[Freegis-list] Open Access to State-collected Geospatial Data

[Jo Walsh]

Very few world citizens enjoy open access to the information that
describes their surroundings; particularly the geospatial data
collected and brokered by their National Mapping Agencies, an
essential framework for understanding civic information of all kinds.

http://okfn.org/geo/manifesto.php is a set of statements about Open
Access to State-collected Geospatial Data. 

* All government-collected geodata should be open, 
  that is, available for free distribution 
  and re-use under a ShareAlike license.

* Online mapping projects creating freely reusable geodata 
  should offer a compatible open license.

* Common, standard formats for describing and exchanging data
  should be adopted.

* Ultimately, all state-collected information 
  should be freely available, 
  in a structured machine-readable format.

An open data policy has economic benefits in terms of reduced cost and
increased innovation; it facilitates e-government and citizen engagement.

Please read the manifesto and, if you agree with the statements it contains,
sign up to support it: http://okfn.org/geo/manifesto.php#signup


-jo
 
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