Washington, DC, February 19, 2020 — The International Lidar Mapping Forum (ILMF) has announced that Jack Dangermond, the Founder & President of Esri, will open the second day of conference programming with a keynote titled Building a Geospatial Nervous System for The Planet. The keynote is one of several available to attendees of both ILMF and the co-located ASPRS Annual Conference, taking place March 23 – 25, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC.

“We are honored to have Jack Dangermond join us,” said Lisa Murray, Group Director at Diversified Communications. “To say that Jack’s work has played a defining role in shaping the geospatial industry would be an understatement, so I think attendees will be eager to hear what he has to say about the industry’s future.”

“Esri has long been a giant in the GIS world thanks to Jack’s passionate commitment to making complex technology accessible to millions of users in every imaginable application,” said Karen Schuckman, PLS, CP, CMS, Managing Director of ASPRS. “His influence now reaches into the realms of photogrammetry and remote sensing analysis and has made it possible to leverage the rich and abundant data sources that have come on line in recent years yet remained, previously, out of reach to many.” Mrs. Schuckman continues, “As an educator and as a spokesperson for ASPRS, I believe that this can only broaden and deepen the impact of our profession on the lives of every human being and the future of our planet.”

Following his keynote address, Jack Dangermond will join a panel of geospatial executives to discuss the question How Will Geospatial Data Power the Next Industrial Revolution? This prominent panel of geospatial senior leadership includes Joe Astroth, CEO of Cyclomedia USA; Robert Mankowski, VP of Digital Cities at Bentley Systems; Michel Stanier, EVP of Teledyne Geospatial; and Jim Van Rens, Senior Vice President at RIEGL USA. Leading the discussion will be moderator Sanjay Kumar, the founder and CEO of Geospatial Media & Communications and the World Geospatial Industry Council (WGIC). More information regarding these exciting keynotes and the esteemed speakers can be found here www.lidarmap.org/2020-keynotes.

“These geospatial leaders are truly changing how we see and interact with our world,” said Bill Emison, Conference Chair at Diversified Communications. “Improvements in the availability of geospatial data, and our ability to manipulate and understand it, are creating new opportunities and disrupting industries far beyond remote sensing and geodetics.”

Previously announced keynotes are Tara O’Shea, Director of Forest Programs at Planet, Combining Remote Sensing & Analytics Technologies: Emerging Environmental Applications, and Dr. Michael Zanetti, Planetary Scientist at NASA, Combining Remote Sensing & Bringing Light (Detection and Ranging) into Shadow: The Role of Lidar in Exploring the Moon.

Registration for the 20th edition of ILMF, taking place with the ASPRS Annual Conference and the MAPPS Federal Programs Conference, as part of Geo Week 2020, is open. Event organizers recommend registering early for the best price and to avoid lines onsite. To register, please visit: https://xpressreg.com/register/ilmf0320/landing.asp?sc=209073

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About International Lidar Mapping Forum

International Lidar Mapping Forum (ILMF) is a technical conference & exhibition focused on airborne, terrestrial, and underwater lidar as well as emerging remote-sensing and data collection tools and technology used for applications including Asset Management, Civil Infrastructure, Coastal Zone Mapping, Emergency Services & Disaster Response, Land and Natural Resource Management, and Urban Modeling.

ILMF is part of a network of events and media for the global geospatial market organized by Diversified Communications, a leading organizer of conferences, trade shows, and online media with 15 years in the geospatial arena, including Commercial UAV Expo Americas, Commercial UAV Europe, Commercial UAV News, International Lidar Mapping Forum, SPAR 3D Expo & Conference, SPAR3D.com, AEC Next Technology Expo + Conference and AEC Next News. For more information, visit lidarmap.org.

About Geo Week

Geo Week is a multi-event collaboration including participation from International Lidar Mapping Forum, ASPRS Annual Conference, and MAPPS Federal Programs Conference to accomplish a year of geospatial business in just one week.

Each of the three events will retain the distinct educational programs their respective attendees have come to rely upon for industry news and information as well as career development. Various conference pass options are available to allow attendees to take part in any or all programming and activities.