NMCAs plan to develop new core reference dataset for Europe

The international not-for-profit membership organisation for Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities (NMCAs), has signed an agreement with Germany’s Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy (BKG) to coordinate technical production and quality management.

A prototype, focusing on transportation (road and railway) and hydrography themes, is to be available in Autumn 2018 and will also include basic feature types and attributes. This will be followed by the launch of the first version of the new dataset in Spring 2019.

EuroGeographics’ Secretary General and Executive Director, Mick Cory said: “Our members’ have made significant investments in implementing the INSPIRE Directive and delivering interoperable information. Delivering this new dataset is just one of the ways they ensure that their authoritative geospatial information is consistent with other data, in particular from other public authorities, to maximise its value and benefit for the public good.”

“BKG has extensive experience of harmonising and edge matching their national data and EuroGeographics products to comply with the INSPIRE Directive. I am delighted that they have agreed to provide technical support and coordination for this exciting new initiative.”

The core reference dataset is part of EuroGeographics’ wider vision for European Location Services, a unique and powerful source of harmonised geospatial information from official sources. After delivering the prototype, the intention is to include additional themes such as buildings or settlement areas, addresses and elevation, and to offer coverage for all EU and EFTA Member States and EU Candidate countries. Production is dependent on sustainable funding being secured.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350 (mobile) or email: press@eurogeographics.org

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 63 members from 46 countries.

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit www.eurogeographics.org

EuroGeographics announces new additions to open data for 2018

EuroGeographics has released a new version of EuroGlobalMap, its open data created from official national sources.

Forty-five members of the Association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities have contributed to EuroGlobalMap, which now includes fields for the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) within the updated transport theme, specifically links for railways (RailrdL) and road networks (RoadL). The latest release also includes updated information for the 1: 1 million dataset’s administrative and settlement themes. It is available at www.eurogeographics.org/form/topographic-data-eurogeographics.

Angela Baker, Sales, Marketing and Channel Manager, EuroGeographics said: “As a result of these latest updates, three themes have been generalised from our more detailed products, 1: 100 000 EuroBoundaryMap and 1: 250 000 EuroRegionalMap, giving even greater confidence that the information provided is consistent, comparable and easily shared — regardless of its national source. We have also updated the metadata and checked its compliance with INSPIRE metadata regulations.”

Since its launch in 2013, more than 6,500 users have downloaded EuroGlobalMap. Feedback indicates that they greatly value high quality, reliable data from official national sources and that open data provides a great first step in discovering the wider benefits of pan-European map and land information.

The 2018 release of EuroGlobalMap covers 45 countries and territories, and comprises six themes: Administrative boundaries, names locations, transport networks, settlements, elevation; and the water network. It is available free of charge under an open data licence from www.eurogeographics.org and enables a wide range of applications, including mobile mapping, demographic and socio-economic analysis, hydrology, energy and environment modelling and in education and research. It is also ideal for cartographic visualisation across Europe.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350 (mobile) or email: press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 63 members from 46 countries.

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit eurogeographics.org.

Research reveals scope of open geospatial data from official national sources across Europe

Open data is available from the majority of European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities (NMCAs), a new survey has found.

Research by the Open European Location Services (ELS) Project reveals that 98% of respondents provide at least some of their data free of charge. Of these, 37% make all their data available under an open licence.

Whilst open data models vary, more than 85% provide view and search services, 72% enable downloads and 67% allow its re-use in products. Users include public authorities, public services, research and education as well as commercial companies.

“This survey provides a snapshot of the scope of open data from official national sources across geographical Europe,” says Dominik Kopczewski, Policy Development Manager at international not-for-profit organisation, EuroGeographics which is co-ordinating the Open ELS Project.

“With rising demand for open geospatial data, it is unsurprising that almost all the NMCAs questioned provide at least some of their information for free, funded primarily via government. We believe this demonstrates growing recognition of their contribution to delivering policy, economic growth and market development.”

“A key finding however, is that, in addition to the legal and economic challenges faced by NMCAs, the interpretation of open data also varies significantly. As a result, so do the terms of use across Europe, with some NMCAs allowing its re-use in products and others only view, search and download services.”

m/f

“One of the key aims of the Open ELS Project is to provide certainty about what open data from official sources is free, what is charged for and under what terms and conditions. This research is the first step in delivering an Open ELS open data policy which will complement the national activities of NMCAs and respect their national policy, legislative and business requirements.”

The survey was completed by 46 members of EuroGeographics, the Association for European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities, which is coordinating the two-year Open ELS Project co-financed by the European Union's Connecting Europe Facility.

Key findings

Of the 44 NMCAs responding to the Open ELS questionnaire:

• 26 (56%) reported that their country had a national open data policy.
• 29 (63%) had an open data policy in their organisation with a further eight (18%) preparing one. Where NMCAs do not have their own open data policy, this is usually because they have already implemented national open data legislation.
• 69% (29) reported that their open data was funded via government.

For more information, visit openels.eu.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350(mobile) or email press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

Open European Location Services (Open ELS) is a two-year project co-financed by the European Union's Connecting Europe Facility. It is developing pan-European data services using authoritative geospatial information and an associated business model. In doing so, it aims to improve the availability of geospatial information from the public authorities responsible for mapping, cadastre and land registries. The Project is focused on facilitating access to, and encouraging the take up and use of this information, and is strongly user orientated with a comprehensive programme of activities for SMEs. 

EuroGeographics, which represents Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities, is coordinating the two-year initiative co-financed by the European Union's Connecting Europe Facility. The international not-for-profit association is working with partners from member organisations in Finland, Germany, Great Britain, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden and The Netherlands to deliver this core component for wider operational European Location Services.

The sole responsibility of this publication lies with the author. The European Union is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.

Agreement to provide secretariat for UN-GGIM: Europe renewed

EuroGeographics has renewed its Service Level Agreement with The Netherlands' Cadastre, Land Registry and Mapping Agency (Kadaster) to provide secretariat services for UN-GGIM: Europe.

The membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities, which has UN-GGIM: Europe observer status, has supported the Executive Committee in delivering its objectives since 2015 with Carol Agius fulfilling the role of Administrator. In addition to ensuring that relevant organisations in the European UN Member States and European Institutions are well informed about its activities, EuroGeographics also organises the annual plenary as well as Executive Committee and Working Group Meetings.

Chair of the UN-GGIM: Europe Executive Committee, Bengt Kjellson from Sweden said: “UN-GGIM: Europe is a mechanism for discussion and decision-making at an international political and policy level. EuroGeographics has extensive experience of bringing organisations together to find solutions to common challenges and we are very pleased that it will continue to provide a secretariat for our work.”

Vice Chair of Chair of the UN-GGIM: Europe Executive Committee, Dorine Burmanje from The Netherlands added: “The Netherlands is responsible for providing a secretariat to UN-GGIM: Europe and has done so very successfully through its agreement with EuroGeographics. Its renewal will not only ensure the smooth running of UN-GGIM: Europe activities, but will also further our work to demonstrate the power of location.”

President of EuroGeographics, Ingrid Vanden Berghe, commented: “It is a great privilege to fulfil the role of secretariat for UN-GGIM: Europe. We’re delighted to continue to support its work which contributes to the more effective management, availability and integration of geospatial information in Europe. For the mapping agencies that we represent, UNGGIM is an important forum to advocate their contribution to the better understanding and sustainable development of our world.”

The Service Level Agreement was signed at EuroGeographics 2016 General Assembly Budapest, Hungary.

For more information, visit www.un-ggim-europe.org

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For further information contact Carol Agius T: + 356 7902 3057 E: carol.agius@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

UN-GGIM: Europe is a regional committee of the United Nations Initiative on Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM).

Drawing on the national capacities and capabilities of Member States, UN-GGIM was established in 2011. It takes a leading role in setting the agenda for global geospatial information development as well as in promoting its benefits for addressing both national policy and key global challenges.

Ireland and Spain elected to EuroGeographics Management Board

Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities have elected representatives from Ireland and Spain to the Management Board of their membership Association, EuroGeographics.

Colin Bray, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Survey Officer, Ordnance Survey Ireland and Amalia Velasco Martín-Varés, International Affairs Coordinator, Spanish Directorate General for Cadastre will help to shape its strategic direction and, in particular its vision for European Location Services.

As a result of the vote during the Association’s 2017 General Assembly in Vienna. Austria, the EuroGeographics Management Board now comprises:

• President Ingrid Vanden Berghe, National Geographic Institute, Belgium
• Vice President, Hansjoerg Kutterer, Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy, Germany
• Sylvain Latarget, National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information, France
• David Henderson, Ordnance Survey, Great Britain.
• Colin Bray, Ordnance Survey Ireland
• Anne Cathrine Frøstrup, Norwegian Mapping Authority
• Konstantin Koltonyuk, Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography (Rosreestr), Russia
• Darko Vujetic, Republic Geodetic Authority, Serbia.
• Amalia Velasco Martín-Varés, Spanish Directorate General for Cadastre.

Leaders and senior representatives from 50 authorities in 42 countries attended the annual General Assembly hosted by the Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying (BEV).

The two-day event, which coincided with the celebrations marking the 200^th anniversary of the Austrian Cadastre, was officially opened by Matthias Tschirf, Vice-Minister of Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy with welcoming addresses from Wernher Hoffmann, President of BEV and Robert Edelmaier, BEV Vice-President and Director of the Metrology Service.

