A panel of presenters from across the geospatial community will reflect on 25 years of GIS Day.

Panel

• Jason Karl – Director of the U of I Rangeland Center, Associate Professor of Rangeland Ecology and Harold F. and Ruth M. Heady Endowed Chair of Rangeland Ecology, University of Idaho.
• Frank Roberts – Frank Roberts has been implementing GIS for over 30 years and is proficient in the use of many flavors of ArcGIS. He currently works as the Global Data Architect for Mission Aviation Fellowship, and prior to that was Director of IT/GIS Solutions Innovate Inc. Immediately after acquiring his UI Forestry degree, he spent 20 years managing the Coeur d’Alene Tribe’s GIS program.
• Keith T. Weber – Keith T. Weber is the GIS Director at Idaho State University (ISU). He has held this position since he founded the GIS Training and Research Center in 1998. Keith has worked in the Geospatial industry since 1989, is a Certified GIS Professional (GISP), recipient of Esri’s SAG award in 2000 and again in 2013, as well as URISA’s ESIG award in 2014. Keith is the principal investigator for NASA’s RECOVER wildfire decision support system, and the Science Advisor for NASA DEVELOP’s Idaho site, and actively involved in Lidar data acquisition and analysis for the State of Idaho. Weber takes a very pragmatic and applied approach to GIS, as is reflected in over 100 publications including Actionable Information: Communicating with GIS. His research program focuses on land cover change in semiarid ecosystems and applying the results of his research as actionable information to support well-informed decisions. Presenting virtually.

Moderators

• Ed DeYoung – Edwin is an expert at learner-focused training. He has been a GIS lecturer at Boise State for four years and has taught the GIS certificate courses for the University of Idaho for ten years. He has over two decades of experience in the GIS industry and has worked in private consulting, city, county, and state government. He has also developed two-day GIS technical workshops for the State of Idaho and has taught GIS to thousands of people. Edwin earned his BS in Geology from Michigan and MS in Earth Science from Montana State University. He used GIS to analyze and model landslide hazards in Yellowstone County, Montana.
• Zoom: Jylisa Kenyon (Library, University of Idaho)

Presenters from across the geospatial, GIS, and drone community will give 10-minute presentations highlighting their recent work.

Presentations

• Aerial Timelapse Tool Survey, Andrew Weymouth (Library, University of Idaho) – This presentation will explore tools for creating aerial time lapses, ranging from beginner friendly platforms like ArcGIS World Imagery Wayback to more advanced technical workflows using JavaScript and expansive datasets in Google Earth Engine. We’ll discuss image mosaicking, exporting results, visualization considerations and overall image fidelity.
• The best way to learn GIS, Edwin DeYoung (GIS Help) – There is a lot to learn to be successful in a GIS position. What is the best way to gain these skills?
• Keeping Watch: Using GIS to assess conservation tillage practices and crop rotation on crop performance in Whitman County under drought and heat stress using remote sensing, Samiha Suhrah Ali (Soil and Water Systems, University of Idaho) – Crop insurance payments are crucial for farmers in the US and Washington, as they cover crop loss due to extreme weather events. The federal government and RMA subsidize the insurance program. If evidence shows progressive growers adopting conservation measures are more resilient, insurance premiums could be reduced, reducing expenses and encouraging widespread adoption.
• Appraising Rural Real Estate using LandValue Solutions integrated GIS Mapping, Ruby Miles Stroschein (LandValue Solutions) – GIS mapping plays a crucial role in appraising farmland, timberland, and special projects by providing spatial data on land boundaries, soil quality, and topography. These tools enable precise assessments for conservation easement and eminent domain road project appraisals, ensuring informed data for accurate analysis.
• Integrating Computer Science with GIS: A Practical Approach from My Internship at Esri, Shashwot Niraula (Computer Science, University of Idaho) – In this talk, I’ll share journal as a CS student to GIS, including my hands-on experiences from my internship at Esri, where I applied Computer Science principles to GIS. I’ll cover how I utilized Google Colab for spatial analysis, demonstrating key projects and workflows I developed, and discuss how these practices can be used to enhance geospatial applications. I’ll also link to essential resources, including tutorials I’ve created on Esri’s YouTube channel and my post on the ArcGIS Blog.

Moderators

• Lisa Jones (Plant Sciences, University of Idaho)
• Zoom: Norm Lee (Library, University of Idaho)

Presenters from State of Idaho Office of Information Technology Services will discuss building The Idaho Map, a resource for accessing and viewing authoritative GIS data for Idaho. Presenting virtually.

