to relate to supporting geovisualization and analytical reasoning, including approaches that leverage AI methods applied at various stages: data processing, analysis, visualization generation and interpretation, as well as support in user perception interpretation.

For more details on the workshop in Warsaw, visit the CartoVis24 website.

For more details on all EuroCarto 2024 workshops, visit eurocarto2024.org/workshop-programme

Category: Atlases, Cartographic Body of Knowledge, Digital Transformation of the National Mapping Agencies, Education and Training, Geovisualization, Inclusive Cartography, Integrated Geospatial Information for Cartography, Location Based Services, Maps and the Internet, President's Blog, Topographic Mapping, User Experience, Working Group News

Tag: AI, Austria, barrier-free cartography, cartographic education, collaborative mapping, conflict visualization, indoor, LBS, participatory mapping, Regional Cartographic Conferences, storytelling

Report of the 13th Mountain Cartography Workshop

The 13^th ICA Mountain Cartography Workshop, organized by the Commission on Mountain Cartography (CMC), was held April 3-7, 2024 at the base of Poland’s Tatra Mountains.

Workshops are usually held biennially, alternating with the International Cartographic Conferences (ICC). This year, CMC workshop got back on this traditional schedule, after the 12th ICA CMC Workshop in the Colorado Rockies needed to be rescheduled twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was originally scheduled for April 2020, then initially rescheduled to April 2022, and finally convened in April of 2023.

The workshop organizer was Rafał Jońca of AMG Maps. CMC Chair Patrick Kennelly supported the team in preparation of the workshop, and previous workshop organizer Tom Patterson and ICC liaison Dušan Petrovič provided plenty of logistical support. Tom Patterson was especially helpful in building the web site for the workshop, as well as answering numerous questions about how we could recreate the success of the Colorado 2022 ICA CMC workshop. We selected Limba Grand & Resort as the workshop venue because of its proximity to Krakow, Poland (about three hours away by train or car), and for its beautiful mountain setting. Limba Grand & Resort is near the city of Zakopane and within easy reach of the Tatra Mountains that serve as the southern border of Poland with Slovakia.

The workshop had 36 participants from Poland, Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Croatia, India, New Zealand, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Switzerland, and the United States. Five of the participants were female and five were students.

The theme of this year’s workshop was “Mapping Mountains in a New Era” to focus on how we approach mapping mountains, and how this focus may change in the coming years. The workshop featured 23 presentations grouped into 7 sessions. Rafał Jońca organized the program and was flexible in accommodating the needs of speakers both before and during the workshop. He asked several younger participants to chair sessions with the goal of making them feel welcome and involved.

The workshop began on Wednesday evening with welcoming remarks from Rafał Jońca and Patrick Kennelly.

This was followed by a social time in our spacious dining room, which the Limba Grand & Resort allowed us to use in addition to our meeting and recreation rooms. A downstairs great room provided access to pool, ping pong, and foosball tables for evening recreation. Nearby was a third room we had available to us for social gathering. Our meeting room had all the needed equipment for presentations, and also served as a map and poster gallery.

Thursday and Saturday were devoted to presentations covering a variety of topics related to mountain cartography. Presentations were either 10 or 20 minutes in length. Thursday evening after dinner opened with shorter Avalanche Talks by presenters who discussed their poster contributions. This year, all five Avalanche Talks were given by undergraduate students from Middlebury College in Vermont, USA who completed their posters as part of a Senior Seminar with their professor, Jeff Howarth, who unfortunately was not able to attend. Many participants noted these beautifully designed and thought-provoking posters, along with the interesting and engaging overviews from the students’ Avalanche Talks, as a highlight of the conference. This session was followed by the CMC business meeting which was run by CMC Chair Patrick Kennelly.

Friday was the Field Study Day. The purpose is for participants to get to know both the beautiful mountain setting of the Tatras and one another better in a more informal manner. Participants had three options. Rafał Jońca led a cultural tour of Zakopane and its environs, including city center of Zakopane, with a focus on local wooden architecture in Zakopane’s style and an old cemetery of Zakopane. The tour also included a funicular to a stunning view of the Tatras and Zakopane. After organizing transportation to the nearby Tatra National Park for all interested participants, Dušan Petrovič led a field study to the iconic Morskie Oko, while Charly Kriz led other participants on a hike to a spectacular viewpoint of the Tatras.

Upon returning to the Grand Limba & Resort, the last activity on Friday was the always challenging mountain trivia quiz hosted by Tom Patterson. The winning team (Alex Fries, Karel Kriz, Dušan Petrovič, Ondrej Prochazka, and Silviu Bumbak) scored 20 out of 27 possible points.

