Open-Access Geospatial Data: Promise and Potential

Geospatial data is a major contributor to the rapidly growing information stockpile. Open-access geospatial data is full of promise and potential. Data on everything, everywhere, and at all times is changing the way we view our world, and librarians can help their patrons figure out how good the data are and how ethical it is to use them. GIS and map librarians can facilitate the knowledge discovery process by hosting matchmaking events that connect data owners with analysts, programmers, and other data users. In this way, the data users can learn which datasets are the best sources of information, and the data owners can gain valuable insights on how to make the data more useful. As large geospatial datasets are being generated faster than most people can keep pace with, librarians will need to be well-versed in data mining algorithms to understand that data. In addition, the expertise of a GIS and map librarian can also be very useful in identifying the best methods needed for the portability of spatial algorithms between different computational systems.