1. Geospatial Enterprise Architecture
March 16, 2005

2. Objectives of this meeting
To discuss organizational support of Geospatial capabilities in EA
To identify the appropriate organizational solution to support systematic use of geospatial in EA
To identify collective resources that can be spent to organize and disseminate GEA information

3. Why an EA for the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI)?
Differences in understanding and implementing EA in various agencies
Encourage communication between geospatial business professionals and IT/CIO offices within agencies
Identify and publish best practices
Identify opportunities to fortify and share common geospatial services across all levels of government “over the fence”

4. Collaboration observations
The relationship of geospatial to EA was discussed from many perspectives
Geospatial behaviors (services), content (data), and technologies are in use in all levels of government
Geospatial is not treated systematically in the context of broader business and systems design or EA

5. Observations, continued
Benefits to identifying common data and services in a broader architectural framework – reducing duplicate data collection and service
Adoption of common practices allow for multi-lateral, multi-jurisdictional collaboration and re-use of data – NC/SC, Kentucky, GlobeXplorer

6. Observations, continued
The solution is not a “National Geospatial Enterprise Architecture” but rather supporting compatible EA concepts that address geospatial behavior in systematic ways
Need to identify geospatial patterns, terminologies, and behaviors and share these with practitioners

7. Who needs to participate?
Federal CIO designees
State and local government reps
Industry partners (value-add, commercial supplier, integrators)
Geospatial professionals (applications developers, integrators)

8. Who needs to know this?
EA practitioners need to understand and recognize geospatial characteristics in their planning and implementation
Geospatial practitioners need to learn more about design approaches to EA and contribute the spatial dimension to business process and broader EA
Managers need to recognize and support geospatial capabilities in business lines

9. National support for Geospatial in EA
USGS convened an internal/external Study Team to evaluate the need for common approaches to geospatial capabilities in EA
Recommendations:
Suggested the creation of a National Geospatial Enterprise Architecture
Establish an ad hoc management group to advise on the inclusion of geospatial resources in governmental Enterprise Architectures (National GEA) convened under AIC and FGDC
Through an ad hoc technical working group, initiate a project to conduct reconnaissance and evaluation of existing geospatial EA terminology, use cases, and models to define and promote best practices and common resources within the community

10. NGEA Geospatial Advisory Group
Convene a council of federal and non-federal managers to coordinate and communicate geospatial issues in the context of EA, and FEA
Work with/through CIO Council members
Work with/through the FGDC and its stakeholders in all levels of government
Approve and oversee technical activities

11. NSDI EA Project Proposal
Initiate a project to define a geospatial overlay for Enterprise Architecture in the context of the NSDI to:
Adopt common reference terminology and scope
Create opportunities to align enterprise architectures within and across agency lines in a multi-jurisdictional environment
Identify geospatial data / service producers and consumers for service-level agreements
Develop consensus on the ‘results’ of such an EA exploration: Reference models? Best practices?

12. Objectives of GeoCOP
To define geospatial profile/aspect/view of the BRM, TRM, SRM, DRM
Working through individual EAs and evaluating geospatial across government can lead to better delivery of services
Propose a COP between the NSDI and the Enterprise Architects of the federal and non-federal agencies to work on this issue
Outreach, guidance, best practices – how do we use the artifacts to effect change
Solutions architecture
Affect the Exhibit 300 process
What does geospatial look like across agencies for a given line of business?

13. (Insert slide on what lines of business include geospatial)
Quotable: FCW “67 out of 77 business activities had a locational context”

14. Opportunity
If we architect together our geospatial investment with local/state/federal, the ROI could be…
Greater mission effectiveness through better alignment with business functions
Information sharing with other levels of government through interoperability
Cost avoidance – re-use of authoritative data and services
Increased efficiency and currency
Access to broader spectrum of data and services
Flexibility in implementation, rapidly mobilize new capabilities

15. Shared lines of business
Integrated Data and Information “To Be State”
Geospatial Overlay
USDA
DOI
Using the
FEA-DRM
Recreation
DOE
Natural Resource
HHS
Health
Emission
Consumer Safety
Public
Health
Monitoring
Consumer
Health &
Safety
Recreational
Resource
Management
& Tourism
Pollution
Prevention
& Control
Energy
Research

