Organisational
Participation in Geographical Information Systems
A case study of the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC)
The National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis (NCGIA) developed Participatory GIS and coined the term Public Participation Geographical Information Systems (PPGIS), a concept that involves the public in spatial decision making processes. The term PPGIS does not exclude wider definitions and it is proposed in this research that the concept can be expanded to encourage ‘non-GIS’ organisational personnel to participate in using GIS to enhance business decision making processes.
Our research investigates how existing organisational GIS capability could be efficiently strengthened by further diffusion of GIS into business processes, thus improving delivery of programs and decision making. The ILC was chosen as the case study organisation and the research began with an examination of other government agencies and Indigenous representative bodies that use geospatial methodologies in the acquisition and management of Australian Indigenous lands and waters. Partly resulting from this research, these organisations subsequently formed a working group i.e. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Spatial Information (ATSISI) to discuss how they could further use geospatial technologies "with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, not to or for them". A workshop was convened at the end of 2008, bringing together this working group and other organisations that use GIS for the management of Indigenous lands and waters in South Australia.
Combining the knowledge gained from researching GIS literature and ATSISI, a business process review was initiated to assess ILC GIS use and reveal potential avenues for GIS expansion. The study, so far, has revealed an enthusiasm from the ILC as a whole towards GIS, a desire from its non-GIS personnel to engage further with GIS, and revealed opportunities to improve business practice e.g. non-GIS personnel creating/ editing database entries more efficiently and accurately by using the ILC Intranet Mapping Service. The next stage of the study will build upon these findings and assess how to operationalise them.
For further information, please contact Paul Corcoran