EuroGeographics President, Ingrid Vanden Berghe said: “In his official opening, Mr Tschirf recognised that our members bear a great responsibility as the official sources of mapping, cadastre and land registration. Not only do they record and secure the property of citizens but they also ensure the essential basis for administration and economy.”

“International cooperation is needed to achieve this for Europe and, as there is no intergovernmental organisation for surveying and geoinformation, the work of EuroGeographics and its members is of the utmost importance.”

“Our aim is to deliver value to our members to support better governance for the benefit of society in general, a society that is empowered by the use of their official authoritative geospatial services.”

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350(mobile) or email press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics
EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 61 members from 46 countries.

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit eurogeographics.org.

European open data from official national sources to be included in key UN boundary information initiative

Harmonised European open data from official national sources is to be included in the United Nations Second Administrative Level Boundaries (SALB) initiative.

EuroGeographics, which represents National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities from the whole of geographical Europe, is providing its 1:1 million scale topographic open dataset, EuroGlobalMap to assist the project’s aim of compiling global administrative boundaries data from authoritative sources.

Mr Mick Cory, Secretary General and Executive Director of the international not-for-profit association presented the dataset to Mr Kyoung-Soo Eom, Chief, Geospatial Information Section, United Nations and Mr Anthony O’Mullane, Director, Information and Communications Technology Division, Department of Field Support, United Nations at the Seventh Session of the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM) in New York.

Mr Cory said: “EuroGeographics is pleased to facilitate the work of the SALB initiative towards the development of a worldwide repository of geospatial information databases of administrative boundaries.”

“As the representative of European National Mapping and Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities, we look forward to further collaboration and would be pleased to contribute our technical expertise and experience in collecting such data from Member States, as well as to share our data standards and policies with the initiative.”

Mr Kyoung-Soo Eom added: “We are very pleased to receive this geospatial data from official national sources and we foresee that there will be a great synergy through our cooperation between EuroGeographics and the UN SALB Initiative.”

“We look forward to our continued cooperation towards the achievement of our common goal.”

EuroGlobalMap provides harmonised European open data covering 45 countries and territories, comprising six themes: Administrative boundaries, names locations, transport networks, settlements, elevation; and the water network. It is available free of charge for any use under an open data licence and enables a wide range of applications, including mobile mapping, demographic and socio-economic analysis, hydrology, energy and environment modelling and education and research.

SALB, as an authoritative geospatial dataset on administrative boundaries, participates in the provision of “reliable geospatial information” highlighted as key in the General Assembly Resolution 66/288 “The Future We Want” for the implementation of sustainable development policy-making, programming and project operations. 

It can play a crucial role in providing reliable global geospatial information for measuring and monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular by linking statistics to geospatial location as identified in General Assembly Resolution 70/1 “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.

Administrative boundaries have been highlighted as a priority “core global fundamental geospatial data theme” by the UN-GGIM which recognises the importance of SALB and encouraged Member States for active participation in the initiative. Currently, SALB accounts for over 80 participating Member States who have already provided either their contact details, submitted initial GIS datasets or finalised with the Secretariat a publically available SALB dataset.

Under the auspices of the UN Secretariat, SALB is jointly managed by the Geospatial Information Section of the Department of the Field Support (DFS) and the Statistics Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), offices also responsible for the UN-GGIM Secretariat services.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350(mobile) or email press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics
EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 63 members from 46 countries.

EuroGeographics signs production management agreement with BKG Germany

EuroGeographics has announced that Germany’s Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy (BKG) is to manage production for two of its pan-European products.

The production management agreement means that BKG will now coordinate the development and delivery of EuroRegionalMap, a 1:250 000 dataset, as well as EuroBoundaryMap, which enables the exact matching of administrative units with statistical data using a European-wide unique identifier. The National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information (IGN France) continues to support the production of EuroGlobalMap open data.

EuroGeographics’ portfolio of pan-European datasets, including a digital elevation model EuroDEM, is created by harmonising authoritative geographic information from its members, the National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities of Europe.

“We are very pleased to have signed this agreement with BKG and I should also like to thank NGI, Belgium, for providing significant support over many years in the production management of EuroRegionalMap,” said EuroGeographics’ Secretary General and Executive Director, Mick Cory.  “Harmonised pan-European maps and geographic information are of fundamental importance to society – they inform policy, enable decision-making and help visualise a range of otherwise complex data.”

“EuroGeographics continues to maintain and develop its portfolio of pan-European datasets created by harmonising our members’ national data. Feedback from users indicates that they greatly value this high quality, reliable information from trusted sources. Bringing both these datasets together under a single agreement will simplify workflows and enable greater harmony between the two products.”

Head of BKG, Prof Dr Hansjörg Kutterer added: “We’re very excited to be coordinating the production management of these two datasets which provide accurate authoritative information for decision makers across a wide range of sectors. Our aim is to extend coverage and create a common geometry for international boundaries, national boundaries and coastlines to ensure they continue to meet user needs.”

