Welcome to our Brand Ambassador Karen Joyce from Australia! Karen runs the very cool ‘She Maps’ so make sure you take a look at that too.
How long have you been in the industry? I have been in the spatial industry for over 20 years since completing my PhD at the University of Queensland.
Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention? We are proud to be working closely with The Surveyors’ Trust in Queensland, Australia to support schools, and raise awareness of the industry opportunities.
Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? The GKIS brand aligns so well with our values at She Maps and the engagement we are wanting to achieve with school students. Power in numbers!
Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? Most of us have heard about the importance of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and maths) education and STEM in the workforce. But did you know that STEM is also somewhat of a clique, and one in which geography is not invited? With government education investment priorities firmly nested in STEM, we need to ensure that geography and geospatial skills aren’t left by the wayside. This is despite the prevalence of, and reliance upon geospatial technology in everyday life, with very few people outside of our discipline ‘bubble’ would even be aware of the term ‘geospatial’. We want to ensure that our workforce of 2030 has the skills, passion, and diversity needed to drive geospatial applications towards a stronger economy.
What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? We promote the posters and resources through our business, She Maps, and also the geospatial and surveying opportunities more broadly.
What are your hobbies? I enjoy road cycling, spending time at the gym, and reading.
If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? We already have one, Dronie!
What poster or resource would you like to see next from GKiS? I’d love to see one on coastal ecosystems and the great work surveyors and geospatial professionals are doing to protect ecosystems.
Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? You can find out more about the work we are doing at www.shemaps.com