2026 WA GIS Conference: Full Schedule

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8:00am PDT

Registration and Refreshments

Wednesday May 20, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am PDT

Meydenbauer Center

Get checked in for the conference and enjoy morning refreshments including coffee and tea, pastries, and fruit.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am PDT
Meydenbauer Center 11100 NE 6th St, Bellevue, WA 98004, USA

Conference

9:00am PDT

Plenary and Keynote

Wednesday May 20, 2026 9:00am - 10:15am PDT

404-406

OpenStreetMap (OSM) is the world’s largest crowdsourced geospatial database, powering thousands of applications across corporate, government, nonprofit, and academic sectors. As an open, community-driven resource, OSM offers GIS professionals a unique platform for collaboration, innovation, and data sharing at a global scale. Far more than a map, OSM has become critical infrastructure for data-driven decision-making, humanitarian response, and digital cartography.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 9:00am - 10:15am PDT
404-406

Conference

10:30am PDT

Teaching GIS After April 24, 2026: A University Perspective on Title II WGAC 2.1 Accessibility Standards

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT

407-408

This presentation is co-authored by four Eastern Washington University faculty, Brian Buchanan, Robert Sauders, Lauren Stachowiak, and the speaker. In this presentation, we share our experiences with efforts to comply with current federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations in a university setting. The university offers a range of GIS-related courses within the curriculum and a stand-alone GIS certificate, reaching both in-person and online audiences. Much course content is digital, including online lecture, virtual labs, and more. In addition, we host a variety of public-facing GIS products via ESRI apps such as Story Maps and Experience Builder. Federal WGAC 2.1 Accessibility Standards impact both curriculum delivery and our mapping products. A work in progress, we offer insight into our approaches -- and some dead ends -- tackling adaptations for GIS curriculum and end products in the university setting. You’ll hear about our struggles to improve map readability (color contrast, font legibility), navigation, keyboard control, focus order, and more while meeting student and client needs. We conclude with thoughts about the broader negotiations underway as both the university and GIS communities try to figure out how the new regulations should be interpreted in a GIS context.

Speakers

Stacy Warren

Professor, Eastern Washington University

Stacy Warren is a professor of Geosciences at Eastern Washington University. She teaches a range of GIS classes at EWU, supervises student work, and adds to her gallery of GIS creations as time allows including maps for the Ice Age Floods Institute, the Palos Verdes Library District... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT
407-408

Accessibility, Teaching

10:30am PDT

Modernizing DNR's Custom GIS Viewers

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT

409

DNR maintains a suite of custom GIS viewer applications for different divisions. To improve performance and maintainability, we refactored the shared modular codebase from Angular to React. The modernization streamlined deployment, expanded functionality, and introduced an admin interface that lets business users manage layer tables, increasing flexibility while maintaining consistency across applications.

Speakers

Anna Ballasiotes

GIS Application Developer, Washington State Department of Natural Resources

Anna is a GIS Application Developer in the IT Division at WADNR, based out of Seattle. She works at the intersection of geospatial analysis and natural resources, developing web-based tools and managing geospatial systems to address complex environmental and societal challenges and... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT
409

Mapping to the Future, DNR

10:30am PDT

Using risk & condition to develop asset management strategy

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT

403

Providing safe, sustainable water, wastewater and stormwater solutions is a critical priority for community leaders, utility managers and a reasonable expectation of citizens. Many utilities rely solely on age based deterioration to forecast asset condition and replacement strategies. This session will discuss best business practices for incorporating risk and physical condition into your asset maintenance strategy. Risk is defined as Probability of Failure and Criticality of Failure. Maintenance workers can score their assets based on these risk factors to better understand potential impact to services provided. Furthermore, adding condition assessment based on physical deterioration of assets helps prioritize where the maintenance dollars should be spent.

Speakers

Raymond Chow

Regional Sales Manager, Trimble

Raymond has been with Trimble for 2 years in his role as Regional Sales Manager working with Local Government agencies across the Pacific Northwest. Raymond has been focusing has been helping local governments agencies understand Asset Lifecycle through the Trimble Unity Suite software... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:00am PDT
403

Sponsor, Trimble

10:30am PDT

Esri's GeoAI Capabilities

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:30am PDT

401-402

Esri’s GeoAI capabilities fuse advanced machine learning, deep learning, and spatial analysis to automate feature extraction and accelerate insight generation across imagery, video, point clouds, text, and other geospatial data sources. By integrating pretrained models, configurable geoprocessing tools, and extensible Python APIs, ArcGIS empowers users to rapidly transform raw sensor data into actionable information. These capabilities now extend directly into field workflows through Survey123’s computer vision integration, image classification and feature detection to validate field observations, streamline QA/QC, and enrich survey data collection with automated intelligence.

