
The Geoscience Australia Distinguished Lecture, “Putting the ‘Geo’ into Geospatial: Shaping the future of Positioning Australia,” will cover future direction of the program, reflecting on its past achievements and how it will meet future positioning demands.
As it moves beyond the establishment phase, the Positioning Australia program will strengthen its capability for continued future relevance. The program builds on opportunities arising from Australia’s geographic location, its technological capabilities, strong partnerships and internationally significant positioning infrastructure.
The adoption of PNT-based technologies is changing requirements for the systems delivering it. There is increasing awareness that society’s increasing reliance on modern technologies brings potential risks from vulnerabilities in PNT systems. This lecture will highlight how Positioning Australia will address these issues, including an often invisible risk: the reliance of PNT systems on a global geodesy supply chain that is increasing vulnerable.
Presented by Dr Martine Woolf, (Branch Head Positioning Australia), Ryan Ruddick (Director GNSS Informatics and infrastructure), Dr Anna Riddell (Director GNSS Analysis), Dr Lisa Hall (Director National Geodesy) and Phil Shears (Director PMO), the lecture will outline how Geoscience Australia aims to continue maximising return on Commonwealth investment in reliable positioning, modernising infrastructure, enhancing access and efficiency, and supporting national resilience and economic growth.
Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Inna

With a theme of ‘Strengthening and Expanding Geospatial Networks in the Pacific Islands,’ the 2026 Pacific Islands GIS & RS User Conference aims to build and enhance geospatial networks in the Pacific Islands by being a forum where experts, practitioners and policymakers can explore cutting-edge geospatial technologies and collaborations.
The conference is the largest GIS and remote sensing conference attended by Pacific Islanders, attracting more than 300 attendees every year. The event will offer a unique platform to share knowledge, strengthen regional partnerships, and drive innovation in mapping, remote sensing and spatial data infrastructure.