1. James W. Wilson, Ph.D. Old Dominion University June 20, 2006
Geospatial CyberInfrastructure for the Shenandoah Valley: The VertICeS Project
James W. Wilson, Ph.D.
Old Dominion University
June 20, 2006

2. Outline
What is VertICeS?
Shenandoah Valley Region & Pilot
Status

3. VertICeS Vertically Integrating Cyberinfrastructure for Sustainability
Education
Research
Applications
Envisioned as part of a larger national effort:
Cyber4SPACE: Cyberinfrastructure for Sustainable Programs And Community Empowerment
The Shenandoah Valley is the first pilot

4. Sustainability ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS
Many environmental, social, and economic issues concerning the world in which we live
SYSTEMS
information systems must be maintainable and useable through time

5. Shenandoah Valley
A long history of the area being considered a region by residents and others.
Strong GIS programs and professionals throughout the region who have developed good working relationships through their own efforts and through nearly fourteen years of meetings of the Shenandoah Valley GIS Users Group.

6. Shenandoah Valley
Regional sustainability issues with geospatial aspects:
Shenandoah River listed as the 5th most endangered river in the U.S. (American Rivers)
I-81 corridor being examined for expansion and declared an endangered property (APVA Pres.Va.)
The SHENandoah Valley AIR Quality Initiative (SHENAIR)
Great Valley Water-Resources Science Forum
South River Science Study

7. Shenandoah Valley
Like many geographic areas and many agencies, GIS being developed to meet internal needs of local governments, state & federal agencies, or regional applications
Duplication of effort and data
Little to no horizontal or vertical integration

8. Distributed GIS
The biggest problem impeding the progress of the development and utilization of distributed geographic information systems (GIS) is the “difficulty of imagining the full potential of distributed GIS”
Longley, Paul A., Michael F. Goodchild, David J. Maguire, David W. Rhind Geographic Information Systems and Science (West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd), p.259

9. Education
Goal: Try to harness some of the activities taking place at the national and international level to address local issues
Outreach Efforts:
What is Distributed GIS?
How can local producers and users of geospatial information build and take advantage of the evolving geospatial cyberinfrastructure?

10. Research A lot of effort at defining details of:
Data models, Architectural interfaces, Etc.
Not as much effort in defining and describing:
Users of distributed GIS
Analytical Requirements
Data Requirements
And where the data needs to reside

11. 2nd Map Of The Valley Campaign
Build on the region’s rich geographic history
On March 26, 1862, Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson requested Jedediah Hotchkiss to “make me a map of the Valley … showing all the points of offence and defense in those places”
Hotchkiss, Jedediah, and Archie P. McDonald Make Me a Map of the Valley; the Civil War Journal of Stonewall Jackson's Topographer (Dallas,: Southern Methodist University Press)
Jackson needed information on the Valley’s infrastructure, and Hotchkiss and his map became a regional information portal that was vital to Jackson’s campaign.

12. 2nd MOTV Components ShenMAP: Shenandoah Maps And Programs
ShenVIEW: Shenandoah Valley Information Exchange Web
ShenTEAM: Shenandoah Training, Education, Advancement, and Mentoring

13. ShenMAP
Web & map interfaces to existing mapping applications and analytical programs
A new map interface that integrates data from various sources using open standards for interoperability (e.g. OGC WMS, WFS, etc.)
Including local, regional, state & federal systems
A searchable catalog of mapping applications, analytical capabilities, and data (built on existing metadata standards & search protocols)
A geospatial data library of regional data

14. ShenVIEW
A portal to information archives and online collaboration tools
Utilize Shenandoah Valley-VA-WV-Mid-Atlantic Region Pilot Project Wiki

15. ShenTEAM Town-hall meetings to bring community together
Professional development workshops
University curriculum enhancements
K-12 teacher workshops

16. Status Informal collaboration expanding CI-TEAM proposal to the NSF
Commitments from local governments, regional planning groups, state agencies, private non-profits
Looking for additional partners and support

17. Contact Information
James W. Wilson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Geography
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, VA 23529