Building on advancements in large language models, Esri is enhancing GeoAI with natural‑language‑driven analysis and intelligent assistants that help users discover data, generate workflows, and interact with GIS more intuitively. LLM‑powered text AI complements traditional feature extraction by enabling semantic understanding of unstructured content while Survey123’s vision‑based automation strengthens the connection between field capture and enterprise analysis. Together, these innovations make spatial AI more accessible, scalable, and efficient by unlocking new levels of productivity for analysts, field crews, and decision‑makers across industries.

Speakers

TJ Abbenhaus

Senior Solution Engineer, Esri, Inc

TJ Abbenhaus, Esri Solution Engineer: He is a Senior Solution Engineer specializing in imagery, remote sensing, and geospatial workflows across the ArcGIS platform. With deep experience helping government agencies modernize legacy imagery systems, TJ focuses on guiding organizations... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 10:30am - 11:30am PDT
401-402

Sponsor, Esri

11:00am PDT

Building the future broadband map of your county

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 11:30am PDT

409

This presentation will walk through the broadband datasets available and how you can use them to project what broadband will look like in your county in the next few years. We will go through currently funded project and show methods for determining which locations will receive what service. This can enable your community to advocate for future investments based on what we know now!

Speakers

W. Nick Pappin

Assistant Director, Washington State University

Nick Pappin is the Assistant Director of the Program for Digital Initiatives at Washington State University Extension. He spends his day helping communities understand what federal data says about their towns and county and effectively advocate for better broadband.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
409

Mapping to the Future, Broadband

11:00am PDT

Happy Citizens and Empowered Agencies Using GIS Permitting Technology

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 11:30am PDT

403

For public agencies, applying for permits, licensing and rights-of-way often results in long lines, overloaded phone systems and frustrated citizens. Incomplete application data causes repeated follow-ups, and chasing information. Agencies can make better decisions, streamline payments, and make the overall process easier for their citizens. In this session, you’ll learn how Trimble Unity Permit, powered by Cityworks PLL, leverages GIS and accelerates better community development, land use, and public infrastructure.

Speakers

Brett Ruoti

Director of Sales - West, Trimble

Brett has been with Trimble/Cityworks since 2016 in his role as Director or Sales for the Local Government across the United States. His primary focus has been helping local governments achieve greater coordination, accountability and efficiency through implementing Cityworks as the... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
403

Sponsor, Trimble

11:00am PDT

GIS Digital Accessibility at the City of Seattle

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT

407-408

The GIS team in Seattle IT has partnered with a citywide digital accessibility effort to advance digital access and inclusion for people with disabilities.

This presentation describes the organizational and technical strategies and tools that the City of Seattle has launched to support departmental communications teams and technical owners of GIS applications. A brief description of the City’s centralized approach to the Department of Justice ruling on digital accessibility offers context for the technical resources that Seattle IT is providing to City department owners of GIS content, to inventory, assess, remediate, and track progress towards compliance with the WCAG 2.1 AA standard.

The Seattle IT GIS team works closely with the Citywide Digital Accessibility Compliance (CDAC) project to establish methods for managing inventories of items, methods and tools for assessing accessibility compliance, and resources for remediation. In addition, the team developed time-saving guides that note the level of maturity of commonly used GIS vendor products, which helps direct attention to areas where GIS content creators can have an impact on accessibility.

A citywide emphasis has been established to ensure that any new content is built to be digitally accessible. Recommendations, best practices, documentation and tools are delivered to staff in many modes, from newsletter tips about built-in tools for making slide decks more accessible, to content-rich SharePoint sites with guidance for GIS content creators.

Strategies (keep it simple!), resources, outreach, self-help channels, training, and cohorts are important pieces of the formula to help content creators learn digital accessibility skills and gain confidence.

Speakers

Zinta Smidchens

Manager, GIS CADD Programs and Initiatives, City of Seattle IT GIS

Working in private and public sectors, large and small organizations, the field and the office has offered so many opportunities to see geography’s role in solving problems.

