UN-GGIM: Europe
an overview
Steven Ramage

ggim.un.org
European Cooperation
Cooperation between:
• European Member States and European Union
with representatives from
– National Mapping and Cadastral Authorities
(NMCAs);
– Statistical Offices; and
– Research and Professional Organisations

ggim.un.org
European Collaboration

ggim.un.org
National Mapping & Cadastral Authorities
In Europe there is:
• Bilateral cooperation between NMCAs
in neighbouring countries e.g. Belgium
and the Netherlands

• Cooperation among groups of countries
e.g. Nordic countries (Norway, Sweden,
Denmark and Finland)

ggim.un.org
EuroGeographics
2
2

2
2

2

2

2
2

56 members
45 countries

2
2
3

Malta

ggim.un.org
EuroGeographics
– Represents its NMCA members towards European and
International bodies;
– Plays an active role in the development of European legislation
which affects its members e.g. the reuse of Public Sector
Information directive;
– Facilitates an active network of members sharing knowledge and
experiences;
– Aggregates NMCAs nation data to create maintain and deliver panEuropean reference datasets;
– Coordinates interoperability projects to help members develop the
technical and business capabilities.

ggim.un.org
Cadastral sector collaboration
Land use

• Progress under the joint auspices of:
– The Permanent Committee on Cadastre
(PCC) in the EU;
– The Cadastral and Land Registry Knowledge
Exchange Network of EuroGeographics.

Land cover

Geology and
mineral rights
Cadastral
parcels

Rights of
access

Ownership

Buildings

Topographic
Land parcels

Addresses

• Seeking to bring together all of the European
interest groups concerned with Land & Property rights:
– PCC; EuroGeographics; ELRA (European Land Registry
Association); EULIS (European Land Information Service);
UNECE-WPLA (Working Party on Land Administration)…

• Unified and focused voice to communicate important messages
about Cadastral and Land Registration information in planning,
decision making and EU solutions delivery.

ggim.un.org
NMCAs and Statistical Bodies
Use of NMCA data by
national statistical bodies
(NSIs) is widespread.

Use of NMCA data in panEuropean datasets by the
European Union’s statistical
body, Eurostat is advanced.

ggim.un.org
UN Statistical Group Expert Meeting
• 30 October - 1 November 2013;
• 33 attendees from 16 Member States
and 4 UN Bodies;
• Established in light of decisions by
both the UN Statistical Commission
and UN-GGIM;
• It is composed of representatives of
both statistical and geospatial
communities, and aims to carry the
work on developing a statistical
spatial framework as a global
standard for the integration of
statistical and geospatial information.

ggim.un.org
UN-GGIM: Europe
• Why UN-GGIM: Europe?
• Timeline of events (activities to date and future activities)
• UN-GGIM: Europe – working groups

ggim.un.org
Why UN-GGIM: Europe?
The context for Regional Committees
•
•
•
•
•

The 2nd High Level Forum in Doha noted the importance being placed on
the quality of outputs of the Regional Committees;
In Europe, unlike other regions there is no UN Cartographic Conference
that acts as an umbrella for the NMCAs;
There is strong collaboration between European Member States through the
European Union and European organisations, such as EuroGeographics;
The UN-GGIM Inventory of Issues document highlights several Issues
which are already being addressed at National and European Level;
A Focus Points document has been created to identify and report on the
synergies between the EU Actions and the UN-GGIM Inventory of Issues.

ggim.un.org
UN-GGIM: Europe
The formation of the UN-GGIM: Europe Regional Committee has been divided
into a three stage process:

1. An inaugural phase (Preparatory Committee) consisting of four meetings
spanning from November 2012 until November 2013;
2. A transitional phase, partly overlapping the inaugural phase and spanning
from the Third UN-GGIM Committee of Experts (Cambridge, UK) until the
Fourth UN-GGIM Committee of Experts (New York, USA). The main goal of
this phase is to ensure a smooth functioning of UN-GGIM: Europe from
the moment it is formally established;
3. An operational phase following the official establishment of UN-GGIM:
Europe Regional Committee after the Fourth UN-GGIM Committee of
Experts. In the operational phase, Member States assume full executive
powers, in line with its terms of reference and UN remit.

ggim.un.org
Focus Points for UN-GGIM: Europe
•

•

Focus Points build upon the Inventory of Issues identified by the UN-GGIM
Committee of Experts (New York 2012)
Concentrates on key EU Actions likely to produce results in short/mid term
–
–
–
–
–

•
•

INSPIRE
Establishment of a European Union Location Framework (EULF)
European Location Framework (E.L.F.)
Copernicus (formerly GMES)
ESS action on Merging Statistics and Geospatial Information

All provide a European perspective on global challenges and enables
UN-GGIM: Europe to bring a European perspective to UN-GGIM
Focus Points led to the identification of the Working Groups

ggim.un.org
UN-GGIM: Europe – Working Groups
Cluster 1 –
Data definition and
access conditions

Cluster 3 –
Institutional
arrangements
supporting the goals of
UN-GGIM

Cluster 2 Interoperability and data
infrastructures for
geospatial information

ggim.un.org
Working Group on Cluster 1
Working Group led by France
Data definition and access conditions
Scope: Definition of geospatial information in UN-GGIM terms, focus on data, quality
criteria and use conditions.

