GIS Day: Join in the celebration this year!

July 18, 2016

Angela Alexander

GIS Day seems far off now, but it’s not too early to start planning your event. Find out why this day is a great learning opportunity for your students and how you can promote the importance of GIS on this special day!

Every year, GIS Day falls on the Wednesday of Geography Awareness Week. Invite a GIS Ambassador to your classroom to promote the importance of geography and GIS to your students on November 16th. This GIS professional or student can be a valuable guest who will open students’ eyes to the power of GIS, as it can be used to inquire into and solve complex real-world issues.

Hayleigh Conway, Esri Canada K-12 Resource Developer/GIS Ambassador, presenting to a group of grade 9 students about the importance of maps and GIS at on GIS Day at Port Credit Secondary School in 2015.

GIS Day events are a great opportunity to connect to various subjects and are not limited to only geography classes. There are many GIS applications in history, science and even English that can be promoted on this day. The following resources can be used at your event:

Use the GIS Day Canada Gallery to find activities and resources that can be used at your GIS Day event.

Role of Canadian Women during WWI activity
Canada’s Participation During WWI: The Battlefields activity
Historic First Nations Treaties map
Canadian Confederation map
More ArcGIS Online resources
Educators can request access to a K-12 ArcGIS Online Subscription by filling out the online form at esri.ca/agolaccess.

Explore the Canadian GIS Day Participants 2015 map to learn more about the events that occurred last year in Canada.

If you’re hosting an event at your school, you can register your event, and it will be added to the Global GIS Day map. Contact k-12@esri.caif you have any questions or would like to be connected to a GIS Ambassador.

Read about the inspiring work of two GIS Ambassadors, Zoe Goodyear and Larisa Johnstone, who are making a difference in their community by sharing their knowledge and passion for GIS with students and teachers.