Frank is an educator, activist, and tech entrepreneur with a deep commitment to community empowerment. His leadership spans over a decade of impactful community organizing work which focused on strengthening community bonds and creating healthier, safer, and more economically viable... Read More →
In 2023, Sheboygan County migrated to Esri's Address Data Management Solution in addition to the NG911 migration. Hear from the County on how the solution has been working after a full year of being implemented, some additions the County has made to the solution, as well as how the County has setup workflows to move data from the source database to other locations for it's Dispatch software and for the State's GeoComm system.
Nathan started as the GIS Administrator at Sheboygan County in November of 2021. He is involved in managing the County's GIS infrastructure, which includes GIS servers, SQL databases, and ArcGIS Online. Before moving to Sheboygan, Nathan spent 15 years in Michigan working in community... Read More →
The Milwaukee River Basin Report Card showcases the impact of volunteer-generated data in assessing water quality across the Milwaukee River Basin. This presentation will explore the process of collecting, managing, and visualizing data from community volunteers, which forms the foundation of the report card. The project not only empowers volunteers and supplies the state with critical data, but also enhances public understanding of critical water quality issues.
A significant aspect of the Report Card is its role as an advocacy tool. By translating complex environmental data into clear, compelling visuals, it serves to inform and influence local and regional water management policies. The Report Card has been pivotal in driving community action and shaping environmental initiatives, demonstrating the power of community science in advocacy.
Katie is the Milwaukee Riverkeeper's Water Quality Manager. In addition to overseeing all community science projects, water program staff, and data management, she runs the production of the Annual Milwaukee River Basin Report Card.
Friday February 28, 2025 10:30am - 11:00am CST
Bond/Crown
With a background in geography and GIS, curiosity about the cultural and physical landscape around us was a given. Traveling with family and friends was a normal vacation time activity. When retirement came, traveling went to an entirely new level. It became a journey, a passion, a quest to experience the world through GIS eyes! From the northernmost city in the world to the southernmost city, JoAnn has captured some extraordinary images of infrastructure and maps during her traveling escapades abroad!
Work: Retired in 2017 from Applied Data Consultants as a Senior GIS Project Manager. Prior to that she worked as a GIS Technician at the West Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, Eau Claire, WIEducation:Bachelor of Art, GeographyUniversity of Wisconsin at Eau Claire(Cum... Read More →
Friday February 28, 2025 10:30am - 11:00am CST
Rosewood/Linden
This presentation will cover how to setup an asset management system for a community/utility. We will do a deep dive into utility data, systems and pros/cons.
Jon Schwichtenberg is a Past President of WLIA. He is the GIS Manager for GRAEF and has been working in the consulting business for 34 years. Jon has been assisting utilities and communities with Asset Management for over 28 years.
Friday February 28, 2025 10:30am - 11:00am CST
Briarwood/Ebony
In today's fast-paced world, staying ahead requires access to precise, up-to-date information. Nearmap is revolutionizing industries with high-resolution, frequently updated aerial imagery and cutting-edge GeoAI technologies. Join us to see how these tools empower businesses and organizations to make smarter, data-driven decisions.
Discover how regularly refreshed imagery provides an unparalleled view of urban landscapes, enabling better planning, development, and monitoring. Learn how GeoAI transforms imagery into actionable insights, from identifying changes in infrastructure to automating asset management and risk assessment. This session will feature real-world use cases showcasing how to optimize workflows, reduce costs, and improve outcomes.
Key Takeaways:
Understand the value of frequently updated imagery for dynamic environments. Explore GeoAI’s role in automating workflows and delivering actionable insights. See practical applications across industries with tangible results.
Compare and contrast current US land information systems to the system used in Switzerland. In 2018 WI surveyor Rich Leaver and a contingent of US Surveyors visited Switzerland to learn about survey and GIS integration in SWI. The difference between their system and ours is night and day. One thing in common is that they use US based technology to run their system. Rich and Matt O'Rourke will discuss challenges we face as surveyors and discuss why the GIS and Surveying professions need to get on the same page in the US. It can start with one state, why not Wisconsin?