After earning a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto, Zinta Smidchens began at the Indiana Geological Survey, mapping Lake Michigan’s post-glacial shoreline history and much older deposits exposed on the rock faces in Indiana’s limestone quarries. On the west coast, Zinta joined... Read More →

Catherine Wendland

GIS Analyst, City of Seattle

As a GIS Analyst for the City of Seattle, Catherine Wendland is on a mission to elevate how GIS serves both City staff and the public. She specializes in training, guidance, and refining centralized GIS standards, ensuring Seattle’s hundreds of GIS users are equipped to navigate... Read More →

Suzy Brunzell

WebGIS Program Manager, City of Seattle

Suzy Brunzell serves as the City of Seattle WebGIS Program Manager. Her professional goals involve maintaining a highly functional Web GIS environment where users can operate effectively with confidence in the data and content available to them. At work, nothing makes Suzy happier... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT
407-408

Accessibility, Seattle

11:30am PDT

Mapping Aquatic Biodiversity in Washington using Environmental DNA

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT

409

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Aquatic Biodiversity Study, led by the Native Aquatic Species Unit, documents species presence across Washington’s river systems using environmental DNA (eDNA). eDNA sampling identifies organisms by collecting genetic material shed into the environment, without the need for direct observation or capture. Samples are analyzed using a DNA sequencing method called metabarcoding, which allows detection of multiple identifiable species from a single sample. Results from this work are compiled and presented through an ArcGIS Online Web Experience. The interactive map displays detections of genetic material from a subset of freshwater fish, shellfish, and crayfish species across the state. Data is aggregated and displayed at the HUC12 watershed scale, providing a consistent spatial framework for viewing species distributions and biodiversity patterns.

This presentation includes a preview of the application prior to public release. Sampling is ongoing statewide, and the dataset will continue to expand over time. The Aquatic Biodiversity Map is designed to support resource management, planning, and public access to eDNA datasets.

Speakers

Allison Ying

Application Developer, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

Allison Ying (she/her) is an Application Developer at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. She works with the Inland Fish Unit, building new data tools for freshwater species management and conservation efforts. She started with the Native Aquatic Species Unit, where she... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT
409

Mapping to the Future, Environment

11:30am PDT

Modernizing Valuation: Leveraging GIS to Improve Assessment

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT

403

Explore how Assessors are using GIS to enhance valuation accuracy, uncover inequities, and improve efficiency across the assessment process. Learn how configurable maps and data-driven workflows support the analysis of sales, help assess the impact of special assessments, and provide deeper insight into neighborhood trends. See how tracking parcel history over time adds critical context for valuation decisions and supports transparency. Discover how these capabilities come together as part of a broader strategy to modernize land records management and streamline assessment operations.

Speakers

Kyle Wikstrom

Solutions Director, Pro-West & Associates

Kyle Wikstrom is a GIS Solutions Director with over a decade of experience leading teams in the design and delivery of scalable GIS solutions. He focuses on solution strategy, organizational alignment, and helping leaders understand how GIS can drive long-term value across their... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT
403

Sponsor, Pro-West

11:30am PDT

One and a half centuries of topographic mapping at USGS

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT

401-402

The first USGS topographic maps in 1884 started as hand-engraved copper plates, and in the early 1900s, relief was hand-shaded. By the 1960s, maps were scribed on mylar sheets, labels were applied letter by letter, and technicians field-verified map features. Since 2009, maps are made using GIS software with remotely sensed data, produced on a predefined grid, and updated every three years. The 2022 release of topoBuilder allows users to create custom topographic maps centered anywhere in the U.S. and territories with the latest available data from The National Map.

Speakers

Elaine Guidero

National Map Liaison, U.S. Geological Survey

Elaine started at USGS as an applied researcher in multi-scale cartography. She is now the National Map Liaison to Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 11:30am - 12:00pm PDT
401-402

Technology, USGS

12:00pm PDT

Lunch

Wednesday May 20, 2026 12:00pm - 1:30pm PDT

Meydenbauer Center

Boxed lunches will be provided at Meydenbauer Center. Enjoy your lunch in the ballroom, hallways, or take it to the outdoor terrace and get some fresh air! There will be four options to choose between on-site.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 12:00pm - 1:30pm PDT
Meydenbauer Center 11100 NE 6th St, Bellevue, WA 98004, USA

Conference

1:30pm PDT

Identifying Wildfire Risk Using Geospatial Technology

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm PDT

409

As heat, drought, and fuel accumulation converge, wildfires are intensifying across the Western United States. At the same time, expanding human development into wildland areas is placing infrastructure and lives at greater risk. Geospatial science has a critical role to play, but doing so effectively requires accurate, appropriately-scaled data.
While excellent datasets exist for broad landscape wildfire modeling, and many agencies conduct on-the-ground infrastructure risk assessments, a meaningful gap remains at the intermediate scale. To address this need, information presented here utilizes airborne Lidar and aerial mapping to derive high-resolution landscape data for wildfire risk mitigation at the wildland-urban interface (WUI).
This presentation describes how these technologies are applied to a northern California community to extract terrain, features, and vegetation datasets relevant to wildfire risk analysis. The results provide a detailed characterization of landscape conditions threatening defensible space around structures, evacuation routes, and utility corridors. Ultimately, this work equips agencies and decision-makers with actionable information to mitigate wildfire risk and strengthen community-level planning.

