June 03, 2008
The mission of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) is
"to serve as a global forum for the collaboration of developers and
users of spatial data products and services, and to advance the
development of international standards for geospatial
interoperability." Throughout the geospatial community, OGC is
known for its leadership in developing and promulgating publicly
available standards. These standards "geo-enable" the web and make
possible interoperable architectures, services and applications that
integrate geospatial capabilities into enterprise missions and
processes. Over the past few years OGC members have developed and
implemented a suite of geospatial standards and specifications that,
along with standards from other organizations such as the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO), gives us a framework for
geospatial interoperability.
However, we often do not fully recognize the importance of the OGC as a
forum for collaboration. The Consortium now consists of over 360
members from around the world who bring perspectives, needs and
interests from many segments of the global geospatial community. OGC
collaborative processes have worked well for its membership as a
foundation for developers and users to work together to develop and
advance the use of geospatial standards. In particular, the OGC
Interoperability Program and its Compliance Testing Program bring
organizations together in a manner that helps create a climate of
collaboration. I believe that we should also look at that collaboration
effort as part of a larger picture. Throughout the world, there is a
tremendous amount of work taking place to develop and implement
federated geospatial enterprises, or Spatial Data Infrastructures
(SDIs), to modernize the collection, management, sharing, use and
dissemination of geospatial data. By their very nature, these
activities require a high level of coordination and cooperation between
public and private sector entities. As SDIs are being implemented in
nations and regions around the globe, we see a great deal of
commonality in their building blocks. A good depiction of these common
elements is shown in Figure 1.
This is a diagram used by the U.S. Federal Geographic Data Committee to
show the components of the U.S. National Spatial Data Infrastructure
and their relationship to each other. While this diagram is from
the United States, it generally represents the major components of SDIs
around the world. In particular, we should note that two elements
of the NSDI touch all others. These are Standards and Partnerships (or
Collaboration). These two components are the keys to technical and
institutional interoperability within and between SDIs and the
federated geospatial networks that fuel them. Standards and
Partnerships are core to the central mission of the OGC. You could ask,
however, is there a larger role for OGC in helping bring the full
societal, economic and scientific benefits of geospatial information
and technology into commercial and institution processes
worldwide?
OGC’s diverse membership spans industry, government and academia from
numerous nations. This diversity of participation results in unique
collaborative partnerships across many different domains. With the wide
reach of its membership, OGC offers tremendous opportunities for
continued expansion in this area. While the OGC is viewed as the lead
organization for developing technical specifications, it can likewise
provide a greater leadership role in fostering a climate for
collaboration. The willingness of OGC staff and members to work as a
community using an open, inclusive, user-driven and fast process is a
model that can serve the geospatial community well in many different
areas. OGC is partnering with the ISO Technical Committee for
Geographic Information/Geomatics, with the Global Spatial Data
Infrastructure Association and many others to advance standards and
interoperability. OGC plays a strong leadership role in broad
interoperability efforts such as Empire Challenge and the Global Earth
Observing System of Systems. These types of initiatives foster new
collaborative interactions and set the stage for long-term agreements
for interoperability. By reaching out not only to the geospatial
community around the world but also to those who will greatly benefit
from better availability and use of geospatial information and
technology, we can help accelerate the adoption of open interoperable
geospatial architectures and infrastructures and tap into the creative
energies of others to stimulate new and innovative uses and
applications. Collaborative environments are difficult to achieve and
maintain over time. OGC has a proven track record of keeping a balance
between a structured steady course and the rapid adaptation and
assimilation of new ideas. As we address the opportunities offered in
the future, we can do even more as OGC to foster a climate of
collaboration and to fully enable organizations and citizens with the
relationships, tools and geospatial data that can help make their lives
better.
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