Boundary-GIS geoportal: advanced platform in support of participatory processes

摘要

Internet GIS is defined in literature as a research and application area that utilizes the internet to facilitate the access, processing, and dissemination of geographic information and spatial analysis knowledge. Boundary-GIS geoportal is based on the ESRI ArcGIS and Silverlight technology and serves as a platform for developing different project related web applications. It is based on a concept of collaborative (participatory) processes with objectives: (1) to capture the knowledge for later use (identifying and mapping spatial resources and competing human uses), (2) to communicate the knowledge captured so it is easy to understand for other stakeholders (sense-making/communication), and (3) to connect different social groups in the construction of new localized social arrangements while the negotiation of differences between different groups is fundamental to the construction of GIS technology based boundary objects. Potential of the Boundary-GIS geoportal as an advanced platform for distributed GIS technology based applications is exemplified by demonstration of OILRISK Web and the BaltSeaPlan Web applications built on that platform. OILRISK Web serves as a tool for (1) the oil spill related contingency planning, (2) environmental risk assessment, and (3) the oil spill response decision support including the Bayesian decision ranking module. BaltSeaPlan Web serves as the "participatory GIS" platform using argumentation maps as an object based model for geographically referenced discussions that support the deliberative aspects in spatial decision-making.