[OSGeo Oceania] News from the Geospatial Council of Australia

[Alex Leith]

Hi Folks

I joined the GCA Board about six months ago, and all I'll say is that the
Board has acted in the best interests of members by placing the company
into voluntary administration, and that we are in consultation with the
administrators regarding the path forward. In practice, the Board has ceded
control to the administrators, so they're acting as the Board in the short
term and they have extra powers, and a lot of responsibility for a short
period of time.

There are a few ways out of administration, and one of those is
liquidation, but that's not in the interest of members or the broader
geospatial community, so we're intending on finding a way out that keeps
the company alive. That path is normally a "deed of company arrangement."

Personally, this doesn't affect my ability to remain on the Board of OSGeo
Oceania, and I've been open with our Board about the process.

And also personally, I think GCA plays an important role in our industry
and I've been a member on and off for something like 15 years. I hope we,
as the OSGeo Oceania community can provide support for the organisation,
the Board and members, and I think I speak for us all when I say we look
forward to the organisation continuing to provide services and
representation for its members and the Australian community into the future.

Kind regards,

On Wed, 28 May 2025 at 17:15, Andrew Jeffrey via Oceania <
oceania at lists.osgeo.org> wrote:

> Interesting news for sure.
>
> I asked the question yesterday on the maptime chat what administration
> means for GCA, it’s not a process I’ve ever really paid that much attention
> to. I was cursious what it meant for GCA e.g. whether it’s the process of
> paying off debt and wrapping up or fixing things up to proceed. The more I
> read today it sounds like that is the administrators call and completely
> out of the hands of GCA, so the press release about emerging stronger while
> optimistic seems to be something they are no longer in control of? I take
> it people involved probably cannot talk too much to the current situation
> either which makes it tough to know for sure.
>
> While I am interested in the outcome I’m not actually a member, and my
> curiosity got the better to me today so I had to ask around and it turns
> out not many in my network are.
>
> Curious to know if there are any real impacts from this for our day to day
> existence as well. As a non-member I don’t think so, but I understand
> surveyors could potentially be affected as GCA manages their
> certifications? Not sure if that’s the case or not but that was one tid-bit
> I heard in conversation.
>
>
>
>
> On 28 May 2025, at 12:00 pm, Adam Steer via Oceania <
> oceania at lists.osgeo.org> wrote:
>
> Hi Oceania
>
> The Geospatial Council of Australia very recently announced a decision to
> go into voluntary administration. This usually indicates some financial or
> governance issues which the board cannot resolve themselves.
>
> See:
> https://geospatialcouncil.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/250526_Statement-from-the-GCA-Board.pdf
>
> What's the impact on the open geospatial community?
>
> Likely not much. I've raised it here as a piece community news. Something
> that might be interesting to follow and discuss?
>
> Overall, I hope it isn't impacting you or your work! And I hope the
> process ultimately helps GCA in its focus and goals..
>
> Regards,
>
> Adam
>
>
> --
> Dr Adam Steer
> https://iamadamsteer.com
> https://spatialised.net
> _______________________________________________
> Oceania mailing list
> Oceania at lists.osgeo.org
> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Oceania mailing list
> Oceania at lists.osgeo.org
> https://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/oceania
>


-- 
*Alex Leith*
m: +61 419 189 050
https://auspatious.com
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