Sharing Geographic Information

Developments in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are changing land-use decision making in profound ways. Access to data on land and its uses is essential to a wide range of planning functions, both public and private. But data collection and maintenance are difficult and expensive. The potential for sharing information within and among organizations makes GIS technology accessible to planners, analysts, and policymakers. Onsrud and Rushton have gathered together leading academics in organization theory, management information systems, and GIS as well as practitioners from federal, state, regional, and local governments, GIS software developers, consultants, and spatial data suppliers. The contributors describe and analyze their past experiences-both successful and unsuccessful-in sharing geographic data. They identify opportunities, options, and potential pitfalls for organizations as well as for individuals and recommend strategies and models for improved information sharing. This book explores organizational theory issues in the context of geographic data-sharing environments, experiences in the sharing of geographic data, organizational dynamics and lessons learned from past experiences, and pragmatic considerations in the further development and improvement of a spatial data infrastructure. This volume is essential reading for planners, geographers, policy analysts, and decision makers concerned with land use, transportation, infrastructure, and environmental issues at all spatial levels.