[OSGeo-Discuss] FOSS4G and conservation

[Ned Horning]

Frank Warmerdam wrote:
> I'd like to see OSGeo support socially relavent organizations in use of
open source
> software

This is along the lines of what I'm working on so I figure this is a good
time to chime in to get feedback. I'm involved in a discussion between the
Society for Conservation GIS (SCGIS) and the Society for Conservation
Biology (SCB) to enhance an international Conservation GIS training program
sponsored by SCGIS. The SCGIS has a scholarship program that brings
international conservation practitioners to the States to receive ESRI
training, ESRI software, attend the ESRI conference, and sometimes get free
hardware. It is a great program but it's costly and only meets a fraction of
the demand.

In principle having an SCB/SCGIS partnership is a good idea but it shouldn't
be ESRI-centric. I talked about OSGeo and this seemed to raise some interest
(curiosity?) but I sense skepticism. The (inaccurate) perception that ESRI
will donate software to any conservation group, largely negating advantages
of FOSS4G, doesn't help. The SCB has over 10,000 members and I think this
could be a great opportunity for OSGeo to increase global exposure and
possibly use it to solicit grant money to support training and software
development around the world. 

SCGIS has a small international network of user groups that can be used to
expand this program and I'm trying to figure out if OSGeo could help build a
similar or partnered network for open source offerings. The OSGeo education
committee members are creating course materials that will be leveraged for
this conservation-focused training. I addition to that we need to develop a
network of trainers. How much interest is there among the OSGeo
community/user groups to support and provide conservation-focused geospatial
training? I'd like to hear from anyone but I'm particularly interested in
hearing from people with connections outside of North America. 

Distance learning methods would help overcome the problem of distributing
this training globally but there is a strong interest in sponsoring
in-person workshops in addition to on-line offerings. Our group at the AMNH
is working on addressing both of these needs.

Any feedback is appreciated.

All the best,

Ned 
--
Center for Biodiversity and Conservation
American Museum of Natural History
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e-mail: horning at amnh.org
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