FGDC | Organization | Subcommittee on International Boundaries and Sovereignty Data 1998 Progress Report
The Subcommittee on International Boundaries and Sovereignty met five times this year, rotating meetings at the different member agencies. The goal of the Subcommittee is to create an International Boundary and Sovereignty Data Standard that would be used to build a Digital International Boundary Data Base.
The group has formed a working group to draft a standard proposal, and has made contact with the Subcommittee on Cultural and Demographic Data (SCDD), which is developing a draft Governmental Unit Boundary Content Standard, and has offered to advise and discuss coordinated standards efforts. The Subcommittee has also been investigating programs in other countries to digitize international boundaries. If there is a need, an FGDC approved boundary standard may be proposed as an international standard.
Subcommittee members, NIMA and State, created a Subcommittee Directory which contains the Subcommittee's minutes, and the mission statements and office resources of the agencies involved in international boundaries. This directory was supplied to all members, and helps build a working network of federal government agencies involved in the collection of international boundary and sovereignty data.
On March 24th the State Department hosted its first Digital Mapping Exposition with displays from 10 federal agencies, including FGDC, and 24 vendors showing off the latest in remote sensing data and geographic information systems (GIS) tools. Under Secretary for Management Bonnie Cohen welcomed over 200 guests who were all shown the latest in satellite-based remote sensing imagery, digital mapping and imagery technology, and GIS software. The expo's theme was how these revolutionary tools can assist diplomats in meeting the international challenges of the next century. Under Secretary Cohen underscored her interest in working with other federal agencies and the private sector in exploring the use of more abundant and affordable imagery data and GIS tools as part of a modernized information system that can support our international affairs strategic goals.