FIG Working Week 2020 Announces Plenary Speakers

The FIG Working Week 2020 is beginning to take shape, especially now that the organizing committee has unveiled the plenary speakers. High-level presentations in three plenary sessions will underpin this edition's programme, covering topics within the overall theme of 'Smart Surveyors for Land and Water Management'. The specially invited presenters will set the agenda for each day, sharing insights into their own experiences and pitfalls, as well as presenting their visions and predictions.

Smart Surveyors

The first plenary session will be held on Monday, 11 May and is titled Smart Surveyors. Rapid urban growth, smart energy, cleaner mobility and land rights are some of the challenges demanding innovative surveying approaches and technologies. Sensing technologies, spatial data processing technologies and related approaches are already available. Now it is important to use and improve them in order to become future-proof, smart surveyors. The speakers in this session are:

Jack Dangermond, founder and president of Esri
How to deal with continuous technological innovations

Sisi Zlatanova, Professor, Head of GRID Faculty of Built Environment, UNSW Sydney
3D indoor modelling. Challenges and opportunities

Frank Tierolff, Chairman, Executive Board of Kadaster
Use and applications of new technologies

Land and Water Management

Tuesday, 12 May will kick off with the Integrated Land and Water Management plenary session. A logical topic, since the FIG Working Week 2020 will take place in The Netherlands, a country with large areas lying below sea level. Without integrated land and water management, The Netherlands cannot sustain its agricultural and urban development. However, climate change increases the risks of sea and riverine floods and extended drought periods and complicates this management task. This calls for unorthodox measures. In this session, attendees will become familiar with these measures, which will be discussed from a critical surveyor perspective.

The speakers are:

Nick van de Giesen, Professor, Civil Engineering & Geosciences, Delft University
New observational methods for water, weather and climate in Africa with results from the TWIGA Project

Gordana Jakovljević, Young Surveyor, PhD student, University of Banja Luka
Mapping plastic – the step forward for a cleaner environment

Sustainable Development Goals

On Wednesday, 13 May, FIG Working Week participants will start the day with a plenary session named 'Ten Years to Go to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals'.

The countdown begins - only one decade to go to accomplish the Sustainable Development Goals. The SDGs are the blueprint for achieving a better and more sustainable future for all - and surveying professionals have a key role to play. How do we, as surveyors, contribute to ending poverty, improving health and education, reducing inequality, and spurring economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests? In addition, what will be our role for the coming 10 years?

The speakers during this session are:

Emmanuel Nkurunziza, Director General, Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development
Land Regularization

Janet Edeme, Head of the Rural Economy Division in the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture, African Union Commission
Equal land rights for all

The FIG Working Week is sure to be the go-to place to get inspired by the industry’s best and brightest, gain valuable knowledge, network with your peers and – of course – have tons of fun. Register now because you won't want to miss your chance to see these industry thought leaders.