Focus Points covered:
6) Harmonised licencing conditions of authoritative geospatial data sets;
8) Analyse the respective roles of National Mapping Authorities, pan European associations and EU
institutions with respect to the definition of harmonised pan European data sets;
9) Identification of a basic collection of authoritative reference GIS datasets;
10) Common framework for Points of Interest (POI) complementing reference datasets;
11) Definition of quality criteria for authoritative reference data sets;
13) Agreements on the implementation of open core global reference datasets free of charge at point
of use;

Consider roles and requirements of information complementing the terrestrial environment and
maximise synergies between ground/marine and space based information.

ggim.un.org
Working Group on Cluster 2
Working Group led by Sweden
Interoperability and data infrastructures for geospatial information
Scope: Design interoperability framework for sharing geospatial information in Europe

Focus Points covered:
2) Provide an overview of national location strategies and overall data policy frameworks adopted or
under development in European countries and at EU level;
3) Integrate the statistical component into the geospatial framework;
4) Provide materials and examples of legal and technical institutional arrangements;
5) Impact analysis of the implementation of INSPIRE;
13) Agreements on the implementation of open core global reference datasets free of charge
and at the point of use;
17) Protocols and policies for exchange of geospatial and statistical data;

20) Integrate the European Statistical System in the vision for a coordinated geospatial information
management at the European level.

ggim.un.org
Working Group on Cluster 3
Working Group led by Italy
Institutional arrangements supporting the goals of UN-GGIM
Scope: Best practices in terms of organisations, co-operations, policy support,
supporting the creation of a European location strategy for UN-GGIM.

Focus Points covered:
2) Provide an overview of national location strategies and overall data policy frameworks adopted or
under development in European countries and at the EU level;
4) Provide material and examples of legal and technical institutional arrangements;
18) Institutional arrangements for the work of UN-GGIM Europe;
19) Propose measures to streamline roles and responsibilities at European, national and local level,
to increase efficiency and minimise duplications of effort; and
20) Integrate the European Statistical System in the vision for a coordinated geospatial information
management at the European level.

ggim.un.org
UN-GGIM: Europe
Future activity:
• Continue efforts to create UN-GGIM: Europe
through the three Working Groups
• Formalise the institutional arrangements
for UN-GGIM: Europe
• Develop a formal proposal to UN-GGIM4 on
the establishment of UN-GGIM: Europe