Moderators

• Pamela Martin (Library, University of Idaho)
• Zoom: Matthew Strupp (Library, University of Idaho)

Lunch provided for in person attendees, please register in advance.

A panel of presenters from across the geospatial community will reflect on 25 years of GIS Day.

Panel

• Danielle Favreau – Danielle Favreau is the Water Resources Information Section Manager at the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) where she has been supporting GIS activities since 2005. Over the last 19 years she participated in IDWR’s transition from Esri’s ArcView 3.3 to ArcGIS Desktop (ArcMap) and now to ArcGIS Pro. Mrs. Favreau has been a Certified GIS Professional (GISP) since 2008. She also has a Bachelor of Science from the University of California at Davis and a GIS Certificate from Boise State University. An active participant in the GIS community, Mrs. Favreau is the Idaho Hydrography Technical Working Group Chair, attends the Geodetic Control Technical Working Group, served as NR URISA Board Member and 2013 Intermountain GIS Conference Chair and is a long-time participant of the City of Boise’s Map Mania. Presenting virtually.
• Fred Gifford – Fred Gifford is the Director of Geospatial Analytics at the National Democratic Redistricting Committee. In this position he leads a team responsible for mapping and analysis of congressional and legislative redistricting plans nationwide. Fred is a geographer and GIS professional with over 25 years’ experience in geospatial analytics, project management, system design, and application development. He has extensive experience building and managing teams to conduct data intensive, multi-disciplinary studies and computer application development projects that utilize GIS technology. Prior to coming to NDRC Fred’s primary experience relates to application of GIS in support of environmental permitting, natural resource management, and public land conservation. Presenting virtually.
• Bill Reynolds – Nez Perce County GIS Coordinator. Originally hired to complete a countywide readdressing project as part of the upgrade to enhanced 911 and has not been able to escape the public safety / emergency communications sphere of GIS. Bill has served as chair of the county Emergency Communications Joint Powers Board for 18 years, 2 years as Emergency Manager during COVID and a grandfather for almost 4 years. Spends summers finding locations to camp that have no cell service.

Moderator

• Bruce Godfrey – GIS Librarian, University of Idaho Library.
• Zoom: Jylisa Kenyon (Library, University of Idaho)

Presenters from across the geospatial, GIS, and drone community will give 10-minute presentations highlighting their recent work.

Presentations

• Effective Web Mapping Applications with Open Source Software, Karsten Vennemann (Terra GIS LTD) – The presentation will show real-world web mapping applications that Terra GIS is managing. These include County web mapping servers for public use, such as assessor, treasurer, and planning departments, as well as the general public. Other examples include scientific and commercial projects that use a similar platform. All of these applications are built on open-source software, including OpenLayers, MapServer, and PostGIS. Presenting virtually.
• The Next Generation of GISers is Needed for 911, Pam Bond (Go West Geospatial Services) – GIS plays a critical role in public safety by supporting Next Generation 911 (NG911) systems. Learn why the skills of a GIS professional are vital to ensuring accurate, real-time data for emergency response, and how you could make a difference in saving lives and protecting property. Presenting virtually.
• The NW GIS User Group, Sam Jenkins (NW GIS User Group & City of Pullman) – In this presentation, I will introduce the NW GIS User Group, highlighting its role in fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing among GIS professionals in the Pacific Northwest. We’ll explore how the group supports skill development, networking, and the adoption of geospatial technologies through conferences, events, workshops, and resources.
• Utilizing ESRIs Application Suite to Dynamically Collect and Report Environmental Sampling Data, Manda Wood and Susan Spalinger (Alta Science & Engineering, Inc.) – Under contract to Idaho DEQ, Alta Science and Engineering, Inc. sampled recreational locations around Coeur d’Alene Lake and the Spokane River for metals. Sampling followed specific protocols and included wet and dry sediments, soils, and water. Alta will present why and how we used ArcGIS Pro, Field Maps on mobile devices, and Experience Builder for real-time sampling updates allowing for timely QA/QC feedback.
• Defining Deep Soil and Soil Carbon Vulnerability using GIS, Gabrielle Feber (Environmental Science, University of Idaho) – Soil is largely understudied, especially deep soil, and deep soil holds a substantial amount of carbon. GIS data can be used to define deep soil and soil carbon vulnerability by exploring the depth of understudied soil and amount of soil organic carbon in the U.S.

Moderators

• Evan Williamson (Library, University of Idaho)
• Zoom: Norm Lee (Library, University of Idaho)