The workshop continued on Saturday with additional presentations. Also, Dušan Petrovič, our liaison on the ICA Executive Committee, provided an overview of the ICA and other items that were of interest to the CMC attendees. He also presented two attendees with Young Scientist Scholarships to assist in their travel costs, Madeline Grubb from the United States and Shekhar Kumar from India.

ICA scholarship awardee Madeline Grubb from the US

ICA scholarship awardee Shekhar Kumar from India

The workshop concluded Saturday evening with a night out in Zakopane at the Góralski Browar, a fun and festive conclusion to the workshop.

The workshop program, CMC business meeting notes, and other information are available on the CMC website at https://mountaincartography.icaci.org, and all photos in this report are courtesy of Charly Kriz and Dušan Petrovič.

Rafał Jońca, Patrick Kennelly, and Dušan Petrovič

Category: Commission News, Mountain Cartography

Tag: conference report, Poland

Selection of a theme for the Barbara Petchenik Competitions 2025 & 2027

Every four years, the ICA Commission on Cartography and Children is responsible for the selection of a theme for the next two Barbara Petchenik Competitions. Again, the commission decided to organize a voting process to select a new theme.

First, members and colleagues were asked to propose themes for the competitions. We received 54 themes that were sent by colleagues from 11 countries and an international organization. An online voting slip was created with Google Forms to allow commission members and interested colleagues in general to participate in the voting process from May 6 to May 24, 2024.

In the end, we counted fifty responses in the voting process for the new theme for the competitions in 2025 and 2027. The winner theme with 20 votes is ‘Maps in everyday life’, submitted by the Argentine Centre of Cartography and proposed by David Díaz. Our warmest congratulations on behalf of the ICA to both the centre and David!

We would like to thank all the colleagues who sent their proposals and also all those who sent their votes in the last weeks. The detailed results of the voting process can be seen here:

Our next task is to update the rules for the 2025 competition, which will be discussed at the next commission meeting on 18 June at 4 p.m. as part of the 9ICCGIS2024 conference programme in Nessebar, Bulgaria.

Silvia Marinova & José Jesús Reyes Nuñez
Commission on Cartography and Children

Category: Cartography and Children, Commission News

Tag: Barbara Petchenik Competition

Invitation to CartoVis 2024 – ICA Workshop on AI, Geovisualization, and Analytical Reasoning

The University of Warsaw Department of Geoinformatics, Cartography, and Remote Sensing in collaboration with the International Cartographic Association Commissions on Cognitive Issues in Geographic Information Visualization, Geovisualization, and User Experience (UX), as well as ICA Next Generation Cartographers Working Group are pleased to invite you to the 2024 ICA Workshop on AI, Geovisualization, and Analytical Reasoning, on Saturday, 7 September 2024 at the University of Warsaw, Poland.

Early-stage work is explicitly encouraged, especially by junior scholars or those new to cartography.

We invite you to contribute to our Call for Papers. Short papers (2 pages) can be submitted until 15 May 2024 and abstracts (300 words) until 1 June 2024. Submissions are expected to report on ongoing and emergent work that aims to tackle one of the many dimensions of cartography: specifically, we welcome those that relate to supporting geovisualization and analytical reasoning, including approaches that leverage AI methods applied at various stages: data processing, analysis, visualization generation and interpretation, as well as support in user perception interpretation. Broadly speaking, we are seeking work that focuses on understanding users, their cognitive processes, and/or their interactions with visual representations and computational methods via maps or geographic visualization. We welcome research that tackles these and related problem areas through computational, representational, artificial intelligence (AI), ethical, or contextual methodological lenses. This workshop will provide a forum in which new approaches and ideas can be discussed and where new research collaborations can be formed.

There will be no conference fee!

For details please visit our workshop website: http://carto-vis-workshop.uw.edu.pl/

We are looking forward to your contributions and to welcoming you to Warsaw!

CartoVis24 Organizers

Category: Cognitive Issues in Geographic Information Visualization, Commission News, Geovisualization, Next Generation Cartographers, User Experience

Tag: cfp, Poland

Invitation to the 18th ICA Conference on Digital Approaches to Cartographic Heritage

The ICA Commission on Cartographic Heritage into the Digital, continuing the tradition of its annual Cartoheritage Conferences since 2006, is pleased to invite you at the 18th ICA Conference on Digital Approaches to Cartographic Heritage in Bologna, 23-25 October 2024 – in partnership with the the University of Bologna, Department of Civil, Chemical, Environmental and Materials Engineering (DICAM), supported by the MAGIC – Map & Geoinformation Curators Group.

Call for Papers

The Programme will be organised in thematic sessions dedicated to issues relevant to the subjects usually treated in the Conferences of the ICA Cartoheritage Commission, according to its Terms of Reference (2023-2027).

