SOFOR GIS 2008

If you have interests or responsibilities in forest management, urban and community forestry, habitat evaluation, or timber harvesting, most likely Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology has touched your work. This technology, old in concept but new in technique, is fast becoming a necessity in the natural resources arena. GIS applications are used in decision-making, planning, conflict resolution, forecasting, analyzing, and many other critical areas. As our society becomes more attuned to the value and use of GIS, it will become imperative that natural resource professionals be current on new applications and technologies.

The "6th Southern Forestry and Natural Resources GIS Conference" is designed to assist you with this undertaking. The general-session presentations, along with the interactive question-and-answer periods, should give you ample opportunities to sharpen your skills.

This conference will be valuable to forest industry professionals, consultants, extension specialists, forestland owners, investors, researchers, educators, students, public land managers, natural resource conservation group members, and anyone else with an interest in the application of GIS and GIS techniques.

Registration Fees

The fee for this conference is $295 for professionals and $125 for full-time undergraduate and graduate students of any college or university. The fee includes a conference packet, a copy of the proceedings, receptions, lunches, continental breakfasts, and refreshment breaks. There is a $30 discount if the registration fee is paid by check or credit card and postmarked by 5:00 p.m. ET, February 29, 2008.

Continuing Education Credits

This conference will provide 11.5 hours of Category 1 Continuing Forestry Education (CFE) credit.

Professional Ethics in Forestry

This optional one-hour course on March 25, 2008, focuses on case studies to illustrate the place of ethics in the practice of forestry. It meets the ethics requirement for registered foresters in Georgia and provides 1 hour of Category 1 Continuing Forestry Education (CFE) credit.

Tentative Agenda

For More Information, Contact

Holly Blanchard, Conference Coordinator
Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center & Hotel
The University of Georgia
Holly.Blanchard@georgiacenter.uga.edu

Or, go to the SOFOR GIS 2008 Web site at www.soforgis.net.

Poster Presentations

Posters

• Using LIDAR and Field Data to Analyze Canopy Structure in a Sand Pine Forest
  — Angelo, et al
• Nature and Extent of Land Use and Land Cover Changes of Eldama Ravine Catchment, Kenya using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques
  — Chege
• Mapping Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga Canadensis) in Southeastern Kentucky using Remote Sensing and a Classification Model
  — Clark, et al
• Landscape Ecological Analysis of a Historic Trail Using GIS
  — Ford, et al
• An Analysis of Burn Severity Patterns Following a North Central Florida Sand Pine Scrub Wilderness Fire
  — Godwin
• Investment in Forestry with Consideration for Carbon Credits
  — Khajuria
• Spatial Analysis of Woody Biomass for Bioenergy Production in the Missouri Ozarks
  — Stelzer and Barnett
• Land Cover Classification and Digital Image Processing at Stephen F. Austin State University
  — Unger
• Assessing the Spatial Accuracy of Applanix Digital Orthophotographs
  — Weih
• Employing a Feature Based Classifier to Develop a High Spatial Resolution Land Cover/Land Use Map for the Buffalo River Sub-Basin
  — Weih
• The Avenue to Wildfire Dispatching using GIS
  — Weih and Hartshorn
• Shade Tree Evaluation in City Parks Using GIS
  — Wu, et al

We are still accepting poster submissions. Please submit your abstract to the email address below. We accept only electronic submission. Thank you.

Program Chair: Songlin Fei
University of Kentucky
859-257-9760
soforgis@gmail.com

• Please put "SOFOR Submission — Your Last Name" in the subject of your email, and include all the required information in the body of the email (not as an attached document).


• Include the following information in your submission: (1) the type of presentation — Poster; (2) the title of the presentation; (3) the author(s), affiliation(s); (4) the corresponding author's mailing address, telephone number, fax number, and email address; (5) the abstract in 250 words or fewer; and (6) up to three keywords.

Exhibits
One of the highlights of the "6th Southern Forestry and Natural Resources GIS Conference" is the diversity and quality of the exhibits. Don't miss out on this year's conference! For exhibitor information, contact Holly Blanchard at Holly.Blanchard@georgiacenter.uga.edu.

Sponsors
This conference provides an outstanding opportunity to highlight your company to GIS users throughout the South. For details, contact Ben Jackson at 706-542-9051 or Ben.Jackson@georgiacenter.uga.edu.

Georgia Center Information

This conference is sponsored by the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center & Hotel, which is located on the beautiful, historic campus of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. As a unit of UGA's Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, the Georgia Center brings the University's teaching, research, and service expertise to the people of Georgia and beyond! For more information, visit www.georgiacenter.uga.edu.

Special Needs:
If you require special services, facilities, or dietary considerations, contact your event coordinator, Nette Penn at 706-542-6658 or Nette.Penn@georgiacenter.uga.edu prior to March 17, 2008.

Lodging:
A block of rooms is being held for your conference until 5:00 p.m. ET, February 23, 2008.

Hotel:
PLEASE CALL THE HOTEL TO RESERVE YOUR ROOM.
Radisson WorldGate Resort
3011 Maingate Lane
Kissimmee, FL 34747
407-396-1400
866-705-7676

Room Rate: $119 per night

Directions are available online at worldgateresort.com.

Program Cancellation Policies:
(1) Full refunds are available for cancellations made by 5:00 p.m. ET, March 7, 2008.No refunds will be issued thereafter; substitutions will be allowed. (2) If a program is cancelled for any reason, the conference will not be responsible for any charges related to travel. (3) If for unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances an instructor is unable to attend, the conference committee reserves the right to substitute a comparable instructor.

Registration