Geographical Information Systems (GIS) - from Daily use to Professional Training and Master Courses

GIS competence is increasing and GIS applications are nowadays used in nearly every area of society. In the perspectives of lifelong learning the needs for GIS knowledge vary widely among target groups depending on previous knowledge, interests, profession, language, age, ability, economic resources and employability. GIS allows us to view, understand, interpret, request, and visualize data in many ways that reveal relationships, patterns and trends in the form of maps, globes, charts and reports. Geography plays a role in nearly every decision we make. For the future there are many issues such as: How can GIS competence development be accomplished at reasonable cost? How can groups with GIS competence needs be targeted, with flexibility in time and space? How can GIS courses be adapted to people who are employed or, for some reason, require high levels of flexibility in time, location and study pace? How can children and new groups be persuaded to become interested in GIS? These challenges have been addressed by the eGIS+ project (2007 – 2009), which is a pilot project within the Leonardo da Vinci Program (LdV). The eGIS+ partnership develops, disseminates and valorizes results from the former E-GIS project (2002 – 2006). E-GIS was most successful, and experience has suggested new possibilities and needs for satisfying even a broader range of interested user groups. eGIS+ aims to develop new applications and practical approaches for accomplishing information and competence development. www.e-gis.org is a web portal for GIS resources developed through eGIS+. Expected results will be to generate a better awareness of GIS applications and usability, and to spread GIS knowledge to wider audiences