Lecture note for the legal atlas
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Lecture notes in geographic information systems for eGovernment:
This is an examplary introductory text.
Since the emergenge of the world wide web in 1993, different ways of representing information to citizens have become available. Geographic information systems started with the use of data about the Earth globe projected on a subset of that globe. Environmental data was gathered and project on a map, Geodesic data about mining resources were projected on maps and pictures of the earth shell. In the late seventies and the beginning of the eighties people started using digital drawings to design factories and pieces of equipment; the emergence of Computer Aided Design (CAD). These systems were for specialists. Governments used them in the context of policies and demographic analyses, but they were no integral part of the tool set of administration.
During the nineties those systems evolved in sophisticated systems for plant
maintenance, public resource management and plotting of ambulances or other
emergency agencies. These systems were based on a seperation between data in
the database, a mapserver retrieving the data and the representation layer
in the dedicated client. This was called a geo-datawarehouse.
In 1997-1998 the first web enabled clients were developed that enabled
remote access to those sophisticated systems. This technology enabled other-than-specialists for the first time to access the database and enter queries that were not predefined by a technician.The systems gradually became more user friendly. In the early years of the new millenium, A huge effort was spent on the development of interchange standards between geogrpaphic systems.
Examples of these standards are the Geographic Markup Language (GML), The Web Feature Standards (WFS) and web map standards of the OpenGis consortium. Using new webservice technologies in combination with RDF/OWL semantic technologies a number of tests were demonstrated where managers could enter queries that generated maps from distributed resources, databases and places, whithout pre-designed retrieval path or pre-engineered semantic agreement.This solution was created using the descriptive power of XML schema's that enabled different labels for objects like "monuments" or resources like "ambulances" without problems for retrieval of those datatypes. Early examples of sophisticated exchange programmes in eGovernment are the DURP (digital exchange of zoning plans) programme in the Netherlands and the administration information system of the island Honolulu.
During the years 2004-2006 the introduction of navigational systems TomTom and the new geographic web browser Google Earth brought GIS in the eye of the public and with it, in the eye of politicians.
The notion of eGovernment services and processes supported by Geographic information systems took a leap towards government portals with Google earth as frontend on top of traditional geodatabases like ESRI and Microstation. It was obvious by that time that geographic information systems could be used to explain the interaction between policy aspects of government much better than thick documents that were hard to download.The second notion was the merger between maps and legal constraints that were build to show enterpreneurs and citizens more exactly where they were allowed or restricted to perform certain activities like :
- Factories
- Companies
- Living and housing
- Recreation
- Making noise
- Polution of particles using heavy transport
The webservice enabled GIS systems will evolve into query systems for
administrators and clients. Some initiatives have evolved into
Geo-participative (3D) systems for democratic interaction concerning the
decisions around civil matters like the design of a city square or a new
shopping centre.
'consequences for eGovernment'
The emergence of geographic information systems in governmental agencies had a number of consequences in the ways that they operate:
- horizontal collaboration received a unexpected boost from the fact that maps with data clearly show wheredata is not mad availble
- horizontal collaboration was also encouraged by increasing awareness of eachothers policy aspects because the topic championed by the members of different sub-departments could now be shown on a map in relation with common goals of the whole government agency
- the work flow process was changed due to digital processing and maps.The policies of other departments were visible and understandable before they were completely finished. questions from colleugues could now be handeled in paralle rather than in sequence
- maps helped to create very good examples of eGovernance, like the collaboration between the city of Eindhoven and the citizens pictured below.
Below the result shown is a joint effort to fight the growth of a particularly aggresive caterpillar that eats the neighborhood.
The small caterpillars on the map are all recent sms messages sent by citizens and emplyees of the government stating observation of caterpillars.
problems with geographical information sytems for eGovernment
Civil servants oten have the notion that information can only and only be provided if it is 100% orrect and complete. They do not want to be bothered with th erisks of people starting to ask questions.A second problem is the semantic layer.There has to be some agreement or naming convention for the objects and polcies depicted on a map. A third problem is the discussions a about scale and borders that is raised everywhere where to GIS specialists are in the same room. The interchangeability of layers of information in a GIS systemis increased by the emergence of Google earth and the webservice technology, but in 2006 this practice is still at the verg of break trough.
chances and opportunities for eGovernment
As change agent yu may be able to support govenment agencies to overcome a lot of barriers. You can help to organise the "trouble"of citizens asking questions. you my help to create process integration or collaboration between govenment agencies or departments based on maps. The new webservice technologie certainly help to convey a picture of joint datwarehousing. You may help them to start having field teams together, for example. The most important opportunity for eGovernment in the long run isthe cchance to integrate GIS with Document flow and Workflow in the back office of the city.
