News in 2025
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Building geodetic capacity across the Americas: UN-GGCE workshop in
Chile
3-7 November 2025, Santiago, Chile
Report by Dr. Ryan Keenan, Chair, FIG Commission 5, ACCO
Representative to FIG Council
The United Nations
Global Geodetic Centre of Excellence (UN-GGCE) convened its Regional
Geodesy Capacity Development Workshop for the Americas 3-7 November 2025
at the headquarters of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and
the Caribbean (ECLAC), held alongside number of meetings alongside the
UN-GGIM: Americas meetings. Led by Mr.
Nicholas
Brown, Head of Centre for the UN-GGCE, the five-day event gathered
57 participants from 27 countries, including representatives from
national mapping agencies, universities, and technical institutions,
from across the Americas region.
Dr. Ryan Keenan,
Senior Consultant to the UN-GGCE and FIG Commission 5 Chair, presented
several sessions and workshop activities across the week.
Participants at the UN-GGCE‘s Americas Geodesy
Capability Development 2025 Workshop, held in Santiago, Chile,
symbolising the shared commitment of the geospatial community to a
unified and modern regional reference frame.
The workshop focused on helping member states strengthen national
geodesy programs through effective communication, business case
development, and regional cooperation. Practical sessions explored the
components of a modern Geospatial Reference System - datums, GNSS
infrastructure, models, and standards - while guiding participants in
preparing country geodesy reports and building communication strategies
around the critical needs for reference frame modernisation.
Of specific geodetic relevance to the Americas region is
SIRGAS -
the regional geocentric reference system for the Americas - and its
operating organisation who were co-hosting this workshop. SIRGAS is a
Pan-American organization made up of regional government geodesy and
cartography agencies, universities and research centres, with the
objective of defining and maintaining a continental geocentric reference
frame, a unified vertical reference system, a gravimetric geoid model,
and a continental network of absolute gravity. SIRGAS President Mr.
Gustavo Cauberrère, Uruguay, and Vice-President Ms.
Sandra Bolaños, Canada, shared insights on maintaining the regional
reference frame and aligning national datums with international
standards, as well as facilitating the sessions and group activities.
Delegates from national mapping
agencies, academia, and partner organizations reviewed progress on
regional initiatives, highlighting the integration of geodesy within
broader geospatial strategies and the implementation of the Global
Geodetic Reference Frame (GGRF). The continuing partnership between the
UN-GGCE, SIRGAS, and FIG was recognised as
vital for ensuring interoperability and resilience across the Americas
whilst continuing to build capability and develop capacity in geodesy
and its applications to critical sectors and initiatives such as
resources, agriculture, land administration,
and disaster risk management.
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Presenters (L-R): Dr. Ryan Keenan, Chair, FIG
Commission 5 (Australia); Mr. Gustavo Cauberrère, President,
SIRGAS (Uruguay); Ms. Sandra Bolaños, Vice-President, SIRGAS
(Canada); Mr. Nicholas Brown, Head of Centre, UN-GGCE (Germany).
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Regarding sustainable geodetic
capacity, Dr. Keenan emphasised that developing geodetic capabilities
depends as much on effective communication and listening, open advocacy
and stakeholder collaborations as on advanced equipment, technical
skills and training courses. The workshop
reaffirmed the strong partnership between FIG, UN-GGCE, SIRGAS, and
regional agencies in advancing the Global Geodetic Reference Frame
(GGRF) together. Workshop participants were
encouraged to join the FIG Americas Regional Network (ARN) as a means of
engaging with a wide range of positioning stakeholders across the
region, especially from the industry and private sectors.
Feedback was unanimous on the
most impactful learning from the workshop –
that of the power of effective communication in capacity building -
ensuring that the societal value of geodesy is understood by
decision-makers and policymakers alike. The
workshop concluded with a shared commitment to
advancing national geodesy reports, promoting open data sharing, and
supporting regional training programs. Updates around the impact of the
UN-GGCE’s Geodesy Capacity Development Workshops series will be shared
at a special Geodesy for Land Administration session planned by
Commissions 5 & 7, for the FIG Congress 2026 in Cape Town next year.
Dr. Ryan Keenan, Chair, FIG Commission 5, ACCO Representative to FIG
Council
14 November 2025