Speakers

Molly Jackson

GIS Manager, GeoTerra, Inc.

I live in Maple Valley, WA and work from home. I came to GIS via geological sciences and love to explore how maps and data can illustrate our natural world. Outside of work my family, hiking, reading, and gardening keep me happy and busy.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:00pm PDT
409

Remote Sensing, Risk

1:30pm PDT

GIS Career: How to Map it?

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT

407-408

This panel discussion brings together experienced GIS professionals and hiring managers to explore practical strategies for launching and advancing a career in Geographic Information Systems. Designed for recent graduates and early-career GIS analysts, the session will address the evolving landscape of the geospatial industry, including in-demand technical skills, emerging tools and technologies, and the growing intersection of GIS with fields such as data science, urban planning, environmental management, and public utilities. Panelists will offer firsthand perspectives on navigating the job market, building a compelling professional portfolio, and understanding what hiring managers are actively seeking in today's competitive geospatial workforce.

Speakers

Shaun O'Neil

GIS Supervisor, King County Wastewater Treatment – WTD

Shaun O’Neil supervises the GIS group for the King County Wastewater Treatment Division. In his 28 years at King County, Shaun has supported planning and asset management issues with a particular focus on sewer conveyance assets, Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI), and climate... Read More →

David Kreinheder

GIS Data Architect & Interim GIS Manager, King County IT GIS Center

David is an architect at King County and is the interim leader of the King County GIS Center. David focuses on data modernization and cloud migration for King County. His work on King County's AI-GIS SEPA response system earned the 2025 ESIG Award from the Geospatial Professional... Read More →

Nat Henry

Director of Henry Spatial Analysis, Henry Spatial Analysis

Nat's work focuses on applied spatial statistics and spatial software development to address health, mobility, and urban sustainability issues for primarily nonprofit clients. He maintains Close, a nationwide multimodal travel time database; and OpenPOIs, a unified open dataset for... Read More →

Catherine Crook

Director of Spatial Analytics, Quanta Services

Catherine is a Director of Spatial Analytics at Quanta Services with over 20 years of experience in GIS across the government and commercial sectors. My work focuses on geospatial analytics for telecom and infrastructure planning, including the development of the QuantiFi market analysis... Read More →

Katie Heim

Enterprise Data and Technology Manager, City of Arlington

Katie’s responsibilities cover the City’s GIS and asset management programs, which inventory and track maintenance on all Public Works assets, including utilities and transportation. In addition, her group provides a variety of services to all City departments, including data... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT
407-408

Career & Leadership, Career

1:30pm PDT

Using GIS to Understand Tribal Treaty Rights

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT

403

The Tulalip Tribes were signatories of the Treaty of Point Elliot, 1955. This treaty established the Tulalip Tribes Reservation as well and provided for access to treaty reserved resources, including "hunting and gathering roots and berries on open and unclaimed lands". It further reserved "[t]he right of taking fish at usual and accustomed grounds and stations". Interpreting these words onto maps is one of the primary requests I receive from outside organizations and proves to be one of the most challenging components of my job. In this session, I will explain a few ways I have worked through these challenges and how non-tribal GIS professionals can better support tribes, treaties, and tribal treaty rights.

Speakers

Michelle Totman

Environmental Data Coordinator, The Tulalip Tribes

Michelle Totman has been working for the Tulalip Tribes Natural Resources Department for over a decade. In this time, she has had the honor of working with tribal members, Natural and Cultural Resources staff, and legal advisors to develop maps that help others understand the complexities... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT
403

Explorations in GIS, Advocacy

1:30pm PDT

Zero to Production: A GIS Professional's Process for Building Real Apps with AI

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT

401-402

Since December, I have been building open-source GIS tools on my own time, learning what it actually takes to deliver production-ready applications using AI. I started as a GIS developer. Today I am a manager. Both perspectives matter here, but this talk is not about management. It is about process.

The most important thing I learned was the difference between "vibe coding," where AI drives, and you follow, and Vector Coding, where the human provides clear architectural direction and the AI executes it. That distinction is what turns an interesting demo into something you can actually ship.