ggim.un.org
ggim.un.org

UN-GGIM: Europe Overview

  • 1.
  • 2.
    European Cooperation Cooperation between: •European Member States and European Union with representatives from – National Mapping and Cadastral Authorities (NMCAs); – Statistical Offices; and – Research and Professional Organisations ggim.un.org
  • 3.
  • 4.
    National Mapping &Cadastral Authorities In Europe there is: • Bilateral cooperation between NMCAs in neighbouring countries e.g. Belgium and the Netherlands • Cooperation among groups of countries e.g. Nordic countries (Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland) ggim.un.org
  • 5.
  • 6.
    EuroGeographics – Represents itsNMCA members towards European and International bodies; – Plays an active role in the development of European legislation which affects its members e.g. the reuse of Public Sector Information directive; – Facilitates an active network of members sharing knowledge and experiences; – Aggregates NMCAs nation data to create maintain and deliver panEuropean reference datasets; – Coordinates interoperability projects to help members develop the technical and business capabilities. ggim.un.org
  • 7.
    Cadastral sector collaboration Landuse • Progress under the joint auspices of: – The Permanent Committee on Cadastre (PCC) in the EU; – The Cadastral and Land Registry Knowledge Exchange Network of EuroGeographics. Land cover Geology and mineral rights Cadastral parcels Rights of access Ownership Buildings Topographic Land parcels Addresses • Seeking to bring together all of the European interest groups concerned with Land & Property rights: – PCC; EuroGeographics; ELRA (European Land Registry Association); EULIS (European Land Information Service); UNECE-WPLA (Working Party on Land Administration)… • Unified and focused voice to communicate important messages about Cadastral and Land Registration information in planning, decision making and EU solutions delivery. ggim.un.org
  • 8.
    NMCAs and StatisticalBodies Use of NMCA data by national statistical bodies (NSIs) is widespread. Use of NMCA data in panEuropean datasets by the European Union’s statistical body, Eurostat is advanced. ggim.un.org
  • 9.
    UN Statistical GroupExpert Meeting • 30 October - 1 November 2013; • 33 attendees from 16 Member States and 4 UN Bodies; • Established in light of decisions by both the UN Statistical Commission and UN-GGIM; • It is composed of representatives of both statistical and geospatial communities, and aims to carry the work on developing a statistical spatial framework as a global standard for the integration of statistical and geospatial information. ggim.un.org
  • 10.
    UN-GGIM: Europe • WhyUN-GGIM: Europe? • Timeline of events (activities to date and future activities) • UN-GGIM: Europe – working groups ggim.un.org
  • 11.
    Why UN-GGIM: Europe? Thecontext for Regional Committees • • • • • The 2nd High Level Forum in Doha noted the importance being placed on the quality of outputs of the Regional Committees; In Europe, unlike other regions there is no UN Cartographic Conference that acts as an umbrella for the NMCAs; There is strong collaboration between European Member States through the European Union and European organisations, such as EuroGeographics; The UN-GGIM Inventory of Issues document highlights several Issues which are already being addressed at National and European Level; A Focus Points document has been created to identify and report on the synergies between the EU Actions and the UN-GGIM Inventory of Issues. ggim.un.org
  • 12.
    UN-GGIM: Europe The formationof the UN-GGIM: Europe Regional Committee has been divided into a three stage process: 1. An inaugural phase (Preparatory Committee) consisting of four meetings spanning from November 2012 until November 2013; 2. A transitional phase, partly overlapping the inaugural phase and spanning from the Third UN-GGIM Committee of Experts (Cambridge, UK) until the Fourth UN-GGIM Committee of Experts (New York, USA). The main goal of this phase is to ensure a smooth functioning of UN-GGIM: Europe from the moment it is formally established; 3. An operational phase following the official establishment of UN-GGIM: Europe Regional Committee after the Fourth UN-GGIM Committee of Experts. In the operational phase, Member States assume full executive powers, in line with its terms of reference and UN remit. ggim.un.org
  • 13.
    Focus Points forUN-GGIM: Europe • • Focus Points build upon the Inventory of Issues identified by the UN-GGIM Committee of Experts (New York 2012) Concentrates on key EU Actions likely to produce results in short/mid term – – – – – • • INSPIRE Establishment of a European Union Location Framework (EULF) European Location Framework (E.L.F.) Copernicus (formerly GMES) ESS action on Merging Statistics and Geospatial Information All provide a European perspective on global challenges and enables UN-GGIM: Europe to bring a European perspective to UN-GGIM Focus Points led to the identification of the Working Groups ggim.un.org
  • 14.
    UN-GGIM: Europe –Working Groups Cluster 1 – Data definition and access conditions Cluster 3 – Institutional arrangements supporting the goals of UN-GGIM Cluster 2 Interoperability and data infrastructures for geospatial information ggim.un.org
  • 15.
    Working Group onCluster 1 Working Group led by France Data definition and access conditions Scope: Definition of geospatial information in UN-GGIM terms, focus on data, quality criteria and use conditions. Focus Points covered: 6) Harmonised licencing conditions of authoritative geospatial data sets; 8) Analyse the respective roles of National Mapping Authorities, pan European associations and EU institutions with respect to the definition of harmonised pan European data sets; 9) Identification of a basic collection of authoritative reference GIS datasets; 10) Common framework for Points of Interest (POI) complementing reference datasets; 11) Definition of quality criteria for authoritative reference data sets; 13) Agreements on the implementation of open core global reference datasets free of charge at point of use; Consider roles and requirements of information complementing the terrestrial environment and maximise synergies between ground/marine and space based information. ggim.un.org
  • 16.
    Working Group onCluster 2 Working Group led by Sweden Interoperability and data infrastructures for geospatial information Scope: Design interoperability framework for sharing geospatial information in Europe Focus Points covered: 2) Provide an overview of national location strategies and overall data policy frameworks adopted or under development in European countries and at EU level; 3) Integrate the statistical component into the geospatial framework; 4) Provide materials and examples of legal and technical institutional arrangements; 5) Impact analysis of the implementation of INSPIRE; 13) Agreements on the implementation of open core global reference datasets free of charge and at the point of use; 17) Protocols and policies for exchange of geospatial and statistical data; 20) Integrate the European Statistical System in the vision for a coordinated geospatial information management at the European level. ggim.un.org
  • 17.
    Working Group onCluster 3 Working Group led by Italy Institutional arrangements supporting the goals of UN-GGIM Scope: Best practices in terms of organisations, co-operations, policy support, supporting the creation of a European location strategy for UN-GGIM. Focus Points covered: 2) Provide an overview of national location strategies and overall data policy frameworks adopted or under development in European countries and at the EU level; 4) Provide material and examples of legal and technical institutional arrangements; 18) Institutional arrangements for the work of UN-GGIM Europe; 19) Propose measures to streamline roles and responsibilities at European, national and local level, to increase efficiency and minimise duplications of effort; and 20) Integrate the European Statistical System in the vision for a coordinated geospatial information management at the European level. ggim.un.org
  • 18.
    UN-GGIM: Europe Future activity: •Continue efforts to create UN-GGIM: Europe through the three Working Groups • Formalise the institutional arrangements for UN-GGIM: Europe • Develop a formal proposal to UN-GGIM4 on the establishment of UN-GGIM: Europe ggim.un.org
  • 19.