Possible topics include but are not limited to:

Digitisation – Georeference.
Content analysis in terms of geometry and thematics of cartodiversity.
Landscape change studies based on map-archival sources.
Visualisation of Cartoheritage, including thematic portals.
Interconnection of cartographic archival sources, especially map and textual data.
Historical terrestrial and aerial photography, including photo-related post-cards and relevant material – cartographic parametrisation.
Cartoheritage web providing issues.
Interaction of cartoheritage with map and geoinformation curatorship of cartodiversity.
Development of cartoheritage as a cultural issue, within the context of GLAM, addressed to education and to the general public.
Geographic affinities with Cartoheritage.
Cartoheritage and Digital Humanities.
Other relevant issues of the Cartoheritage ecosystem.

The presented papers are published in the Conference Proceedings (ISSN-2459-3893) available in digital form during the Conference.

For your participation in the conference, please fill and submit online your participation form.

For abstract submission, please fill and submit online the paper title & abstract form (Deadline: 30 April 2024)

For more information about the conference please visit cartography.web.auth.gr/ICA-Heritage/Bologna2024.

Category: Cartographic Heritage into the Digital, Commission News

Tag: cfp, Greece

18th International Conference on Location Based Services (LBS 2023) – A Report

The LBS conference series started in 2002 in Vienna, Austria, initiated by Prof. Georg Gartner from TU Wien. Since 2015, it has become the annual conference of the ICA Commission on Location Based Services. In the past years, the LBS conferences travelled around the world – with venues in Hong Kong, Salzburg, Nottingham, Shanghai, Vienna, Augsburg, Zurich, Glasgow, and Munich.

In 2023, the LBS conference was hosted by Ghent University, Belgium, on November 20-22, 2023. Around 90 participants from all over the world gathered in the historical city center of Ghent. The conference was opened by the Conference Chairs Prof. Haosheng Huang and Prof. Nico Van de Weghe.

Opening session of the 18th International Conference on Location Based Services – LBS 2023 held in Ghent, Belgium

The conference featured five keynotes by Prof. Krzysztof Janowicz from University of Vienna, Bart Rosseau from Digitaal Vlaanderen, Prof. Wim Hardyns from Ghent University (UGent), Prof. Sofie Van Hoecke from UGent-imec, and Prof. Sidharta Gautama from UGent.

A total of 50 oral presentations have been given in 10 single-stream sessions over the two and half days. Another 4 showcases were presented all the conference. These oral presentations, showcases and posters provide a general picture of recent research activities related to the domain of LBS. Such activities emerged in the last years, especially concerning issues of GeoAI, outdoor/indoor positioning, smart environment, spatial modeling, personalization, context-awarenesss, cartographic communication, novel user interfaces, crowdsourcing, social media, big data analysis, usability and privacy.

Oral sessions of LBS 2023

Opening session of the 18th International Conference on Location Based Services – LBS 2023 held in Ghent, Belgium

Showcases at LBS 2023

The conference also featured a “Best paper session” on the 3rd conference day.

The best full paper award at LBS2023 went to Eva Nuhn, Kai Hamburger and Sabine Timpf from University of Augsburg, Germany for their full paper on “Mapping olfactory cues for wayfinding – A theoretical approach and an empirical study”.
The winner of the best short paper award at LBS2023 is “Towards Personalized Pedestrian Route Recommendation Based on Implicit Visual Preference”, authored by Lin Che, Martin Raubal and Peter Kiefer from ETH Zurich.

With the co-sponsoring of ESRI BeLux and ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, we were also happy to offer Travel Grants to support 7 young researchers to participate in the conference.

A selection of peer-reviewed full papers will be published in the Journal of Location Based Services. Accepted work in progress submissions are included in the conference online proceeding.

Besides the technical and scientific program, the conference provided several social networking opportunities, including an ice-breaker reception on the first day and a conference dinner in a traditional restaurant with famous Ghent cuisine on the 2nd day.

More details and photos regarding LBS 2023 can be found at lbs2023.lbsconference.org.

Category: Commission News, Location Based Services

Tag: Belgium, conference report

Obituary: Igor Drecki – A passionate Cartographer

It is with heavy hearts and profound sadness that we remember our friend and colleague Igor Drecki who, with his wife Iwona, met an untimely end in a car accident on July 26.

Igor was the official New Zealand representative at the general assemblies of the ICA since 1999. He was organizer of numerous ICA events in New Zealand, including the ICA Commission on Visualisation and Virtual Environments Meeting “Geovisualisation on the Web” (Taupo 2001), ICA Internet Cartography Seminar (Auckland 2005), ICA Internet Cartography Workshop (Auckland 2006), and ICA Regional Symposia on Cartography for Australasia and Oceania (Auckland 2010, 2012, 2014 and Wellington, 2016). He was also co-organizer of the 8th ICA Mountain Cartography Workshop (Taurewa 2012). In addition to being an ex-officio member of the ICA Executive Committee (since 2007), he was probably best known to many within and outside the ICA as editor of the ICA News, the official newsletter of the ICA. For his many notable contributions to the ICA, he received the Diploma for Outstanding Services to the ICA in 2017.