With that process in place, FeedSimple went from idea to production-ready widget in four days: a universal XML parser, real-time search, map integration, spatial joins, and 137 unit tests.

I will walk through the process that made that possible:

* The Anatomy of the Prompt: How to structure AI conversations for intentional, architectural results
* The Guardrails: How specs, plans, and code reviews keep a codebase honest across a long build
* Course Correction: How to spot when AI is solving the wrong problem and redirect it without losing momentum
* The Human Moat: Why domain expertise remains the most important thing in the room, regardless of coding role

AI is the tool. You are the Architect.

Speakers

Adam Cabrera

Map and AI Whisperer, MapSimple

Adam Cabrera is a GIS professional with 30 years of experience spanning the full arc of the industry, from command-line tools to modern web frameworks. He serves as Geo Engineering Manager at the King County GIS Center, where he leads a team building public-facing geospatial appl... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm PDT
401-402

Technology, AI

2:00pm PDT

Drone to map, Now What? – KC Wastewater Drone Program to Support Sustainable Infrastructure

Wednesday May 20, 2026 2:00pm - 2:30pm PDT

409

The King County Wastewater Treatment GIS Drone Program utilizes drones to collect high-resolution aerial imagery. This imagery is processed to generate detailed 3D models, which are then integrated with the wastewater treatment's capital project layer to spatially align field conditions with planned infrastructure work. The combined data is converted into Esri 3D Scene Layers, enabling optimized 3D rendering within the ArcGIS platform.
The 3D Scene Layers are loaded into a Scene Viewer and embedded within an ArcGIS Experience Builder application, hosted on the King County Esri Portal (ArcGIS Enterprise). This provides project managers and engineers with a centralized, interactive tool to monitor and visualize capital project progress in real time.
GIS/Drone Specialists from WTD will present an end-to-end workflow illustrating how public utilities can harness drone technology and GIS to improve infrastructure visibility, streamline project oversight, and enable data-driven decision-making.

Speakers

Joseph Geigel, GISP

GIS Specialist, King County Wastewater Treatment Division

Joe Géigel is a GIS Specialist with the King County Wastewater Treatment Division, where he has worked since 2023. He earned his GISP certification that same year. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Geography from the University of Puerto Rico (2016) and a Master’s degree in GIS for... Read More →

Peter Keum

Drone Program Lead/GIS Analyst, King County

Peter Keum, M.S., GISP, King County Wastewater Treatment Drone Program Lead/GIS Analyst:. Peter is a Drone Program Lead and GIS Analyst for the King County Wastewater Treatment Division, where he merges his passion for maps with advanced drone technology. With over 28 years of GIS... Read More →

Jason Celeste

GIS Specialist, King County Wastewater Treatment Division

Jason Celeste is a GIS Specialist with King County Wastewater Treatment Division, bringing over 20 years of experience in geospatial technology and analysis to wastewater infrastructure management. Jason holds a BA in Geography/GIS from the University of Buffalo.

Throughout his career, Jason has provided geospatial support to government clientele including USGS, US Air Force, FEMA, as well as many Tribal government agencies to support transportation asset management. This body of work includes field data collection, spatial analysis, web ap... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 2:00pm - 2:30pm PDT
409

Remote Sensing, Drone

2:30pm PDT

Break Time

Wednesday May 20, 2026 2:30pm - 3:00pm PDT

Meydenbauer Center

Unwind and have refreshments in the hallway along the terrace

Wednesday May 20, 2026 2:30pm - 3:00pm PDT
Meydenbauer Center 11100 NE 6th St, Bellevue, WA 98004, USA

Conference

3:00pm PDT

Land Cover for Environmental Applications

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

409

High resolution land cover datasets have become essential for a variety of environmental assessment and monitoring applications. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been creating High Resolution Land Cover (HRLC) data to supplement the change detection dataset since 2010 – with an original purpose of evaluating riparian habitat conditions. WDFW's High Resolution Land Cover dataset spans 2011 to 2023 with statewide availability for 2017. This presentation will explore the details of what makes this data product unique and provide a general status update on availability. We will give an overview of how the dataset is created, how to access it through the Riparian Data Engine tool or as a standalone product, and some example use cases. With several land cover datasets available in Washington, we will explore one way to select which data product to use for a given project, including considerations for Eastern vs. Western Washington and vector vs. raster products.