Matt has 25 years of experience in a wide variety of Land Surveying projects. He has been responsible for completion of projects including topographic surveys, Certified Survey Maps, Plat of Surveys, easement exhibits, legal descriptions, ALTA/NSPS surveys, control surveys, public... Read More →
Rich has 50 years of surveying experience including 20 as a county surveyor. Rich wants to leave the surveying profession better than the way he found it.
Friday February 28, 2025 10:30am - 11:30am CST
McIntosh
Learn about the statewide database of outdoor recreation sites created by the Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation and multiple stakeholders, with the goal of enabling residents and professionals to visualize outdoor recreation opportunities and download data to support their projects. Learn how the GIS-based solutions were configured, how data was analyzed, compiled and standardized, and hear an update on the status of the inventory amongst participants.
Project and Outreach Specialist, Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation
Taylar Foster is the Project and Outreach Specialist at the Wisconsin Office of Outdoor Recreation, joining the team in November 2023. Created by the Department of Tourism, the Office is charged with supporting and uplifting Wisconsin’s diverse outdoor recreation industry for the... Read More →
Emily Weber is a GIS Specialist at Pro-West & Associates focusing on data development and data migration projects, covering a variety of areas including utility data and inventories such as the Wisconsin Outdoor Recreation Inventory. Emily's enthusiasm for GIS is inspired by the technology's... Read More →
Friday February 28, 2025 11:00am - 11:30am CST
Pippin
The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is in the process of modernizing the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS), which is the common reference for geospatial data across the United States. NAD 83 and NAVD 88 will be replaced with the North American Terrestrial Reference Frame of 2022 (NATRF2022) and the North American-Pacific Geopotential Datum of 2022 (NAPGD2022). This presentation will outline the timelines for the implementation of the modernized NSRS, explain the building blocks of the new datums, address the practical implications for existing and new geospatial datasets, and look at the tools available from NGS that will help with the transition.
Great Lakes Regional Geodetic Advisor, NOAA National Geodetic Survey
Dr. Jacob Heck is a geodesist, serving as the National Geodetic Survey’s Regional Geodetic Advisor for the Great Lakes, where he supports users of the National Spatial Reference System throughout Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. Jacob has a B.S. in Surveying... Read More →
Join us for our presentation on breaking down a 24k dataset to a 800k dataset for the 2025 Wisconsin DOT Highway Map! Students and Staff from the State Cartographer's Office present new methods for rule-based selection and generalization of 24k Hydro Waterbodies and Flowlines layers. We developed a predominantly automated process to reduce data complexity and enhance map readability through ArcGIS Pro tools. In collaboration with DOT Cartographic Specialist, Katie Ginther, we created hydro layers for the 2025 highway map that serve as a foundation for future projects.
State Cartographer, Wisconsin State Cartographer's Office
Forty years of experience in digital cartography and GIS (Geographic Information Systems). PhD in Geography from UC Santa Barbara. Nearly 10 years of experience as a university professor, with teaching and research interests in cartography and GIS. Nearly 10 years of experience directing... Read More →
Maps can help make a fantasy world more tangible to us. JRR Tolkien created Middle Earth originally from linguistic inspiration simply because he needed a reason, a place, and history for the Elvish languages he created. The maps of Middle Earth would become one of Tolkien’s most arduous journeys in creating his world. While some may argue that fantasy isn’t “real,” to Tolkien, the world he imagined has at least some truth to it. Middle Earth has a sense that it all existed in his imagination. Tolkien could have told you the height of the Misty Mountains or how vast of the Dead Marshes are. There are fantastical elements to Middle Earth, sure, but Tolkien’s “imaginary” languages, cultures, world, and geography are based upon our world and his travels during World War I. In a sense, they are rooted in some truth. ESRI now offers a Middle Earth “Style” labeled as “My Precious Style,” created by our guest speaker John Nelson. Join me and other fellow nerds to learn about the stories, pop culture, history, geography, and maps that brought fantasy into the mainstream.