Editor's Notes

  • #2 UN-GGIM: Europe represents the ongoing activities of UN member states in Europe, however it will not be an official ratified body until UN-GGIM4 in August 2014 in NYC.
  • #4 Different bodies within European Commission involved in geospatial programmes – including not always entirely consistent or coordinated policies, in terms of geospatialCopernicus – European contribution to GEOSS - GMES is a joint initiative of the European Commission and the European Space Agency. It aims to combine remotely-sensed data with ‘in situ’ or ground-based information for purposes of environmental monitoring and civil protection. EGNOS – European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service - augments the US GPS satellite navigation system and makes it suitable for safety-critical applications such as flying aircraft or navigating ships through narrow channels.SEIS – Shared Environmental Information System - the European Commission is planning to develop a shared environmental information system (SEIS) as a distributed network of information providers for sharing environmental data to improve monitoring and reporting on Europe’s environment. Galileo – global navigation satellite system (GNSS) currently being built by the European Union (EU) and European Space Agency (ESA). EULIS - The European Land Information System provides direct access to official land registers in Europe. HMLR is one of the fully-connected registers
  • #8 PCC – Permanent Committee on Cadastre: To create an adequate space in which to promote the full awareness of the activities developed by the European Union and the Member States related with Cadastre and, by means of this information, to develop strategies and propose common initiatives with the aim of achieving greater co-ordination among the different European cadastral systems and their users.http://www.elra.eu/: ELRA:EUROPEAN LAND REGISTRY ASSOCIATION, is an International association without lucrative purpose (AISBL: Association internationale sans but lucratif) The mission and  primary purpose of the European Land Registry Association may be described as: "the development and understanding of the role of land registration in real property and capital markets".The primary purpose of ELRA is the development and understanding of the role of land registration in real property and capital markets. Equally, ELRA is fully committed to work on behalf of Land Registries in Europe in cooperating with the EU institutions.UNECE – economic commission for Europe: The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) was set up in 1947 by ECOSOC. It is one of five regional commissions of the United Nations.UNECE's major aim is to promote pan-European economic integration. To do so, it brings together 56 countries located in the European Union, non-EU Western and Eastern Europe, South-East Europe and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and North America. All these countries dialogue and cooperate under the aegis of UNECE on economic and sectoral issues. However, all interested United Nations member States may participate in the work of UNECE. Over 70 international professional organizations and other non-governmental organizations take part in UNECE activities.UNECE's terms of reference have been defined by ECOSOC.
  • #10 The UN Statistical Group is UN-GGIMs current focus on integrating statistics.More details of the meeting can be found here: http://ggim.un.org/UN_Statistical_Geospatial_EGM.html
  • #14 European Statistical System (the ESS)EULF: European Commission: create a European Union Location Framework (EULF) addressing the EU-wide, cross-sector interoperability framework for the exchange and sharing of location data and services.The EULF will consist of a package of legal acts, methodologies, specifications (and standards), guidelines, and training materials required by public administration and stakeholder communities to facilitate the implementation, use and the generalisation of the Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community (INSPIRE) to a wider location context independently of the thematic sector (as part of e-government programmes).E.L.F: Welcome to the web site for the European Location Framework (ELF) project.  Launched in March 2013, the project will run for three years and deliver a pan European cloud platform and web services to build on the existing work of the INSPIRE Directive and enable access to harmonised data in cross border applications. Applied to areas such as emergency mapping, the project will help save lives; in commercial use it will help boost productivity and create jobs.The project brings together 30 participating companies into a collaborative consortium that includes national & regional mapping and cadastral agencies, software developers, application providers, research & academia and more.