Speakers

Kevin Fuchs

GIS & Imagery Analyst, Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife

Kevin Fuchs is a GIS and Imagery Analyst at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, where he helps produce High Resolution Land Cover (HRLC) and High Resolution Change Detection (HRCD) data while supporting riparian analyses and figuring out how to process huge datasets. Kevin... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
409

Remote Sensing, Land Cover

3:00pm PDT

What "They" Don't Tell You About WAB-to-ExB Migration

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm PDT

401-402

Modernizing a complex, long-lived GIS application is harder than it looks on paper. King County's iMap has served residents and agencies for years, and rebuilding it on ArcGIS Experience Builder Developer Edition meant confronting real challenges that go well beyond swapping frameworks.

In this presentation we will walk through the real obstacles we encountered and how we navigated them. Along the way, we filled gaps in ExB's native capabilities with custom widgets developed through an AI-assisted workflow, including open-source tools from the MapSimple project that are now running in production.

We'll share the process, the tradeoffs, and the practical techniques we developed along the way, with iMap as the case study that ties it together illustrating what it truly takes to modernize a mature GIS system.

Speakers

Harkeerat Kang

GIS Engineer, King County

Harkeerat Kang is a GIS professional with over 25+ years of experience working in public sector. Her focus mostly has been on designing, implementing, integration of systems, application development and solution architecting.

Adam Cabrera

Map and AI Whisperer, MapSimple

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
401-402

Technology, ExB

3:00pm PDT

GIS vs. IT—or GIS with IT? Defining the Future of Enterprise GIS

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT

407-408

As GIS evolves into a core enterprise capability, its alignment with IT is critical to organizational success. This panel brings together leaders from government and the private sector to explore how high-performing GIS programs are structured, governed, and sustained. Panelists will examine the tension between supporting line-of-business needs and advancing enterprise platforms, and how emerging technologies are reshaping that balance. Attendees will gain practical insights on positioning GIS strategically, strengthening GIS–IT partnerships, and making the organizational and technology decisions that enable long-term success.

Speakers

Fernando Llamas Jr

Administrative Services Director, City of Burien

Fernando Llamas Jr. is the Administrative Services Director for the City of Burien, Washington, where he leads four divisions: City Clerk, Communications, Human Resources, and Information Systems. He has served the City since 2007, rising through every level of its technology and... Read More →

Tamara Davis

Chief Technology Officer, King County

As CTO at King County, I’ve spent my career serving the county across multiple agencies, leading teams through complex application migrations, building enterprise GIS capabilities, and keeping mission-critical infrastructure running while modernizing it at the same time. I care... Read More →

Zinta Smidchens

Manager, GIS CADD Programs and Initiatives, City of Seattle IT GIS

Sabra Schneider

Chief Information Officer, City of Bellevue

Sabra Schneider, named one of the top 25 Doers, Dreamers, and Drivers in 2024 from Government Technology Magazine, currently serves as the Chief Information Officer for the City of Bellevue, Washington. Bellevue consistently ranks in the top five digital cities in the country.
... Read More →

Jill Oliver

Geospatial Science Leader, Anchor QEA

Jill Oliver is the Geospatial Science Lead at Anchor QEA an environmental and engineering consulting firm. She has over 25 years of experience specializing in GIS and GIS systems architecture from Esri’s ArcIMS platform to ArcGIS Enterprise and designed what Anchor QEA works with... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT
407-408

Career & Leadership, Leadership

3:00pm PDT

Building Statewide GIS Career Pathways to Agriculture and Natural Resources

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT

403

Agriculture and natural resource (ANR) jobs are expected to increase in Washington, yet employers struggle to find applicants with the skills needed to succeed in this industry. Our presentation will describe how PEI works with employers, K-12 and post-secondary education, and tribes to use GIS to build ANR Career and Technical Education (CTE) pathways that address employer-identified barriers to recruitment and retention. 92% of CTE program participants graduate from high school, vs. 86% of all students; students who focus on ANR CTE pathways are more likely to earn a postsecondary credential; and students who complete more than one ANR CTE course earn higher wages after high school.

GIS skills are transferrable across jobs in forest management, restoration ecology, education, aquaculture and fisheries, urban and community forestry, and water resource management. Working with Joanne Pearson (WaTECH) and Washington’s Employment Security Department, we’ve identified 66 Standard Occupational Classification codes that relate to GIS and ANR jobs. ANR career pathways provide opportunities for the future workforce to gain meaningful employment in rural and urban communities, and ANR job skills transfer across all industry sectors, further increasing the value of this field to our state economy.

A Riverview School District teacher will share his experiences using GIS in a hands-on ANR CTE program that offers entry level job skills, participation stipend, and a statewide industry recognized credential. Our GIS StoryMap shows the impact and growth of the summer programs.

