Dr. Stephen Leisz will summarize the key takeaways from Day 1 of the Earth Archive Virtual Congress, and set the stage for Day 2 discussions, which will focus on Social Issues and Climate.

Join award winning author and journalist, Douglas Preston, as he discusses The Earth Archives inspiration in creating a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling novel "The Lost City of the Monkey God".

This short presentation discusses the dynamics of forest loss in Amazonia under the current political and economy dynamics and their larger consequences.

Earth has been our home and playground for well over 200,000 years. As advanced societies, we today wield much power over not only our choices, but the trajectory of the place we call Home, both collectively, and individually.

The advancement in our lives has come at a great cost to the ecology that feeds us air, water and nutrition. As responsible global citizens, we must come together and address the challenges that face us and future generations. As we progress towards technological advancements, let us also bring the conservation of planet Earth into the gamut of the Industry Leaders, who are enabling this growth, and make it sustainable.

Open Geospatial Consortium brings together the global geospatial community around data, following FAIR- Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable as their guiding principle. Over 500 entities- Gov agencies, Industry leaders, tech companies and Research organizations rely on OGC to help bring Geolocation data and open standards to the forefront.

World Geospatial Industry Council (WGIC) is non-profit trade organization that brings commercial geospatial companies and their ecosystem together to enhance the strength of Geospatial data into world economy.

GEO is an intergovernmental partnership of over 100 countries comprising of research institutions, scholars, engineers, businesses and scientists to promote open data and earth observations across the globe.

The presentation will provide an overview of the connection between water, energy, and food (nexus) along with the impacts from climate change that result in stress and scarcity. This nexus also creates an opportunity for innovation to increase resiliency and sustainability. A key trend and opportunity in nexus innovation is the application of digital technologies which include; satellite data acquisition and analytics, remote sensing, artificial intelligence applications and smart devices for agriculture, home, communities, cities and manufacturing.

For environmental activism I privately organized multiple LiDAR and imagery scans by drone and helicopter in beautiful Samara on Costa Rica's Pacific coast. I have already used the imagery to initiate legal proceedings against the local municipality for their failure to uphold the constitutional maritime zone laws that protect our fragile coastal environment. However, to use my new LiDAR data to detect illegal filling of wetlands and unpermitted resculpting of mountain tops I need older data to be able to detect changes. Fortunately the area where I currently reside had been scanned after a big Earthquake in 2012. I was able to get my hands on this (closed) data through personal connections. Now I will also be able to detect illegal clearing of vegetation areas as well as the felling of individual mature trees. Unencumbered access to open geospatial baseline data, especially in areas under environmental duress, is important to enable similar activism at the community level elsewhere.

The Amazon Conservation Team has closely collaborated with over 80 indigenous groups to protect both land and culture, an approach known as "biocultural conservation." This presentation details to origin of this approach and its role in a changing Amazon.

This presentation provides examples of mapping based on indigenous knowledge of their territory in two areas of Amazonia: the Upper Xingu and the Upper Rio Negro. It further suggests how this knowledge can be combined with LiDAR data, and how these data can serve the interests of indigenous communities throughout Amazonia.

Airborne LiDAR has revolutionized archaeology, especially in the Maya region of Mesoamerica. Here participants draw on regionally-based case studies using LiDAR data to yield new insights into the prehistory of this critical region.

On behalf of MAPPS and its members, Bob Hanson will address "Technology Enablers and the Collectors of LiDAR Data for the Earth". MAPPS is pleased to be a supporting partner for the Earth Archive. MAPPS represents the community of our member firms, all recognized as thought leaders in mapping, surveying, photogrammetry, satellite and airborne remote sensing, and aerial photography professional services. Our members also produce innovative LiDAR sensors and imaging technologies and software solutions delivered world-wide to government agencies and the commercial sectors.

The Earth Archive has an ambitious goal to LiDAR scan the entire surface of the Earth. Our MAPPS members have affinity to such a goal as we have been successfully mapping the entire USA with LiDAR for our federal and state and local government partners. The Earth Archive’s efforts may start with the Amazon Basin but will extend everywhere. We surely relate to such a bold LiDAR mapping effort as the Amazon Basin is approximately the size of our 48 contiguous states recently mapped by our MAPPS members.

MAPPS is excited to offer its support for the Earth Archive, especially during these times when our world leaders and our communities are focused on balancing our economic investments for improving quality of life and protecting human existence, sustaining natural places, and doing this with a stable global climate. Humankinds’ history is recorded in our maps. The Earth Archive is championing a daunting task for all of us that will eventually provide “record serving critical baseline geoscience data for today and in perpetuity.” MAPPS what to be part of this important effort and the goals of the Earth Archive.

The goal of the Earth Archive is to both collect very high-resolution LiDAR point clouds and make them available as open access resources for researchers and communities to use, and also to encourage other groups who are collecting LiDAR to provide these data as open access resources. This presentation will overview the many uses of very high resolution LiDAR data that range from archaeological applications, to use in carbon budgeting, ecological and environmental monitoring, hydrological modeling, to local and regional development planning.

Why do bad ideas spread easily online while scientific research goes unnoticed? TED Speaker Coach & Speechwriter Helena Bowen gives her top tips for improving your communication with the public while maintaining your integrity (and sanity!).

Geospatial Intelligence is a term that was made up by the US national security community in 2003. It is roughly defined as the combination of: remote sensing, geospatial data & information, data analytics, and data visualization. The concept - and term - spread rapidly among US allies and eventually seeped into a far broader lexicon. Geospatial Intelligence is a critical enabler of chronicling and mitigating threats to our planet's continued ability to sustain life.

Join today's presenters and sponsors in their networking lounges to ask questions, network, and wind down after the day's presentations.