During GEO Week 2021, the Group on Earth Observations will present the multidisciplinary activities of the GEO Work Programme that address policy agendas involved in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP26, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP15, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.

The online event will include the GEO-17 plenary, plus anchor and side events. Time will be scheduled each day for virtual networking. On Monday, November 22, the 56th Executive Committee will be held as a closed meeting.

Of particular importance will be the anchor events: These are the main events designed by GEO week 2021 organisers to explain the multidisciplinary nature of GEO through the concept of nexus thinking. Working on multiple topics simultaneously is essential in today’s rapidly changing environmental and social conditions. For example, work in one area will have a knock-on effect or impact in another area, such as the water, energy and food nexus. These events are linked to the global policy agendas that underpin most of GEO’s work.

Image credit: NASA

The Australian Institute of Mine Surveyors (AIMS) National Conference will be held from 25 to and 27 May 2022 at the RACV Royal Pines Resort Gold Coast, Queensland.

The conference will begin on the Wednesday with optional workshops and a welcome dinner, followed the next day by a full program of sessions on a range of topics plus networking with sponsors within the network market place. There will have a final dinner on Thursday evening at the hotel, while Friday will again see a full day of conferring and networking.

Well-known comedian Elliot Goblet (described as “one of the most original comedians in the history of the known universe”) will be the MC for the welcome dinner, while the equally well-known sporting personality Sam Kekovich has been confirmed as the keynote speaker (“you know it makes sense”).

Image credit: RACV

The 15th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory, COSIT 2022, will be held in Kobe, Japan, 5 to 9 September, 2022. Established in 1993, the Conference on Spatial Information Theory (COSIT) is a biennial international conference series concerned with theoretical aspects of space and spatial information, aimed at advancing geographic information science and its emerging research frontiers.

The conference offers three (refereed) submission tracks with double-blind reviews: vision papers, full papers, and short papers. Embedded in the conference will also be an on-site mentoring program for doctoral students.

Contributions can cover a broad set of conference-relevant themes such as (but not limited to):

• activity-based models of spatial knowledge
• cognitive aspects of geographic information
• cognitive-behavioural geography, naive geography
• data-driven spatial information theory
• geo-ethics and geo-privacy
• events and processes in geographic space and time
• geographic information visualisation and geovisual analytics
• knowledge representation for space and time
• navigation and wayfinding of sentient beings and robots
• ontology of space and time
• place
• quality and interoperability of geographic information
• social and cultural organisation of space
• spatial and temporal language
• spatial aspects of social networks
• spatial decision support, impact of model design
• spatial (digital) humanities
• theory-driven spatial machine learning, artificial intelligence of space
• theories on volunteered geographic information
• theory and practice of spatial and temporal reasoning
• user interfaces, virtual spaces and collaborative spaces

The US National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC) Annual Conference is the place to enhance geospatial excellence and collaboration for state, local, tribal and federal GIS policymakers and coordinators, private sector partners and other leaders in the geospatial ecosystem.

Providing critical and timely networking opportunities, the conference also offers the chance to connect, collaborate, and share with colleagues and partners.

The agenda will comprise:

Roll Call of States — Where state representatives will share a snapshot of achievements, challenges and upcoming activities.
Plenary Sessions — Presentations by and for the NSGIC community exploring challenges, successes and new approaches for collaboration in the geospatial ecosystem.
State Caucus — A roundtable discussion with state and local government representatives to talk frankly about current pressing issues.
GIO Academy — Leadership sessions and networking for state government GIOs and equivalents only (separate registration is required).
Speed Networking — A fun and fast-paced activity where sponsors, who have allocated points, will rotate to complete the circuit of visiting with state reps.
Annual Business Meeting — Including the election of new board members and leadership transition.
Awards Reception — Recognising exceptional work through the Geospatial Excellence Awards & NSGIC Service Awards.

Smart Cities Week Australia and New Zealand 2022 will bring together the who’s-who in smart cities, digital twins and future-of-place thought leadership in an energising, open dialogue on how to leverage technology to deliver better quality of life for citizens.

Smart Cities Week offers sessions designed to bring demand and supply side stakeholders together in a way that incubates business opportunities and incubates the smart cities investment pipeline.

This year, the event will be delivered in conjunction with Digital Twin Week, known as the premier platform for showcasing, exchanging and networking around all things Digital Twin in the built and natural environment. The event will offer a series of opportunities to connect and gain information and insights on Digital Twin activity, policy and practice from government and industry leaders.

Leading the line-up for the 2022 event is Platinum event sponsor, Amazon Web Services, who will offer attendees a look at AWS-powered twin cities, and how towns, regions and cities, can use cloud benefits, technology and support, to realise their local planning vision.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Blue Planet Studio