The Significance of Public Safety for GIS Professional Licensing and Certification

TL;DRAbstract

What is the relevance of public safety concerns for geographic information system (GIS) certification? How should professionals and instructors incorporate these concerns in education? The importance of public safety is developed in this article through the examination of two case studies of licensing that engage the political, philosophical, and scientific dimensions of licensing and certification. While these case studies deal with licensing, they point to a critical question for GIS certification: Is there a test that assures that GIS certification will fulfill public safety concerns? The many issues impacting public safety indicate the impossibility of a single test. GIS professional certification must reflect the broad range of public safety concerns. Despite the difficulties in establishing criteria that ensure public safety, discussions surrounding certification help articulate a core body of knowledge in GIS and GIScience, identify standards of practice, and promote research in

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