The latest version of EuroBoundaryMap, released in spring 2016, includes country datasets for Albania and part of Bosnia and Herzegovina and has been enhanced through the integration of INSPIRE identifiers. The latest version of EuroRegionalMap includes updates to the administrative and hydrology themes.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350(mobile) or email press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics
EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Land Registry and Cadastral Authorities. It currently brings together 61 members from 46 countries.

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit www.eurogeographics.org.

Plan to deliver authoritative pan-European open data services unveiled today in Brussels

Members of EuroGeographics have today (12 June 2017) unveiled plans for pan-European open data services underpinned by geospatial information from official sources.

The Open European Location Services (ELS) project aims to improve the availability of geospatial information from the public authorities responsible for mapping, cadastre and land registries. Funded by the European Commission, it builds upon the European Location Framework (ELF) project which developed the standards, specifications, tools and technical infrastructure to deliver pan-European geospatial content. Open ELS is focused on facilitating access to, and encouraging the take up and use of this information, and is strongly user orientated with a comprehensive programme of activities for SMEs. It is therefore the core component for building operational European Location Services.

EuroGeographics, an international not-for-profit association representing Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities, is coordinating the two-year initiative which is 50 per cent funded by the European Commission through the 2016 CEF Telecom Call. It is working with partners from member organisations in Norway, The Netherlands, Great Britain, Finland, Spain, Sweden, Poland and Germany.

Helen Kaestner, European Location Services Transition Programme Manager said: “Our intention is to develop pan-European open data services using authoritative geospatial information along with an associated business model, whilst also respecting EuroGeographics members’ national policy, legislative and business requirements. This will provide certainty about what is free, what is charged for, and the terms and conditions of use or reuse.”

The Open ELS project is part of EuroGeographics’ wider vision for a unique and powerful information resource covering geographical Europe as well as the EU Member States. Together with its members, the association is committed to developing the gateway to data from official, national sources to deliver European Location Services. This will be a unique, single source of data from multiple countries which is delivered to a common specification under clear and harmonised licencing and pricing.

Ms Kaestner continued: “We know that authoritative geospatial data is highly valued and provides confidence to users that it is consistent and comparable, regardless of its national source.”

“The delivery of an operational service is an ambitious undertaking but the geospatial community has a long and successful tradition of positive and strong collaboration. EuroGeographics is founded on a tradition of sharing knowledge and expertise, and we have a long, successful track record of delivering harmonised pan-European geospatial data products.”

“Open ELS and European Location Services complement the national activities of our members and provide a fundamental resource for Europe that meets the needs and high expectations of users.”

For more information, visit eurogeographics.org

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +447892 698 350(mobile) or email press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 63 members from 46 countries.

Open ELS is a two-year project funded by European Commission (2016 CEF Telecom Call - Public Open Data (CEF-TC-2016-2).

EuroGeographics welcomes land registration authorities from Malta and Scotland as new members

Land registration authorities from Malta and Scotland are the latest organisations to become full members of international not-for-profit association, EuroGeographics.

Applications from the Malta Land Registry and Registers of Scotland were approved by members of the Association for European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities at their 2017 Extraordinary General Assembly. As a result, EuroGeographics now represents 63 organisations from 46 countries.

Mrs Sheenagh Adams, Keeper of the Registers of Scotland, said: “EuroGeographics offers a host of opportunities for collaborating to find solutions to common challenges. We are particularly looking forward to participating in the Knowledge Exchange Networks and discussing issues of mutual interest.”

Mr John Attard, Head of the Malta Land Registry added: “Sharing best practice is vital in the field of land registration where changing technology, such as crowd sourcing and real-time reporting, is impacting on activities. EuroGeographics provides a valuable forum for reflecting these emerging trends and exchanging experiences and expertise.”

Mrs Ingrid Vanden Berghe, President of EuroGeographics said: “It is a privilege to represent members from every country in geographical Europe and we are delighted to welcome the Malta Land Registry and Registers of Scotland to the Association.”

“European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities fulfill a unique role by providing definitive, detailed map and land information. As their membership association, we are committed to supporting them as they improve access to this rich source of data to drive applications that deliver very real benefits to Europe, and to ensuring that their responsibilities, capabilities and concerns are understood.”

EuroGeographics’ Extraordinary General Assembly is being held in Leuven, Belgium and is attended by 72 delegates, representing 33 member organisations from 30 countries.

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For further information please contact Rhian French on +44 1264 300126, +44 7892 698 350 (mobile) or email: press@eurogeographics.org.

Notes to Editors

EuroGeographics

EuroGeographics is a Brussels-based international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together 63 members from 46 countries.

EuroGeographics is registered on the EU Transparency Register and bound by its code of conduct.