Renewed Request for Proposals: UCGIS/FGDC Workshop on Factors Affecting Participation in NSDI

The UCGIS solicits proposals from individuals at its member institutions who are willing to lead a workshop, to explore research issues involved in the extent to which organizations and institutions participate in the development of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. This will be an interdisciplinary UCGIS workshop sponsored by the Federal Geographic Data Committee. Proposals should expand on the Background Materials below (maximum length 3 pages), propose a workshop Chair (or Co-Chairs), propose a steering committee, and propose a site and approximate date for the workshop. Final choice of the site and date will be negotiated with FGDC; however, the workshop should be conducted by August 31, 1999.

To the proposal, attach brief biographical sketches (maximum 2 pages) for the Chair(s) and a brief description of up to three workshops of a similar nature previously organized by the proposers, including the names of the sponsors, dates when workshops were held, and publisher and date of publication of proceedings or other reports, if any, resulting from each workshop.

The Chair(s) will be responsible for organizing and presenting the workshop and preparing a report of activities and results. In addition to selecting a steering committee and other invited participants in consultation with FGDC, the Chair(s) will circulate a call for participants and fill any remaining spaces in the workshop with experts from a variety of disciplines who should be drawn primarily from UCGIS member institutions. A budget of approximately $27,000 is available to cover the costs of the workshop. The budget will include: travel for the Chair(s) and invited university participants, a $3,000 honorarium for the Chair (or to be shared by the Co-Chairs), UCGIS staff support, and mailings and incidental expenses for the workshop. Meeting space will be arranged by FGDC. UCGIS does not anticipate any transfer of funds to the Chair's institution. Rather, all expenses for the workshop will be paid from the UCGIS central office.

Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of quality of the proposal, documented qualifications of key personnel, quality of results of past projects of a similar nature, and demonstrated ability to produce results within a timely manner.

In order that UCGIS can plan a rapid review process, a letter of intent should be sent by Thursday, December 31, 1998, by those who intend to submit a proposal to lead this workshop. Letters of intent are not required, however, for the submission of a proposal. Please send letters of intent by fax or e-mail to the Chair of the UCGIS Research Management Committee (see contact information below). In order to be considered, proposals are due Thursday, January 14, 1999, by 5 PM Eastern Standard time. Submission must be made by e-mail or by fax (see contact information below). A hard copy letter or form, with the Chair’s original signature, is due within 7 days of electronic or FAX submission.

In the event that no satisfactory proposals are received by January 14, 1999, a workshop Chair may be appointed directly by the President of UCGIS in consultation with the Research Management Committee and FGDC. Otherwise, the UCGIS Research Management Committee will review all proposals submitted and will select one proposal for submission to FGDC. Notification of which proposal is forwarded to FGDC will be given on or before January 29, 1999. Questions about the RFP should be directed to UCGIS President Greg Elmes (gelmes@wvu.edu, phone 304-293-5603, extension 4325, fax 304-293-6522). Funding of the project will be conditional on the availability of funds from FGDC.

Send letters of intent and proposals to:

In section 6 of the 1994 Executive Order, "Coordinating Geographic Data Acquisition and Access: The National Spatial Data Infrastructure," the Secretary of the Department of the Interior was charged to develop strategies to maximize participation in NSDI by nonfederal governments:

"The Secretary, under the auspices of the FGDC, and within 9 months of the date of this order, shall develop, to the extent permitted by law, strategies for maximizing cooperative participatory efforts with State, local, and tribal governments, the private sector, and other nonfederal organizations to share costs and improve efficiencies of acquiring geospatial data consistent with this order."

Earlier in the order, the FGDC was told to use nonfederal expertise to work toward NSDI:

"The FGDC shall utilize the expertise of academia, the private sector, professional societies, and others as necessary to aid in the development and implementation of the objectives of this order." (Executive Order, Sec. 2 (e))

UCGIS proposes a workshop and report aimed at identifying reasons why some nonfederal sectors, as well as some federal offices, have been slow or reluctant to become involved in building NSDI. Many of the impediments to cooperation can be categorized as "cultural," ranging from corporate and disciplinary cultures to anthropological cultures based on ethnicity and language. There are also economic barriers: if a government, organization, or department does not see benefits of participating in NSDI, and has a tight personnel or financial budget, it may be difficult for them to justify putting effort into NSDI participation when it is not central to their mission.

Strategies for building the NSDI are based on assembling geospatial information from diverse institutions throughout the nation, with each contributing parts most relevant to their roles, and sharing information made available by others. While the technical issues are difficult, underlying technical principles are well defined. The cultural issues surrounding incentives to collaborate across different organizations and ethnic groups are less well understood. An awareness of the potential impacts of such cultural differences is essential to developing strategies to overcome the barriers they present.

UCGIS will organize a workshop to bring together researchers from various disciplines knowledgeable about organizational cultures, innovation diffusion, and the NSDI. We will include experts on cross-cultural issues related to technology adoption across ethnic or linguistic divisions. The workshop also will include people from state, local, tribal, and federal agencies or departments with responsibility for geospatial data and GIS within their organizations. Participants will review NSDI strategies in light of research in these areas and prepare a report highlighting critical issues relating to cultural differences in NSDI implementation and recommending strategies for maximizing cooperative participation by State, local, and tribal governments in building NSDI.

Last updated on December 3, 1998

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