The 2014 UNIGIS annual Business Meeting was held in Zagreb, Croatia at the Faculty of Geodesy, University of Zagreb from October 23-26, 2014. UNIGIS is an international association of universities working together to develop online curricula and conduct research in geospatial technologies and meeting participants converged on Croatia from participating universities and study centers worldwide.
Founded in 1992, UNIGIS has more than 12 partner institutions across five continents, with USC’s participation spanning the last 15 years. Attendees at the Zagreb business meeting spent two days discussing strategies to advance the UNIGIS mission.
UNIGIS makes substantial contributions at increasing spatial literacy across numerous academic disciplines and industries by producing hundreds of highly qualified graduates each year with training in advanced geospatial technologies. The UNIGIS model of a ‘Virtual University of GIScience’ that draws upon global teaching competencies from various academic departments has evolved over more than 20 years from an ambitious initiative into a widely recognized and highly regarded set of international qualifications.
SSI was represented by Dr. John P. Wilson, Director of USC’s Spatial Sciences Institute, and UNIGIS member since 1998, and Dr. Darren Ruddell, SSI's Director of Undergraduate Studies. Both brought the perspectives of the implementation of the UNIGIS-approved curriculum at USC through growing programs leading to an MS in Geographic Information Science and Technology and graduate certificates in GIST, Geospatial Intelligence, and Geospatial Leadership.
UNIGIS members board of directors include: chair by Dr. Josef Strobl from the University of Salzburg. Additional board members include Jasper Dekkers (VU Amsterdam), Gemma Boix (U de Girona), Graham Smith (Manchester MU), and Jacek Kozak (JU Krakow).
