= Marc Coderre =
Email: marc.coderre@geospatialinfo.ca
I am an independent GIS contractor located in Summerland, British Columbia (Okanagan Valley). I specialize in applying GIS for forest industry related analysis and applications. Some areas of expertise include spatial database design and loading, data translation and editing, tabular database design and loading, report development on several different platforms, 3d visualizations (before/after scenarios to assist in forestry planning), landscape level analysis such as timber supply and watershed analyses etc.
This iniative is certainly one that is due! As an independent contractor, I am constantly up against the beaurocracy trying to obtain data that was collected and compiled with public monies only to find very onerous restrictions placed on the data in the form of either purchase price and/or royalties on potential downstream products. Governments need to recognize the value of the innovation and subsequent economic stimulus that will occur from making data collected via the public purse freely available to the same public.
