Geomob

Steven and Ed look back on the recent (ept 18th) Geomob London, a celebration of OpenStreetMap's 20th birthday. It was easily the largest, but also possibly the best, Geomob London yet, with a phenomenal turn out. Our hosts discuss the talks, the crowd, the evolution of the project, the diversity of its community, and the impact of technology and AI on mapping. They explore the balance between corporate involvement and individual contributions, and the global perspective of OpenStreetMap. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Marc Prioleau, Executive Director of the Overture Maps Foundation, shares exciting updates about the transition of Overture Maps to general availability. He discusses the strategic importance of cloud-native formats and how they enhance map usability. Marc explains the challenges in improving places data and the necessity of unique identifiers for accuracy. Highlighting a new global reference system, he emphasizes collaboration between tech giants and community entities. Lastly, he reveals how the relationship with OpenStreetMap complements Overture's open mapping goals.

Steven is once again joined by old friend and "professional catornerd" Kenneth Field to discuss the question of whether or not every dataset should be turned into a map. They explore the idea that maps are a form of communication and should be used when they are the best tool for conveying information. They discuss the importance of thoughtful map design and the need to consider the audience and purpose of the map. They lament the proliferation of maps that may not be effective or meaningful. Steven and Ken discuss maps that they regret making, sharing examples of maps that they created but later realized were unnecessary, poorly designed, or insensitive. Overall, they emphasize the importance of asking the right questions and making intentional decisions when creating maps. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Ed welcomes back Joana Simoes (a five-time Geomob speaker!) to discuss the upcoming Geoob Lisbon event, which she co-organizes together with Miguel Marques. They explore the growing geospatial scene in Lisbon, the diverse presentations attendees can expect, and the importance of community engagement in the geospatial field. The conversation encourages listeners to participate and connect with others in the geospatial community. We hope to see you in Lisbon on October 2nd! Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Alastair is joined by old friend and former colleague Geoff Smith to discuss land cover mapping, focusing on the European products. Geoff explains his background in geospatial and his work on the UK Land Cover Map projects. They discuss the importance of existing land cover datasets like CORINE and the UK Land Cover Map, and how they can be used for localized land cover data. They also delve into the role of Copernicus, the European Earth Observation Service, and its land monitoring service. Geoff explains the concept of EAGLE, a hierarchical approach to describing land cover and land use, and how it relates to CORINE. Finally (how could it be otherwise) they touch on the potential role of AI in land cover mapping and the challenges it presents. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Ed interviews Jo Walsh, a pioneer of the open data movement, one of the earliest people involved in OpenStreetMap, and co-author of the highly-influential O'Reilly book "Mapping Hacks". They discuss the early days of the open data revolution, the emergence of projects like OpenStreetMap, and the challenges and future of open data. And much more. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Ed and Steven catch up on their summer activities. There is now a Geomob page on Ripple.fm a social network focused around podcasts. We encourage all listeners to join the discussion there. Next topic is the recent exodus from Twitter and the emergence of alternative platforms like Mastodon and speciifically BlueSky, where Steven is now also mirroring Mappery content. The conversation concludes with a reminder about the upcoming Geomob events and a break from #fridaygeotrivia for the month. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

George Porto Ferreira, chair of sponsorship for FOSS4G 2024, joins Steven to discuss the conference taking place in Belém, Brazil from 2nd-8th of December. This year the annual gathering of the open source geospatial community will focus on the environment, and will feature keynote speakers such as Veronica Andreu, Luis Mota, Ariel Antiany, Tom Crowley, Céline Jaquin, and Gilberto Câmara. As always the program will include workshops, academic papers, and presentations on various geospatial software. The event aims to attract a diverse group of attendees, with a special focus on Latin American participants. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Recent Geomob London speaker (April 2024) Wil Waters discusses the Geospatial Index, a listing of publicly traded geospatial companies he has developed. Wil is host of a new geospatial podcast of the same name. He explains the motivation behind the project and the potential for geospatial practitioners to capture more value from the industry. Wil also explores the idea of creating a publicly tradable entity based on the Geospatial Index and the challenges involved. He emphasizes the importance of taking a systematic approach to investing and encourages geospatial professionals to consider ownership positions in geospatial companies. Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.  

In this episode we introduce new co-host Alastair Graham, who wil take the lead on all things Earth Observation here on the Geomob podcast!   Long-time geospatial podcast listeners will of course recognize Alastair from the Scene From Above podcast which he co-hosted for several years. We are delighted to add his experience and insights to the show. We discuss Alastair's background in geospatial and Earth observation, and his reasons for returning to podcasting. We then also explore the challenges of making the Earth observation industry commercially viable and the need for education and use cases to create awareness and demand.   It's exciting to add a new voice to the show. Welcome Alastair! Show notes on the Geomob website, where you can also learn more about Geomob events and sign up for our monthly newsletter.