Mission
 Our mission is to advance the use of geographic information science (GISci) at
the University of Wyoming by furthering GISci education and training at all academic
levels, by pursuing basic and applied research in GISci, and by using GISci
technologies for problem-solving within the University and throughout the
State and region.
Everyone
has the right to access the wide array of information to be used
for decision-making. The ability to efficiently process the
information requires sophisticated techniques being developed in
the computer sciences, visualization fields, math, and statistics.
At the crossroads of these fields lies spatial information
technologies. The research focus of the Wyoming Geographic
Information Center is in the use of advanced spatial
technologies, such as Geographic Information Systems, 3-D
visualization and Global Positioning Systems, to support
decision-making and management of Wyoming's natural resources,
while at the same time benefiting Wyoming's economy.
The information transfer and decision support tools being
developed by the WyGISC provide researchers, managers and the public
with access to data required for making informed decisions. These
tools also facilitate collaborative planning processes by helping
to bridge the span between varied disciplines and jurisdictions
that has traditionally complicated the integrated management of
natural resources.
The administration of WyGISC is
funded directly by the University of Wyoming. In addition, a
number of faculty positions have been committed by the Colleges of
Agriculture, Arts & Sciences, and Health Sciences to be
closely linked with WyGISC in teaching and research of GIScience.
the balance of funding for WyGISC comes from grants and contracts
with various clients including collaborating researchers at the
University, and state and federal agencies.
Objectives
- To conduct basic and applied research in decision support
system for natural resources management and economic
development, using spatial
technologies.
- To develop and provide, via the Internet, visualization and
information access tools about Wyoming's resources, such as
the
WyGISC Data Server.
- To make existing spatial data readily available to the
Wyoming public through the online Natural
Resources Data Clearinghouse.
- To support partnerships
with local, state, federal and private organizations in
Wyoming for developing and utilizing spatial information, and
providing educational opportunities through
training
courses and student
research support.
Education
The Center maintains two state-of-the-art computer
laboratories for teaching and research, utilizing geographic
information systems and visualization tools. The Center has
sponsored student research programs in
cooperation with the McNair Scholars Program and the Student
Research Apprentice Program, as well as graduate students from
several university departments including Geography, Geology,
and Renewable Resources. The WyGISC also offers
professional
courses in GIS and GPS software applications for UW students
and resource managers throughout Wyoming.
 Information Transfer
The Wyoming Natural Resources Data Clearinghouse provides
spatial data and related information to economic and resource
interests in Wyoming. Web users can browse over 500 spatial
data-sets available for download, including aerial photos of
Wyoming, as well as query the data documentation (metadata). The
development was motivated by a
desire to minimize duplication of effort in the collection of
expensive digital spatial data and foster cooperative digital data
collection activities. The clearinghouse is an official node of
the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI).
Decision-Support Research
The Center's focus in the area of research
is the development of decision-support tools to assist in the
management of Wyoming's economic and natural resources.
Computerized decision-support systems have much potential to
reduce turn-around time for a variety of management decisions as
well as provide better documentation. WyGISC is developing decision
support tools that utilize GIS, visualization, modeling, and
expert systems for these applications: county planning, hydrologic
impact assessment, open-space planning, and NEPA environmental
assessments.
Decision support tools developed by WyGISC:
Open Lands Planning: an interface for collaborative planning
between private land owners
CARAT: an environmental assessment and permitting tool for the Bureau of Land
Management
Projects and Partnerships
- Center of Mapping
Excellence: private-sector agreement between University of
Wyoming and Trimble Navigation Ltd., to further the training
and use of GPS hardware and software at the University and
throughout Wyoming.
- AmericaView: A USGS. sponsored program to facilitate distribution of satellite data and research and education in remote sensing
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