Our session will gather feedback from GIS employers and provide ways to be involved in developing the new statewide GIS CTE pathway. Session findings will be presented to our statewide GIS CTE writing team in spring 2026. We'll submit a follow-up proposal for the 2027 WAGISA conference to present final pathways with recommendations for training the next generation for GIS careers.

Speakers

Heather Spalding

Associate Director of Green Jobs, Pacific Education Institute

Heather Spalding is PEI's Associate Director of Green Jobs and Career Connect Washington’s sector leader for agriculture and natural resources. She builds career pathways with K-12 districts, employers, tribes, and workforce and post-secondary partners. She has developed sustainability... Read More →

Daniel Cuevas

Jeffry Rhodes

STEM Teacher, Riverview Learning Center

Jeffry Rhodes is a Math/Science/CTE Teacher at the Riverview Learning Center in Carnation, WA. He taught the restoration ecology-focused summer Youth Engaged in Sustainable Systems (YESS) program in partnership with Riverview School District, WANIC Skills Center, Mountains to Sound... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT
403

Sponsors & Career, Career

3:30pm PDT

High Resolution C-CAP Land Cover Data for Puget Sound

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:30pm - 4:00pm PDT

409

For over three decades, NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management has produced consistent, accurate land cover and change information through its Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP), available through the Digital Coast. C-CAP land cover data have been essential for comprehensive regional management, assessment, and planning. In recent years, NOAA has moved toward higher-resolution (1-meter) products, bringing the national C-CAP framework to the local level. By providing significantly more detail (900 times that of the past 30-meter products), these new 20-class products support site-specific applications, including water quality assessment, flood inundation modeling, and stormwater management. In Washington specifically, improved riparian habitat modeling, 6-PPD runoff source identification, and improved urban heat island modeling will help prepare the state’s rich ecosystems and built areas for a changing climate. This presentation highlights newly released high resolution land cover data for 10 Puget Sound counties, covering the history of the C-CAP program, the coverage, classifications, and accuracy of the recently released data, and some potential use cases.

Speakers

Bret Folger

West Coast Regional Geospatial Coordinator, Lynker/NOAA Office for Coastal Management

Bret facilitates and extends regional outreach, communication, collaboration, and technical assistance to partners in all aspects of geospatial data for coastal management. He informs the development of NOAA Digital Coast data and tools that meet the region's unique needs through... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:30pm - 4:00pm PDT
409

Remote Sensing, Land Cover

3:30pm PDT

Beyond the Prompt: Finding and Following the Golden Thread in Long-Duration AI-Centric GIS Projects

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:30pm - 4:30pm PDT

401-402

Every long-duration project needs a golden thread -- the through-line that holds direction when things pivot, stall, regress, and push forward. When AI is doing most or all of the work over weeks or months, that thread is what keeps you and the model aligned. This talk draws on lessons from multiple large AI-built projects, many still ongoing, spanning Esri-based and other GIS-related products, data, and services: a problem-solving intelligent ArcGIS Pro Add-in, a public chatbot that grows in capability and knowledge, data and research pipelines, and full web apps and system modernizations.
As these projects grew, the challenge shifted from prompting to managing. Think of it like navigating terrain -- set an azimuth, identify waypoints, travel, reassess, correct, and continue. You do not walk with the compass glued to your face.
This framework is built on a core principle: your level of control. AI models are powerful and deeply knowledgeable. Building and maintaining confidence in the process -- through research, clear expectations, and ongoing collaboration -- gives both you and the model room to build. Defining your security posture -- what you expose to models and how you scope their access -- establishes boundaries before you travel.
We cover creating bare-bones plans, defining proof-of-concept scope, and managing training data, ambiguity, and model drift as constant factors requiring ongoing attention. Knowing when to continue is as important as knowing when to stop -- practical guideposts help determine when to pause, reassess, redesign, and refocus. We address how to iterate, improve, and provide effective feedback to strengthen outcomes through each cycle.
By the end, you will have experience-based insights for maintaining your own golden thread across sustained, AI-centric projects.