16. Next Steps Geospatial aspects of Enterprise Architecture
Form a Community of Practice
Engage in Chief Architects Forum
Collaborate with the DRM Working Group
Constitute an ad hoc FGDC Working Group on EA
Relate the ongoing geospatial work to the FEA
Map geospatial standards and practices into existing FEA Reference Models
Work with early adopters of geospatial aspects of enterprise architecture (DHS, DOD, DOI, EPA, NASA, NOAA, USDA, States, Cities, Regions, Census)

17. General Workplan
Build consensus on common terminology, concepts, and scope of project
Leverage the good work that has been done into an efficient cross-agency EA that recognizes the geospatial perspective
Solicit and synthesize existing geospatial EA contributions from interested contributing organizations
Map existing geospatial concepts, standards, and practices into FEA Reference Models
Develop a Geospatial Profile for FEA

18. Evaluate existing EA artifacts with respect to formal Service, Data and Technology Reference models, consistent with FEA
Document best practices for incorporating geospatial aspects of existing EA for both geospatial and EA practitioners
Develop Geospatial Profile document for FEA
Validation of patterns and practices via active prototyping and demonstration of services in support of multiple organizations
A consensus process to evolve reference models and best practices via broader NSDI community involvement

19. Goals
Promote a cross-agency architecture that supports geospatial enablement of mission capabilities
Moving from projects and stovepipes to integrated interoperable solutions
Recognize geospatial as part of the way to do business

20. Group Tasks
Broaden participation by federal and non-federal individuals
Collaborate via Architects’ Forum tools
If there are policy issues, raise and discuss and inform them within community
Evaluate and promote information from geospatial interoperability projects – highlight transferability of technical, organizational, and political successes
Develop a common national locational policy

21. Approach in Three Phases
Phase I: Establish common understanding of objectives and terminology, acquire existing EA materials, develop key scenarios for geospatial, establish EA Reference Models for NSDI that ties to agency-supplied FEA Lines of Business and equivalent Reference Model concepts
Phase 2: Mature data and technical reference models, best practices, contribute to Geospatial Profile of FEA
Phase 3: Validate reference models and best practices via experimentation and prototyping

22. Next steps Launch collaboration space Refine a project workplan
Convene meeting in early May:
What is the status of GEA in your agency?
Where are the geospatial touchpoints in EA?
Invite chief architects and the geospatial types
Participate in State CIO webinar
Develop an Outreach strategy
How to influence and participate in DRM

23. Reference Models
Business Reference Model (BRM) –define mission-critical lines of business, business processes, and functions
Performance Reference Model (PRM) sometimes developed to define measures of performance
Technical Reference Model (TRM) –identifies and describes the technology (components, interfaces) used to achieve the BRM
Service Reference Model (SRM) defines the types and instances of services required to support processes
Data Reference Model (DRM) – defines the data/information concepts, structures, definitions, and values or enumerations required by the BRM in the context of the TRM

24. Opportunities for partnership
E-government initiatives including recreation.gov and geodata.gov
Department of Interior EGIM members
Group on Earth Observations (GEO) partners
NASA
Department of Homeland Security
Environmental Protection Agency
USDA
Key state and local government agencies

25. Agenda 11:00am - 3:00pm Geospatial Community EA Planning Meeting
11:00    Discussion of Vision and Scope     o Creation of an ad-hoc NGEA Advisory Council     o Necessary activities of an NGEA Technical Working Group     Round-robin interests and contributions of all present
12:00    Lunch
1:00    What do we need from EA to achieve interoperability for     geospatial systems?
o Services SRM (Service Oriented Architecture)
o Technical TRM (intersection of relevant standards)
o Data and Semantics, DRM
o Discussion of Business and Performance Reference Models
o Common modeling tools, framework, repository
2:30    Commitments and next steps:     o What is the timeline and scope for a joint project?     o What resources can each agency commit to this effort?