Dani IPP-a 2012 > Sažetci _pregled
SDI possibilities for NGOs

Vlado Cetl, AGISEE Board Member


A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. There are many different NGOs around the world and lots of them are using directly or indirectly spatial information in their everyday tasks. From the Spatial Data Infrastructure point of view, the role of NGOs is twofold. On the one hand they are the users of spatial data which they use in performing their tasks (e.g. land-use planning and creation of management plans for protected areas, rapidly assessing needs and gaps in services following a natural disaster, balancing efficiency and equity in the delivery of health or education support services etc.). On the other hand NGOs are and could be also producers of spatial data. Thanks to modern technological achievements such as GNSS receivers (e.g. for navigation, sport), digital globes and maps (e.g. Google Earth, Street Map) everyone is able to collect spatial information which is often known as a volunteered geographic information (VGI). Spatial data and their creation is no longer the domain of professionals, but today numerous professions e.g. biologists, zoologists, ecologists, cultural heritage professionals, as well as the professions that, until recently, would not been classified as a spatial data producers significantly contribute to the overall system. NGOs are maybe still on level of inclusion in SDI processes but NGO deep in market niches interesting for SDI. There are already some nice examples how NGOs are actually involved in the SDI process.

Ključne riječi: non-governmental organization, spatial data infrastructure, spatial users and producers, potentials, examples

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