Establishment of Geospatial Lab-cum-Webinar
Today (10 May), at the Establishment of Geospatial Lab-cum-Webniar, the Permanent Secretary for Development (Planning and Lands), Ms Bernadette Linn, noted that with the experience and community network of non-governmental organisations, the GeoLab will nurture a geospatial community so as to encourage the younger generation, start-ups and creative minds to harness the use of spatial data to bring in more convenience to our daily lives and to promote business opportunities.
Chief Executive of Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and Project Director of Geospatial Lab, Mr Albert Su hoped that the GeoLab will help the youths and start-ups to understand geospatial data and its applications, and also let them participate in the process and enjoy the fun through technological exchange with passion. This will drive more people to understand geospatial data so as to promote the development of Hong Kong in a smart city.
Head of the Spatial Data Office, Ms Winnie Shiu, added that the GeoLab takes "Geospatial" as the theme and is equipped with advanced technology and training facilities. Through the integration of learning, experience and practice, the GeoLab will help raise public interest and explore together with the wider community the value and application of spatial data.
Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Hong Kong Academy of Sciences, and Chair Professor of Urban Planning and Geographic Information Systems, the University of HK, Professor Anthony Yeh, explained the effects of the use of geospatial data in future cities, and the importance of integrating Geospatial Information System (GIS) and Building Information Modelling (BIM).
Founder and Honorary President of Smart City Consortium, Dr Winnie Tang mentioned the importance of geospatial data and explained how GeoLab would help to integrate scattered spatial data and promote the geospatial information ecosystem. It would also help to promote the development of various geospatial data applications and bring synergy and contribute to the development of Hong Kong as a Smart City.
The GeoLab is located at Millennium City I in Kwun Tong. It is operated by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, and supported by Smart City Consortium. The GeoLab is expected to be opened to the public in the second half of this year. The GeoLab offers targeted users with a proper working space where they can use well-equipped training rooms and facilities including high-end computers installed with competent GIS software and cloud hosting services.
Additionally, mentoring scheme, coaching to support proof-of-concept projects, talks, workshops and other outreach activities will also be provided to enable the younger generation to explore the benefits of using geospatial data through CSDI and develop innovative applications. CSDI Ambassador Naming Competition is one of the upcoming events, which is a great opportunity to invite students helping us to create a name for the CSDI Ambassador. All in all, a series of geospatial activities in particular for the students and start-ups will be coming soon. Stay tuned!
For video sharing, please click below links: