
"My job as GIS Manager of the Virginia Department of Forestry
(DOF) is fulfilling because I am always challenged to help find the best way
to protect and sustain development of over 15 million acres of forestlands in
Virginia."
"It is imperative to have good writing, speaking and listening skills.
Communication is the key in trying to understand what your customer needs, and
key for describing to non-GIS people how your tools and information can be of
use in a particular situation."
"I wanted a career that presented me with interesting problems that I
could be passionate about solving. I wanted a career that made me feel useful.
And I wanted a career where I’d always be learning new things. Geospatial
science has really hit the mark."
"Geospatial tools and methods can be applied in almost any area of interest,
be it natural resources, transportation, homeland security, social services,
government, economic development, etc. As such, it would be important to get
a good foundation in the theory, as well as the practice, of GIS. This way you
can apply your geospatial analysis skills to whatever field is of interest to
you."
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GIS Manager - Mindia Brown
Field: Geographic Information Systems
Job Title: GIS Manager
Place of Employment: Virginia Department
of Forestry, Charlottesville, Virginia
What is your current job and what does it entail?
My job as GIS Manager of the Virginia
Department of Forestry (DOF) is fulfilling because I am always challenged
to help find the best way to protect and sustain development of over 15 million
acres of forestlands in Virginia. Our agency serves the citizens of the Commonwealth
by fighting wildfires, helping landowners make good management decisions about
their forest resources, protecting watersheds and conserving forestlands. And
knowing where things are is fundamental to our success.
Specifically, I help the agency collect, manage, analyze and distribute spatial
information so our staff and Virginia’s citizens can make better-informed
decisions about forests and forestry. I am responsible for overseeing several
data production efforts, like annual gypsy moth defoliation mapping and wildfire
risk modeling. We also produce forest cover and fragmentation GIS layers based
on satellite imagery and our state forests use GIS to map and manage their stands.
DOF has a large fleet of GPS units in the hands of our field employees, and it
is my responsibility to manage the hardware, as well as make decisions about
how best to integrate the data being mapped.
However, my main efforts have been to create an efficient way for our staff
and citizens to access and use GIS data. I designed a Web-based GIS called the Virginia
Forest Resource Information Mapper (or ForestRIM)
that allows people to see their area of interest using up to 100+ data layers
including aerial photos, topography, hydrography, political boundaries, roads
and, of course, forest resource information. ForestRIM also allows users to add
their own features by drawing in text, points, lines and polygons to produce
a map. My goal is to evolve this capability so that, for example, when a forester
in the field "draws" the areas where management activities are taking
place on a property, the polygon and information about the activity go into a
central repository that can be used and viewed by all levels of the organization.
My job also entails interaction with my peers in state government, and I participate
in a Technical Workgroup with the state’s GIS coordination body, the Virginia
Geographic Information Network. Currently I chair the GIS Task Force that
represents the GIS needs and interests of 13 states within the Southern Group
of State Foresters.
In your day-to-day activities, who are the people that you interact with regularly?
When trying to better understand their needs or provide training, I will have
a lot of contact with the field staff. Although I don’t see field staff
very often, I tend to handle a lot of questions and suggestions via phone and
email.
I work out of the agency’s central office, however, so my usual day-to-day
interaction is with the members of support teams that I am co-located with (like
Fire, Management, etc). I have close interaction with the Information Technology
group, because GIS is about both technology and information.
For your position, what skills do you need in geospatial technologies?
My position has evolved since getting here. Initially all of our GIS work
was semi-isolated and project-based so I was using my skills in cartography,
GIS analysis, and database management. As the agency’s GIS needs have matured
past the project-scale, I have had to tap into other skill sets. I have learned
some remote sensing skills and how to assess user needs, evaluate the cost-benefits
of large-scale GIS systems, and research the technology options for an enterprise
initiative. I’ve also honed my communication skills. At this level, I am
moving away from "nitty-gritty" technical GIS work and more into planning
and development of comprehensive information systems. However, I could not be
as effective guiding the direction of this GIS program if I didn’t have
strong roots in the technical side of the science.
For your position, what skills outside of geospatial technologies are required?
It is imperative to have good writing, speaking and listening skills. Communication
is the key in trying to understand what your customer needs, and key for describing
to non-GIS people how your tools and information can be of use in a particular
situation. I give about 15 presentations per year on various subjects, and long
ago had to get over my anxiety about public speaking. Good analytical skills
will also get you far, because once the customer presents the problem, you must
figure out how to solve it. Finally, you must be flexible and adaptive; any career
in the technology field will always be rapidly changing.
What was the key factor in your career decision?
I wanted a career that presented me with interesting problems I could be passionate
about solving. I wanted a career that made me feel useful. And I wanted a career
where I’d always be learning new things. Geospatial science has really
hit the mark.
What do you like most about your career?
I’ve had the opportunity to fail and learn, and have also succeeded
and grown. I have been given the freedom to try new and innovative solutions,
and know that there will rarely be a dull moment. I’ve helped the agency
gain respect as a leader in the use of GIS. I’ve also enjoyed working with
agency staff that traditionally had very little reliance on technology that are
now excited to push the envelope on the use of geospatial information.
What do you like least about your career?
Some of the initiatives that I have been asked to spearhead are bold and expensive,
which means that they are difficult to accomplish. Often progress is slow because
of the many tiers of approval and buy-in that are required. I get frustrated
because I know how much more effective the agency could be if we could only get
past some of the obstacles.
And sometimes I miss the "nitty-gritty" GIS analysis work that
I used to do every day.
What do you do to relax?
I always joke that if GIS ever stops being fulfilling that I’ll become
a chef. I love the whole process of creating a meal, from researching, planning,
shopping, preparing, cooking, presenting and (of course) tasting the results.
Who are your heroes/heroines?
My parents have always encouraged me to be the best I can be, and that is
heroic. My father is very analytical and conservative, my mother is very creative
and open to new ideas. Both are brilliant. I feel in some ways I have taken the
best of both of them to be a problem-solver who is bounded only by imagination.
What advice would you give a high school student who expressed an interest
in pursuing a career in your field?
Geospatial tools and methods can be applied in almost any area of interest,
be it natural resources, transportation, homeland security, social services,
government, economic development, etc. As such, it would be important to get
a good foundation in the theory, as well as the practice, of GIS. This way you
can apply your geospatial analysis skills to whatever field interests you.
In some fields it is prudent to develop some programming skills, because of
increasing opportunities to custom-develop tools and models to meet your customer’s
needs. In fact, if programming comes naturally, building GIS applications can
be a very rewarding job.
If you have interest in pursuing a career that involves analysis of satellite
imagery, a good statistics background will be imperative.
Are career opportunities in your field increasing or decreasing and why?
Careers in the Geospatial field are increasing as more people realize the
benefit of what are called"location-aware" applications. GPS-based
technology is becoming more pervasive, and spatial analyses are becoming the
norm rather than the exception. There is a room for growth in the forestry field
as remote sensing (satellite image) applications become more tied into the day-to-day
operations.
Degree |
Major |
Institution |
B.A. |
Environmental Sciences |
University of Virginia |
M.A. |
Geography |
University of Colorado |
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