ArcGIS Utility Network allows you to manage a connected network with a single unified model. This Utility Network session aims to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of the latest advancements in utility network management using ArcGIS technology. Key topics covered will include: Introduction to ArcGIS Utility Network, differences between geometric and utility networks, data modeling and schema design, network configuration and asset management, network analysis and tracing capabilities, integration with other ArcGIS tools and extensions, and real-world use cases and success stories.
Jarod Fox is an Esri solution engineer based in Minneapolis, MN. He works primarily with municipal governments in the Dakotas, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Jarod has a bachelor’s degree in Geography and GIS from the University of Illinois and a Master’s in Applied Geospatial Information... Read More →
Friday February 28, 2025 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
Briarwood/Ebony
Bayfield County is using a drone equipped with a Lidar sensor to gather data. Three sites have been flown and we are developing a workflow for future projects. The completed flights and future applications will be discussed.
Heather Lee is the Remote Sensing Specialist for Bayfield County Land Records. Her current and recent projects include utilizing Lidar for stream restoration, creating a new county road map, and assisting in search and rescue with a UAV. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Geography... Read More →
Our surveyors are using Survey123 on a weekly basis to assist with their requirements for field notes. Learn how this collaboration started and how it has grown from use on one project to an essential step in the workflow. The session will cover the collaboration process, an overview of the Survey123 form and the reports that are generated, and the benefits of digital notes.
Lindsay is a GIS technician for EMCS, Inc., a civil engineering firm based in Milwaukee. She was a GIS tech for the City of Stevens Point when she first started attending WLIA.
Friday February 28, 2025 11:30am - 12:00pm CST
McIntosh
Daniel will be covering new applications that WisDOT has rolled out in the past year that have led to increased collaboration between WisDOT, consultants, counties, tribal entities, etc. I'll be showcasing use of Instant & Experience Builder Apps and how easy it is to rollout maps that allow external customers the ability to get to data quicker. Some collaboration applications that will be discussed are: As-built & Right-of-way plats, Structures High-Flow Event Monitoring, Commemorative Highways/Bridges and Michigan Border Timber Routes, Weight Restricted Bridges, and Roadside Facilities. Steven will be showcasing how the Bureau of Structures is using tools like SiteScan and other processing tools to model our structures. This allows us to utilize the data for inspections, quantity calculations and most recently developing 3D digital twins to train and calibrate structure inspectors across the state.
GIS Specialist - Data Coordinator, Wisconsin Dept of Transportation
Dan Johnston has worked @ WisDOT his entire 25-year career. He's worked on the WISLR/local roads initial implementation, making data-driven decisions to plan construction projects, and now works on developing WisDOT's data repository, application development and use of open data to... Read More →
State Ancillary Structures Program Manager, Wisconsin Dept of Transportation
I have worked at WisDOT for 13 years, 11 of those with BOS I have been involved with drones and GIS since 2021 and am the lead pilot for BOS, coordinating a group that includes 10 active pilots and 18 drones to perform missions throughout the state.
Friday February 28, 2025 11:30am - 12:30pm CST
Pippin
Overview of USNG implementation in northern Wisconsin, including Bayfield County and plans for further signage installs in surrounding counties. We've accomplished installing USNG on many non-motorized trails and will be looking at motorized trails into the future. Tips for getting started on USNG implementation will be highlighted.
Carmen Novak is the Bayfield County GIS Coordinator who has worked with the county for over ten years, taking part in all GIS endeavors and projects. Carmen’s role in the USNG project is collaborating with neighboring entities and trail enthusiasts to reach a common goal of USNG... Read More →
Brigid Reina Williams is the Bayfield County Land Records Specialist who loves all things outdoor recreation. Brigid started her county GIS career as trail mapping intern, bike riding many miles of trail to pinpoint optimal USNG sign locations. In the following few years, she has... Read More →