Speakers

Tim Rawson

Software Developer, Dymaptic

Software engineer with a diverse background, including experience in government, military, and business. Brings GIS experience in both field/operational and support roles. Has worked at dymaptic since 2022 and is a member of the Development Team, collaborating with the GIS Development... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 3:30pm - 4:30pm PDT
401-402

Technology, AI

4:00pm PDT

Cover Crop Mapping in Skagit County: A Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing Approach

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT

409

Sustainable farming practices can limit the impacts of climate change on crop production while maintaining soil and water health for local communities. Cover cropping involves the planting of vegetation on agricultural fields during the non-growing season and provides multiple agronomic benefits including reduced soil erosion and nutrient runoff, lower water pollution risks, and improved soil structure and nutrient cycling. As future climate projections for the Pacific Northwest indicate increasing frequency of heavy rainfall and flooding events, adoption of these practices is becoming increasingly critical for regional agricultural resilience.
The Skagit Conservation District provides education, funding, and technical support for sustainable farming practices including cover cropping. To support cover crop outreach and education within the Skagit community, this study leverages multi-source remote sensing data to map and visualize winter cover crop practices across Skagit County agricultural fields from the 1980s to present. Historical Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 imagery, courtesy of the NASA/USGS Landsat program, provides a long-term time series, while Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 data acquired via the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem and the Alaska Satellite Facility DAAC extend the analysis with higher spatial resolution from 2017 onward.
Using agricultural field boundaries from the Washington State Department of Agriculture 2024 crop layer, winter vegetation conditions are assessed across seasonal agricultural fields during the November–February window using three complementary indices: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Tillage Index (NDTI), and Sentinel-1 SAR VH/VV backscatter ratio, the latter providing cloud-independent coverage during periods of persistent overcast conditions characteristic of Skagit County winters. Known cover crop fields from Skagit Conservation District farmer partnerships serve as validation data.
Analysis is ongoing. Upon completion, results will be published as an ArcGIS StoryMap and interactive Web App to support conservation outreach and communicate the long-term trajectory of cover crop adoption across Skagit County.

Speakers

Emma Tomaszewski

GIS Specialist, Skagit Conservation District

Emma Tomaszewski is a GIS Specialist at the Skagit Conservation District, where she supports conservation outreach and education through mapping and geospatial analysis. She holds a Master's degree in Ecology and brings over a decade of experience applying spatial analysis and data... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT
409

Remote Sensing, Land Cover

4:00pm PDT

From Maintenance Burden to Innovation Engine

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT

403

Organizations today face a growing gap between the potential of their GIS investments and how their teams spend their time. While modern GIS platforms enable advanced analytics, real-time insights, and emerging technologies like AI, many teams remain focused on system maintenance and administration.

This session explores the “innovation paradox,” where operational demands limit the ability to innovate. It highlights how organizations can shift from a maintenance-heavy model to an innovation-driven approach by rethinking how their GIS environments are managed.
We will examine how a managed services model can reduce operational overhead, improve system reliability, and provide access to specialized expertise. By freeing internal teams from routine administration, organizations can accelerate adoption of advanced capabilities and focus on delivering meaningful, data-driven outcomes.

Attendees will leave with a clear framework for transforming GIS into a strategic driver of value and innovation.

Speakers

James Gutierrez

Account Executive, Cybertech

James Gutierrez is an Account Executive at CyberTech Systems and Software with eight years of experience helping state and local governments get more from their GIS investments. His work focuses on modernizing geospatial environments so teams can spend less time managing systems and... Read More →

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT
403

Sponsors & Career, Cybertech

4:10pm PDT

OSM Efforts to Support Safe Routes to School

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:10pm - 4:25pm PDT

407-408

Safe Routes to School is a nationwide program that supports families in helping children travel to school safely and actively—whether by walking, biking, or rolling. Within OpenStreetMap, we’re exploring how mapping can play a meaningful role in that effort.
This presentation will highlight ways contributors can map pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure around local schools, including key features that improve safety and accessibility. It will also introduce tools and approaches aimed at making this data more useful for parents and communities.

Speakers

Clifford Snow

Volunteer Contributor to OpenStreetMap, OpenStreetMap US

I am a volunteer contributor to OpenStreetMap and a member of the OSM US Pedestrian Working Group and Governance Committee. I also serve on the OpenStreetMap Foundation’s Data Working Group, where I help address mapping issues worldwide.

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:10pm - 4:25pm PDT
407-408

Explorations in GIS, Open Data

4:30pm PDT

Sponsor and Main Conference Social

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:30pm - 6:30pm PDT

Meydenbauer Center

Socialize with Conference Vendors and your fellow attendees at the Sponsor and Main Conference Social. A variety of appetizers and one drink ticket will be provided per guest. Additional beverages may be purchased.

Additionally, the Map and App Competition will occur from 430-5pm. Speak with presenters and place your vote for the winners!

Wednesday May 20, 2026 4:30pm - 6:30pm PDT
Meydenbauer Center 11100 NE 6th St, Bellevue, WA 98004, USA

Social

2026 WA GIS Conference

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