Presentation on the ICA Research Agenda by Menno-Jan Kraak in Bern, 2008

1. ICA Research Agenda
Menno-Jan Kraak

2. Programme de recherche de l'ACI
Menno-Jan Kraak

3. ICA Research Agenda
• Background
• Need for a Research Agenda
• Content
• The Research Agenda and the Commissions and Working Groups
• The Research Agenda and ICA Policy
• Conclusions

4. ICA’s operating environments

5. ICA’s operating environments
• promote application of
cartography
Society

6. ICA’s operating environments
• promote application of
cartography
• development and promotion of our
Education subject
Society

7. ICA’s operating environments
• promote application of
cartography
Prof Practice
• development and promotion of our
Education subject
• support professionals and users
Society

8. ICA’s operating environments
• promote application of
cartography
Prof Practice
• development and promotion of our
Education subject
Science
• support professionals and users
Society
• development scientific and
technology base

9. ICA’s operating environments
• promote application of
cartography
Prof Practice
• development and promotion of our
Education subject
Science
• support professionals and users
Society
Art
• development scientific and
technology base
• stimulate a good design

10. ICA’s Science operating environment
• The development of the
scientific and technological
Prof Practice
basis of Cartography and
GIScience
Education Science
• more interdisciplinary
• technology driven
developments
Society
Art • maps: any-where, any-
time, any-appearance

11. Research Agenda
• Keep track of theory, concepts, methodology and technology relevant for our
discipline
• Linked to and stimulate the other operational fields (Society, Education,
Professional Practice, and Art)
science
society education prof practice art
• Give guidelines for ICA C&WG’s work and improve co-operation
• Moderate discussion, interaction and co-operation within and without ICA
• Support the development of an effective ICA C&WG structure

12. Need for a research agenda
• The gap: technology is developing rapidly but the theories and theoretical
approaches remain traditional
technological
development
opportunities
cartographic
theory
time

13. Creating the research agenda
• Base was ICA’s Strategic Plan (2001/2003)
2005 • A result of brainstorming sessions in ICC A Corunã
2006 • Further developed by Commission chairs and EC members
2007 • First version was presented / published at Moscow ICC
2008 • Content was linked to ICA Commission & Working Groups’
TORs
2009 • Published in the ICA endorsed Journals
The research agenda is supposed to be a living document

14. Content of the Research Agenda
Metadata and SDI Usability
Geographic Information Geospatial analysis
Society Geovisualization
Research
Topics
Education Map Production
History of Cartography Cartographic Theory

15. Sample content: theory topic

16. Sample content: theory topic
Geographic Information
Metadata
and SDI
Cartographic Theory
Usability
Geospatial Analysis • Conceptual analysis of maps and Cartography
Geovisualization
• Structural models of Cartography
• Map artefact as a concept
Map Production
• Cartographic design principles
Cartographic Theory
• Cartosemiotics: map syntactics, map semantics
History of Cartography
• Geospatial knowledge
Education
• Cartographic ontology, terminology
Society

17. Sample content: geovisualization topic
Geographic Information
Metadata
and SDI
Usability
Geospatial Analysis
Geovisualization
Map Production
Cartographic Theory
History of Cartography
Education
Society

18. Sample content: geovisualization topic
Geographic Information
Metadata
and SDI
Geovisualization
Usability
Geospatial Analysis • Explorative data analysis
Geovisualization
• Geovisual analytics
• Visualization in knowledge acquisition and reasoning
Map Production
• Collaborative decision-making
Cartographic Theory
• Visualization processes and models
History of Cartography
• Visual thinking
Education
Society

19. How well is the agenda ‘implemented’

20. How well is the agenda ‘implemented’
Research Agenda’s
Topics
executed by C&WG’s

21. How well is the agenda ‘implemented’
Commissions and Working
Research Agenda’s
Groups
Topics
Terms of Reference
executed by C&WG’s earmarked as research TOR

22. Commissions

23. Working Groups

24. On-line enquiry among C&WG chairs
?

25. On-line enquiry among C&WG chairs
?

26. Analysis of the enquiry results

27. Doing history ....
Geographic Information
Metadata
and SDI
Usability
Geospatial Analysis
Geovisualization
Map Production
Cartographic Theory
History of Cartography
Education
Society

28. Doing history ....
referred by C & WG (%)
Geographic Information
Metadata
Impact mapmaking skills
and SDI
Development production techniques
Usability
Progress in mapping
Geospatial Analysis
Preservation / use artefacts
Geovisualization
Colonial & political
Map Production
Private / government
History of
Cartographic Theory History of giscience
Cartography
History of Cartography Map as cult heritage
Education
0 25 50 75 100
Society

29. Doing usability ....
Geographic Information
Metadata
and SDI
Usability
Geospatial Analysis
Geovisualization
Map Production
Cartographic Theory
History of Cartography
Education
Society

30. Doing usability ....
Geographic Information
referred by C & WG (%)
Metadata
and SDI User centred map design
Usability
Usability Special map interfaces
Geospatial Analysis Usability testing
Geovisualization Visual perception
Map Production Use of maps and GI
Cartographic Theory Spatial thinking & cognition
History of Cartography
Location based services
Education
0 25 50 75 100
Society

31. Interest in the research topic

32. Working Groups, Terms of Reference & Research

33. Working Groups, Terms of Reference & Research

34. Working Groups, Terms of Reference & Research

35. Working Groups, Terms of Reference & Research

36. Working Groups, Terms of Reference & Research

37. Commissions, Terms of Reference & Research

38. Commissions, Terms of Reference & Research

39. A sample or TOR and research

40. A sample or TOR and research

41. Commissions, Terms of Reference & Research

42. Commissions, Terms of Reference & Research

43. A sample or TOR and research

44. A sample or TOR and research

45. Relation research topics and interests C&WG

46. Research topics versus C&WG
• Interests in Cartographic Theory : twelve Commisions

47. C&WG versus Research topics
• Interests of the Commission on Theoretical Cartography : Cartosemiotics:
map syntactics, map semantics

48. Lonely research topics
• topics mentioned by only one or two C&WG’s:
ontology, documentation, legal issues, and history of giscience

49. Dissemination of the agenda
• In our 2009 english language journals
vol. 46, no.2, pp ??-?? vol. 36, no.2, pp 209-222 vol. 44, no.1, pp 44-55
• Potential German, Spanish, Russian, and Chinese translations
(Polish realized)
• ICA website

50. What is missing?
• The research agenda is supposed to be a living document
• Recent trends
• Neogeography

51. What is missing?
• The research agenda is supposed to be a living document
• Recent trends
• Neogeography
what?
formal
waar? wanneer?
what
informal
what?
where? when?

52. What is missing?
• The research agenda is supposed to be a living document
• Recent trends
• Neogeography
what?
formal
waar? wanneer?
what
informal
what?
where? when?

53. ICA Policy based on Research agenda
• Guideline for cooperation between C&WG’s
• Management of the amount of C&WG’s
• realize research is just one of the environments
• realize C&WG’s depend on ‘voluntary’ workforce
• realize the research is done/dictated in members own institute /university
• C&WG play an important role in international (cartographic) cooperation and
each have their niche

54. ICA’s operating environments revisited
• matrix C&WG versus environments
ICA
Comm 1
Prof Practice
Comm 2
Education Comm 3
Science Comm 4
Comm 5
Comm 6
Society
Art
WG 1
WG 2
0% 100%