Geo-Resolution 2024 Explores Digital Twinning, Future of Geospatial Workforce

Geo-Resolution 2024 Explores Digital Twinning, Future of Geospatial Workforce

NGA West Executive Bill Caniano (second from right) opens up the fifth annual Geo-Resolution 2024, as a panel member during the Leader's Look. Sept. 12. (Provided by NGA Office of Corporate Communications)

NGA and St. Louis University co-sponsored the fifth annual Geo-Resolution conference with support from Taylor Geospatial Institute, Sept.12.

Geo-Resolution celebrated this year with events and activities spotlighting the emergent geospatial ecosystem in the St, Louis region, and in-person and online attendance totaling over 1,100 makes it the largest conference to date.

Panels focused broadly on the digital twin approach to modeling in real time, gaming and simulation, and developing and maintaining the geospatial workforce.

During a panel discussion Todd Johanesen, NGA director of the Foundation GEOINT group, explained how a digital twin differs from the geographic information system model used for decades.

He said GIS is a foundational tool for creating a digital twin that can show trends over time, but a digital twin represents near-real-time simulation and analysis.

The purpose of this virtual world is to predict what will happen based on vast, unlimited streams of real-time data analysis to build more accurate models, detect clusters, calculate change, find patterns and forecast outcomes with spatial algorithms backed by experts.

Another panel dove into the new challenges and opportunities for geospatial data and the important role of geospatial models in addressing global issues and advancing geospatial science.

When asked what keeps him up at night, Mark Munsell, NGA director of Data and Digital Innovation, explained that artificial intelligence autonomous targeting with coordinates-seeking weapons is going to happen in the near future.

"Bad actors getting ahold of that technology could bypass all safety measures … that's what keeps me up at night," said Munsell.

CIA Director of AI and Data Analytics Michelle Aten said she loses sleep over the challenges of recruiting the talent to execute the mission, which segued into the final panel of the day.

Christine Woodard, NGA St. Louis geospatial ecosystem engagement lead, acted as the moderator for the panel discussing modeling of the future geospatial workforce.

"The need of the workforce is a daunting task." said Len Kne, director of U Spatial, University of Minnesota. "We struggle getting people interested in geospatial."

Discussions explored how to demystify geospatial studies to students, how to provide the training and experience, making it attractive to job seekers, and how to retain those already in the IC.

Kisha Winston, ODNI chief of emerging talent, discussed the use of public-private partnerships and IC Centers of Academic Excellence as effective tools in the fight to retain talent.

University of Missouri-St. Louis research fellow and former NGA director Bob Sharpe spoke on growing talent in the St. Louis geospatial intelligence ecosystem, specifically mentioning looking for talent in the neuro-diverse community.

"The ecosystem is becoming … that's what is exciting," said Sharpe. "The talent is here if we open up the aperture and make it so."

By NGA Office of Corporate Communications