News Roundup – December 2025–January 2026
How are geographic information system (GIS) professionals in Canada gaining greater visibility and influence through leadership forums and peer communities? How are Canadian organizations—from municipalities like Kingston to enterprises like Canadian Tire—using GIS to build trust, drive sustainability and support resilient decision-making? How are new and emerging approaches, from branch versioning to NG9 1 1 readiness, shaping the future of GIS programs? Learn more in the News Roundup for December 2025 and January 2026.
Feature Stories
Promoting the use of GIS by supporting professionals – part 1
How can GIS managers best promote their expertise within Canadian organizations? This blog post looks at an innovative initiative launched by Esri Canada to strengthen the GIS professional community. Using GIS leadership forums and peer groups, find out how this program helps overcome real-world challenges such as lack of recognition for the profession, while promoting innovation and collaboration within the GIS professional community.
Moving towards greater visibility for GIS professionals in Canada – part 2
Learn how to gain recognition for GIS roles in Canada. This article explores the work being done by Esri Canada's peer groups to strengthen visibility for the profession and for our industry.
Building trust in a digital world: why security matters at Esri Canada
In today’s hyper-connected world, digital trust is everything. Whether you're a municipal planner using Esri Canada’s cloud-based mapping tools or a national agency managing critical infrastructure, you need to know your data is safe. At Esri Canada, we recognize that trust must be earned through continuous, consistent action. Accordingly, we have established security as a fundamental element of our organizational identity.
Teamwork between GIS and Planning in Kingston
When it comes to urban development, blending Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with planning processes is essential for future growth and confident decision making. The City of Kingston is an example of collaboration between the GIS and Planning teams, allowing them to work toward their shared goals and projects that will strengthen and grow their community.
Are you branching out yet? Branch versioning in ArcGIS, explained
Time flies! It’s been seven years and several releases since branch versioning was introduced. Despite this, many users are still unsure about how it fits into their ArcGIS Enterprise deployment. In this blog post, find out what branch versioning is all about, what distinguishes it from traditional versioning and whether it’s the right fit for your workflow.
Highlights from the 2025 Esri Canada User Conference
The 2025 Esri Canada User Conference, held at the Toronto Congress Centre on November 3rd and 4th, 2025, was a massive success for the Canadian geographic information systems (GIS) community. Look back on the event with Esri Canada marketing specialist Carlos Petersen, who in this blog post takes you through key highlights and insights from the event and shares the proceedings.
GIS leaders in conversation: Esri Canada’s 2025 Leadership Forums
In 2025, Esri Canada’s Strategic Advisory division hosted three full-day sessions for GIS leaders in Calgary, Toronto and Montréal. The 2025 GIS Leadership Forums brought leaders together to discuss common interests, concerns and opportunities; what it means to run a high-performing GIS program; and the future of GIS and the profession in a strategic context. In this blog post, Esri Canada manager of management consulting Allen Williams reports back on his experiences at all three events, including the major themes that emerged across 2025.
How a summer student can fast-track your NG9-1-1 GIS readiness
The time to get your GIS data ready for NG9-1-1 is now. Some of the work is considerable, and if you are at a place that may need that extra help, a summer student can help get you across the GIS readiness finish line.
Annika Widell’s journey through the Associate GIS Professional Program
Are you a new or upcoming graduate of a GIS program at a Canadian university? Are you wondering what the next steps in your GIS career are? Annika Widell had all the same questions before joining Esri Canada’s Associate GIS Professional Program and in this blog post, she talks about her journey through the program and how the program has shaped the start of her GIS career.
Important Notice: Living Atlas items are moving!
Living Atlas items managed by Esri Canada are moving to a single ArcGIS Online account to help users easily find our curated content. You can find the list of items moving, along with their replacements layers, here. If you are using any of the items listed within your maps, apps or workflows, please transition to the replacement item to ensure you are working with the best available data. If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to our Living Atlas team (livingatlascurator@esri.ca).
Make better decisions on critical local government issues
Introducing the GIS Playbook for Local Government Leaders, featuring 70+ innovative ways to navigate today’s municipal, county-level and regional challenges using a geographic approach.
Esri Canada News
Mitchell Eastley named Esri Canada’s GIS Professional of the Year
November 4, 2025
Maximum City receives Esri Canada’s Making a Difference Award
November 18, 2025
Esri Canada and Canadian Wildlife Federation partner for Nature-based Education
November 19, 2025
Esri Canada prequalifies as an AI solutions provider to the federal government
December 17, 2025
Esri News
Esri Supports IUCN Global Initiative for Nature-Based Education
November 4, 2025
Esri Introduces Latest ArcGIS Integrations for Microsoft Fabric
November 18, 2025
Esri Releases Getting to Know ArcGIS Enterprise
December 16, 2025
Esri Releases New Book on Workflows for the Human Security and Geospatial Intelligence Field
December 16, 2025
Resources
ArcUser: When Maps Become Lifelines
During Brazil’s historic 2024 floods, Codex, a company specializing in the GIS technology often used to prepare for and respond to this type of natural disaster, built 17 emergency flood applications in 30 days that enabled critical rescue operations.
Read the latest issue of ArcUser online.
ArcNews: California Leads the Way in Preparing for Extreme Heat
CalHeatScore—a first-of-its-kind system developed by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment—ranks heat risk on a scale from 0 to 4 at the ZIP code level, helping California residents know when it’s too hot.
Read the latest issue of ArcNews online.
WhereNext Magazine: Best of 2025: Top Companies Share the Impacts of Mapping and Analytics
Across three WhereNext webcast discussions this year, tech and business professionals from AECOM, Citizens Bank, Crescent Energy, Google, Prologis, Steamboat Ski Resort, Trader Joe’s, Verizon and Walmart shared their views on geographic information system (GIS) technology and its impacts on their organizations.
Video: 2025 Esri IMGIS Conference: Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Pacific Gas and Electric Company focuses on net-zero solutions, reliable power, safety and sustainable technology. Alexander Hong and Ana Pelegrini share the digital twin that leverages 2D data, 3D LiDAR, BIM and ground-penetrating radar for smarter infrastructure and cleaner energy.
Video: Canadian Tire – Making Life in Canada Better
Discover how Canadian Tire uses GIS to support its ESG program, advance the Jumpstart charity and enable wildfire tracking to protect operations and communities. Thomas Swintak and Taylor Cayen deliver demos that highlight how location intelligence drives sustainability, social impact and resilience in the face of environmental challenges.