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International User Conferences Connect Geospatial Professionals Around the Globe

Rome and Manila Will Host Upcoming Events

In the coming months, users from all over the world will have the opportunity to connect, collaborate, and share their latest work with peers at Esri International User Conferences encompassing Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific regions.

"Collaboration is at the core of GIS; these conferences will allow our international users to collaborate in ways even they might not believe possible," says Esri president Jack Dangermond. "Tackling an issue that just a few years ago didn't seem probable to solve is what GIS is all about. And these events inspire our international users to achieve what was once impossible."

Europe, Middle East, and Africa User Conference

This year, the European User Conference (EUC) will join the Middle East and North Africa User Conference to create a super-UC—the 2010 Europe, Middle East, and Africa User Conference (EMEA UC)—to be held October 26–28 in Rome, Italy. This combination of conferences creates a can't-miss event for all geospatial professionals in these regions.

Hosted by ESRI Italia, the EMEA UC will offer users from three continents an opportunity to network with other geospatial professionals and apply the successes and lessons learned from challenges faced across many industries. Attendees will also learn about the advantages of ArcGIS 10 directly from Esri president Jack Dangermond, keynote speaker at this year's event.

"This will be the largest GIS event in Italy this year, and we expect that it will have a positive effect for GIS in this region," says Bruno Ratti, president of ESRI Italia. "We are excited to host the participants and let them taste not only the best of GIS but also the best of our Italian traditions and food. Rome is the perfect setting for this conference."

Attendees at the EMEA UC will hear about best practices and new solutions from presenters in several different industries, from defense and intelligence to local government. Technical sessions will pave the way for developers to get the most out of ArcGIS 10.

These two Esri International User Conferences are coming up fast.

The EMEA UC will be held at the Ergife Palace Hotel in Rome. On-site registration is available. For more information and to preview the agenda, visit www.esri.com/emea.

Asia Pacific User Conference

The 2011 Asia Pacific User Conference will be held January 26–27 in Manila, Philippines, at the EDSA Shangri-la Hotel. All Esri technology professionals from throughout the Asia Pacific region are encouraged to attend and discuss the latest trends, share successes, and network with peers at the conference.

The Asia Pacific region comprises more than 35 billion square kilometers of land and is home to 3.5 billion people. It has grown significantly in global economic, political, defense, and social and environmental arenas.

With a population of more than 15 million people, the Manila metro area is one of the most populous in the world. This makes it one of the case study cities for the 19.20.21 project (192021.org)—an attempt to understand comparative data on 19 cities that will have 20 million or more inhabitants in the 21st century—in which GIS plays a key role (see "GIS for Everyone—A Dream Coming True").

"We are delighted to host users from across the Asia Pacific region in Manila," says Francisca N. Dayrit, executive vice president for Esri distributor Geodata Systems Technologies, Inc. "From the many sessions at the conference, users will take away concepts that may be adapted to create solutions across their region or in their own city."

All Esri users in the Asia Pacific region are also invited to submit maps or posters for the conference Map Gallery that show examples of GIS work. Share your knowledge and experience implementing GIS at your organization with other attendees by displaying your maps. The deadline for submission is the first week in January 2011.

Visit www.geodata.com.ph for more information on how you can become involved in this event.

Latin America User Conference

Look for a complete wrap-up of the Latin America User Conference in the next issue of ArcNews.

More Information

For a complete listing of Esri events worldwide, visit www.esri.com/events.