Building European Spatial Data Infrastructures

SDI expert Ian Masser provides a practical introduction to the tasks involved in building a spatial data infrastructure (SDI) and makes clear how Europeans are taking advantage of geographic information technologies to help their citizens have quick access to location-based information. He also illuminates the critical collaboration that is necessary between public and private agencies to develop the ""infrastructure for spatial information in Europe"" (INSPIRE) the as well as the partnerships built between public and private sectors than enable sharing information and better decision-making. Europeans are building spatial data infrastructures (SDI) to create a multinational system of sharing information throughout the European Union and this book shows how.

Educated in geography and town planning at Liverpool University, Professor Ian Masser has been involved with the INSPIRE Directive since its beginning. He was founder chairman of the Association of Geographic Information Laboratories in Europe (AGILE) and president of both the European Umbrella Organisation for Geographic Information (EUROGI) and the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure Association (GSDI). His publications include 18 books and more than 300 published papers and conference presentations. He authored the first and second editions of Building European Spatial Data Infrastructures (Esri Press 2007, 2010).

Joep Crompvoets is a professor at KU Leuven Public Governance Institute (Belgium) and secretary-general of EuroSDR—a European spatial data research network linking national mapping agencies with research institutes and universities for the purpose of applied research. He has been involved in several projects related to the development of the INSPIRE Directive and SDIs around the world. He has written numerous publications dealing with SDIs, GIS, and e-governance.