In 2017, Igor received the ICA Diploma for Outstanding Services from then-president Menno-Jan Kraak.

His passion for cartography started with his master studies in geography and cartography at the University of Warsaw, and it continued after he settled with his wife Iwona in New Zealand while pursuing a master’s of science degree at the University of Auckland on “Visualization of Uncertainty in Spatial Data”. His research and work experience included professional positions in academia, industry, public administration and most recently libraries and learning services. He was the responsible curator of cartographic and geographic resources of the University of Auckland Library, then latterly curator, Cartographic and Geospatial Collections at the Alexander Turnbull Library, housed within the National Library of New Zealand in Wellington.

Igor was instrumental in the success of the New Zealand Cartographic Society (NZCS). He was a member since 1989 and a life member since 2011; president from 2013 to 2018; NZCS’s (as national member) liaison to the International Cartographic Association (ICA); and director of the biennial New Zealand national cartographic conference, GeoCart, since 2001.

Igor Drecki at GeoCart 2022

Despite his impressive professional record and accomplishments, Igor was “authentic”. He had strong opinions and was ready to stand up for them; he was passionate about cartography and maps; and was a staunch advocate for cartography. But more than this, he was a person who could relate to others. He was interested to learn, discuss, exchange as well as interrelate, give, serve, help, and contribute. This was certainly true for his colleagues and his family, but also for those of us who considered Igor a friend. He was a noble man at heart.

We will miss you, Igor.

Aileen Buckley, Anthony Moore, Dusan Petrovic, Georg Gartner

Category: Commission News, General News

Tag: New Zealand, New Zealand Cartographic Society, Obituary

Invitation to Pre-ICC2023 Workshop: The Future of Atlases

Kindly note that this workshop has been CANCELLED.
Apologies for any inconvenience caused.

The ICA Commission on Atlases is happy to invite you to another interesting Atlas Workshop: „The Future of Atlases“. We want to discuss with you the possibilities and challenges of atlases, perhaps resulting in an innovative, new atlas concept.

Background

In an era dominated by digital technologies and real-time information, the future of traditional atlases has become increasingly uncertain. These once-revered compilations of maps, charts, and geographic knowledge are now facing a myriad of challenges that question their relevance and longevity in the modern world.

One of the primary issues confronting atlases is their rather static nature. Geographic features such as coastlines, borders, and urban development are in a constant state of flux, while political shifts and territorial disputes further complicate the accuracy of conventional maps. As a result, atlases often fail to capture the most up-to-date and accurate information, undermining their utility in today’s dynamic global environment.

Moreover, the climate crisis has introduced an unprecedented level of environmental instability. Rising sea levels, shifting climate zones, and extreme weather events are redefining the very geography we once took for granted. The impact of these changes is significant and demands agile cartographic solutions that can quickly adapt to the new realities.

In addition, the rise of digital mapping platforms and GPS technology has further compounded the predicament of atlases. Online maps like Google Maps and interactive navigation tools on smartphones have revolutionized the way we access and interact with geographic information. With these tools offering real-time updates and personalized directions, the traditional atlas appears cumbersome and outdated in comparison. The ease and convenience of these digital services are gradually overshadowing the once-prestigious allure of physical and digital atlases.

The future of atlases lies in their ability to adapt and evolve. Hybrid approaches, combining physical maps with digital interfaces, might offer a compromise that respects tradition while harnessing the advantages of modern technology. Collaborative efforts between cartographers, geographers, and local communities can help ensure greater accuracy and inclusivity in geographic representation.

The workshop will address these and additional issues publisher of atlases are facing today. Keywords, such as narration and storytelling, openness, participation and transparency that seem to challenge atlas productions will discussed and evaluated.

Details

Workshop date: SAT 12. August
Workshop time: 09h00-13h00
Venue: Stellenbosch University, Chamber of Mines Building
Directions from CTICC: https://goo.gl/maps/ikHB9aw6oWdmaNfV8
Registration and Contact: Eric Losang (E_Losang [a] leibniz-ifl.de)

In the afternoon, we will participate in a trip to a winery and taste fine wine. The costs for the wine trip and the return trip to Capetown will be 750 Rand (40 Euro), with 15 participants at least.

Please register as soon as possible!

– Eric Losang & René Sieber

Category: Atlases, Commission News

Tag: ICC2023, pre-conference workshop, South Africa