Esri’s regional user conferences (UCs) soon will be upon us again.
This year’s destinations include four cities—São Paulo, Brazil; Split, Croatia; Kuwait City, Kuwait; and Hong Kong, China—each on a separate continent embracing many countries, cultures, and languages. Everyone planning to attend the 2014 Esri regional UCs, however, will have one language in common—GIS.
The Esri regional UCs are recognized as the biggest GIS technology, exhibition, training, and networking events outside of the Esri International User Conference held in San Diego each year.
Conference goers will return home inspired, energized, and armed with new tools, confidence, and experience.
Here are highlights of what each regional UC will offer:
Esri Latin America User Conference
Attendees can immerse themselves in two days of workshops, seminars, and presentations September 25–26 in São Paulo.
Coming on the heels of the largest single-event sporting competition in the world, the Esri Latin America User Conference (LAUC), hosted by Esri official distributor Imagem Geosistemas e Comércio Ltda., is the biggest GIS event in Latin America, says Imagem spokesperson Izabel Cristina Costa.
Hundreds of GIS users from across Latin America will congregate at the Royal Palm Plaza in Campinas, São Paulo, to learn the latest GIS techniques and trends.
The opening Plenary Session will feature speakers including Eneas Brum, Imagem’s CEO; Ismael Chivite, Esri ArcGIS for Server product manager; Leandro Rodriguez, manager, Esri in Latin America; and Deilson Silva, Esri ArcGIS platform technical engineer.
Technical teams from Esri and Imagem will present workshops on topics such as ArcGIS Online, Portal for ArcGIS, the cloud, location analytics, and ArcGIS 10.3 for Desktop. The LAUC will include a Special Achievement in GIS Awards ceremony and many user presentations.
At the first LAUC in Brazil back in 2005, one question was asked, Costa recalls: “‘What will we be doing 10 years from now?’ It’s time to answer that question.”
For further information, visit esri.com/lauc.
Esri European User Conference
Few cities can match the beauty and history of Split, Croatia, site of the 2014 Esri European User Conference (EUC). Hosted by GDi GISDATA LLC, Esri’s official distributor in Croatia, the EUC will bring GIS innovation and discovery together October 13–15 at the seaside Hotel Le Méridien Lav, overlooking the Mediterranean.
Nearly 1,000 expected attendees will learn the latest GIS technology, network with regional colleagues, and get up-to-date on crucial industry issues.
“We’re expecting participants from all over Europe and the Mediterranean, as the conference is on the coast,” says Boran Loncaric, CEO of GDi GISDATA.
Preconference seminars and expert round tables will precede the opening Plenary Session at which Esri president Jack Dangermond will speak, along with other prominent regional industry figures.
The main focus will be technology platforms in the cloud or on premises and industry trends. There also will be best practices demonstrations and a Special Achievement in GIS Awards ceremony.
At the technical Plenary Session, Esri staff will demonstrate new components of the Esri platform, says Loncaric. Expert round tables will feature moderated sessions with prominent experts, and a GIS Solutions EXPO will display the latest products and services.
Paper sessions highlighting successful user GIS projects will offer a full range of topics, including solutions for regulating, tracking, and managing fisheries; navigation safety; coastal ecosystems; nature preservation versus tourism; and industry-and-port-driven coastal development.
An evening beach party, Mediterranean-style, outside the Hotel Le Méridien Lav will feature festive music, fish, and food to celebrate GDi’s 25th anniversary. The official EUC dinner, held at the Croatian National Theater, will include a full cultural program.
For further information, visit esri.com/euc.
Esri Middle East and Africa User Conference
GIS users will be traveling to Kuwait by the hundreds this fall for the 2014 Esri Middle East and Africa User Conference (MEAUC), to be held October 20–22.
Attendees from across the Middle East, Africa, and West Asia will converge on the Regency Hotel in Kuwait City to strengthen their GIS skills while networking with Esri product specialists and GIS professionals.
“The event includes sessions by experts in the form of Diwaniya, the local name for social gathering,” says Eyad Arab, general manager of OpenWare, Esri’s official distributor in Kuwait and MEAUC’s host.
Arab describes MEAUC 2014 as “the biggest GIS and Esri event in the region this year.”
At the opening Plenary Session, Jack Dangermond will share the podium with other industry figures from Esri and the Middle East/Africa region.
The packed agenda features Lightning Talks on single topics, along with paper sessions that include tracks and user group meetings for the region’s wide spectrum of industries using GIS.
“Governments from the region will have an opportunity to highlight their entire country’s achievements in integrating GIS practice across multiple applications and industries,” Arab says. The government pavilion will have interactive exhibits showing visitors how different users can apply GIS to solve the same problems region-wide.
The conference venue is located in the prestigious coastal area strip and includes a wide variety of restaurants and hotels, Arab says. For further information, visit esri.com/meauc.
Esri Asia Pacific User Conference
Planning has begun for the 10th Esri Asia Pacific User Conference (APUC), to be held January 27–28, 2015, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Hosted by Esri China (Hong Kong) Limited, the APUC will offer preconference seminars on January 26.
The call for presentations will be open through September 12, 2014.
Visit esri.com/apuc for the latest information about the conference or to submit an abstract.
Esri International User Conference in San Diego Will Preview Regional UCs
You can get a preview of the upcoming regional UCs at the Esri UC in July. Just come over to the regional UC booth, where you can meet host distributors who will tell you what to expect at your event and assist you with advance registration, reservations, and other plans. Visit us in Hall D.
