A new national body has been formed to represent geospatial professionals across Australia.

The Locus Alliance aims to be a “a national organisation built from the ground up by geospatial professionals, for geospatial professionals, right across Australia,” according to an email communique circulated yesterday by the organisation.

In a reference to the collapse last year of the Geospatial Council of Australia (GCA), the Alliance says that it “has been established in response to a clear gap in national representation; but more importantly, a need for something different”.

“What makes Locus Alliance different is that it starts with people. It is about building the profession from the ground up driven by practitioners, not businesses,” the communique said.

Professional aims

The Alliance says it that has been formed to represent anyone whose work is aligned with the geospatial or surveying industries, “whether you’re in GIS, remote sensing, surveying, hydrography, photogrammetry, cartography, or out in the field every day …”

The body says that it wants to connect professionals for purposes of:

• Sharing knowledge across disciplines, sectors and states;
• Giving those professionals the chance to have a ‘real say’ and a forum for contributing to the direction of the profession;
• Building a “stronger, more unified voice nationally”; and
• Supporting innovation, education, technology and the next generation.

The Alliance has set a group of initial priorities, which include:

• Establishing a “genuine national community of practice”;
• Supporting mentoring and workforce development initiatives; and
• Providing representation at key industry events.

Membership focus

The Alliance’s website emphasises that it is not “replacing existing organisations. We are building alignment across them — creating a coordinated, credible structure that supports practitioners and elevates standards nationwide”.

It goes on to say that it will “empower state- and discipline-specific committees to lead locally to deliver practical and technical member benefits, while contributing to a stronger, national framework”.

People who had been members of the GCA within the past 12 months can take up complimentary membership through until 30 June this year. Full details of membership pricing are available on the LOCUS Alliance website.

The Alliance is also asking interested parties to complete a short poll to express interest or to join the organisation’s mailing list.