AGIC Quarterly Newsletter

The AGIC Council, Committees, and Workgroups continue to work hard to bring the Arizona GIS Community a forum for geospatial information exchange. All AGIC meetings and events are open to everyone, so please join us. We value community engagement and believe we are stronger and better together! Visit the  AGIC website  for more information on how to get involved.

At the February 1st Council Meeting, the Council Officers started their new roles. Patrick Whiteford is the new Chair with Kevin Blake moving to the Past Chair position and Lucas Murray starting as the new Vice Chair. Howard Ward has started as the new Treasurer and Phillip Leveille has agreed to continue as the Council Secretary. Please join the Council in congratulating everyone on their new positions and thanking Eric Shreve, the outgoing Past Chair, for all his dedicated work over the last three years!

At the February 1st Council meeting, AGIC voted to approve the formation of the new Special Interest Committee. The Committee will coordinate activities, including conferences and trainings, focused on special interest topics, such as Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and LiDAR. The Committee had their first meeting on March 15th and began discussing their work plan. The group is looking for members. If you are interested in joining, contact  agic_info@azland.gov . If you prefer to attend a meeting but would rather not join yet, refer to the  AGIC Calendar  for future meeting dates. All meetings are open to anyone who would like to attend.

The National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC) recently released their 2023 Geospatial Maturity Assessment (GMA) report. The report evaluated multiple states, including Arizona, to identify successes and disparities in GIS integration with an emphasis on collaboration. Each state is assigned a letter grade based on the maturity level of multiple datasets. Arizona's grade rose from a B- in 2021 to a B+ in 2023. The rise in score is due in no small part to efforts from AGIC and its partner agencies. Congratulations!

 Click this link to view the Arizona report card .  To view the full GMA report, including the report card from other states, visit the  NSGIC GMA website .

Arizona Open Meeting Law (OML) Training

In January, AGIC hosted two leadership training seminars. The first was presented by the Arizona Attorney General's Office and covered Arizona Open Meeting Law (OML) and how it applies to running a public meeting. Since all AGIC Council, Committee, and Workgroup meetings are public, the training session allowed chairs, voting members, and public members at-large from each AGIC group to learn the laws that govern how meetings must be run. A slidedeck and video recording of the meeting are available using the buttons below. Note, the recording and slidedeck are for training purposes only and do not constitute legal advice.  The recording and slidedeck do not constitute an official opinion of the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.

AGIC Chair Orientation

Following the OML training, AGIC led a session focused on Council, Committee, and Workgroup chairs to learn how to run an AGIC meeting while adhering to open meeting laws, including some tips and tricks on how to run the meeting more efficiently. While the session was designed for those in chair positions, the meeting was open to anyone who wanted to attend. A link to the video recording of the session is available through the  AGIC Chair Orientation meeting minutes .

The annual AGIC Leadership Workshop was held on February 27th at the Maricopa Association of Governments. The workshop was well attended by 18 council members and more than 35 additional Arizona geospatial community members, who were invited because of their contributions to and involvement in AGIC. The group participated in a facilitated discussion and activities focused on future AGIC priorities. The information from the workshop is currently being reviewed by AGIC leadership, who will use the feedback to develop the 2024-2025 AGIC Strategic and Business plans, which will be presented at the May Council meeting. Thank you to all who were able to participate! Previous AGIC Strategic and Business Direction documents can be reviewed on the  AGIC Publications and Documents webpage .

Save the Date! The 2024 AGIC Education and Training Symposium is scheduled for August 27-30 at the Prescott Resort and Conference Center, in Prescott, Arizona.

Calling All Graphic Designers!

The 2024 AGIC Symposium T-shirt Design Contest is now open and accepting designs. You have until midnight, Tuesday, April 30, 2024 to submit your design, so get your creative juices flowing! The theme and design is totally up to you. The winning design will not only be featured on this year’s conference T-shirt, but will also be featured in marketing materials, including the conference website, social media posts, and more. The winning designer will receive one complimentary registration to the Symposium (Sorry, prize does not include travel and lodging). Complete rules and entry details are available by clicking the button below.

If you are an employer searching for a GIS professional, please consider posting your job to the  AGIC Jobs Board . If you are searching for a GIS job, please check the website often as new jobs are added.

Did you know that AGIC Social Media volunteers coordinate with the Arizona geospatial professional community to highlight a special geospatial spotlight each month? April is National Volunteer Month, so this month AGIC Volunteers are being highlighted.

AGIC is entirely volunteer driven. The Arizona geospatial community is amazing and we are excited to celebrate their contributions. Past spotlights have included the Arizona Remote Sensing Center, PHXGeo, Arizona Women in GIS, and many others.  Follow AGIC  on our social media channels to learn more about the amazing geospatial work happening in our state.

View additional AGIC-related events, such as committee and workgroup meetings, on the  AGIC Calendar .

For additional nation-wide events, visit the  Geography Realm Geography and GIS Conferences website 

AGIC is powered by community volunteers! Formal membership is NOT required to participate. We encourage anyone interested to attend our meetings and events, volunteer their time and expertise, and give back to the Arizona GIS Community.

Consider joining a committee or workgroup distribution list to receive related announcements and meeting notices.  To join, complete this  short form .  Note that joining a distribution list is a courtesy and not required to attend AGIC meetings. All meetings are open to the public. 

To learn more about how you can get more involved, visit the  AGIC Participate Webpage .