Authored By: Dr. Ingo Simonis, Chief Technology Officer Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), Prof. Dr. Zaffar Mohamed-Ghouse, Chief Adviser, President GEOSA, Eng. Asim AlGhamdi, President Assistance, GEOSA
We live in an era of rising complexity—and mounting risks from fragmented systems.
From energy grids and global supply chains to emergency response and infrastructure development, the systems we depend on are increasingly interconnected. But too often, the data and decisions that guide them aren’t.
Geospatial information plays a foundational role in how we manage this complexity. It tells us where things are, how they move, and how they relate to one another across time and space. From monitoring land use and tracking logistics to securing borders and planning for climate resilience, geospatial systems sit beneath some of society’s most critical operations.
But today, it’s not just about location. It’s about shared semantics, common frames of reference, data rights, and trust. As systems become more complex and interdependent, simply knowing where something is isn’t enough—you also need to know what it means, who controls it, how it can be used, and how it fits with everything else.
That’s the promise—and the challenge—of the emerging interconnected geospatial ecosystem.
In a new Informative Report titled Moving Forward Together: The Emergence of the Interconnected Geospatial Ecosystem, co-authored by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information (GEOSA), we explore how geospatial systems are evolving into dynamic, interoperable environments where people, technologies, and policies work together in real time to deliver greater insight, security, and impact.
What’s Changing—and Why It Matters Now
Today’s challenges—from energy transitions and economic diversification to AI integration and disaster preparedness—demand systems that are increasingly adaptive, connected, and context-aware. While traditional Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs) have provided a strong foundation, they often face limitations in fully addressing the complexity and pace of these evolving needs.
What’s emerging instead is a geospatial ecosystem built on interconnected actors—not just people and systems, but also AI models, tools, standards, governance structures, and shared vocabularies. These actors work together through trusted data spaces, assembling dynamically around specific use cases and evolving national priorities.
This new model is defined by key capabilities:
- Interoperability – Seamless integration of diverse data sources and systems using open standards
- Data Sovereignty – Secure, governed data sharing that preserves ownership and control
- Semantic Clarity – Linked data and knowledge graphs that maintain meaning, provenance, and traceability
- Scenario-Driven Design – Systems structured around practical needs like urban planning, resource management, or emergency response
- Agility – The ability to evolve with emerging technologies, risks, and missions
- Inclusion – Broader participation through low-code platforms, training, and localized capacity building
- Sustainability – Designed with long-term social, economic, and environmental impact in mind
- AI Readiness – Enabled for direct consumption by AI agents and models
A National Model with Global Relevance
Saudi Arabia’s National Geospatial Ecosystem (SANGE) offers a concrete example of this shift. Developed under GEOSA’s leadership, SANGE is laying the groundwork to integrate spatial data cubes, semantic standards, and AI into a sovereign, scalable platform that supports everything from infrastructure planning to land and resource monitoring.
“We are building a geospatial ecosystem that is secure, scalable, and built for long-term value,” said Dr. Eng. Mohammed Yahya Al Sayel, President of GEOSA. “By integrating international standards with national priorities, and investing in local capacity, we are equipping Saudi Arabia—and the wider region—to lead in geospatial innovation and respond to emerging challenges with confidence.”
While tailored to the Kingdom’s strategic needs, the approach is broadly applicable. It offers a flexible, standards-based model for other nations and institutions seeking to modernize their geospatial capabilities in line with global digital transformation goals.
A Shared Responsibility—and a Path Forward
This shift toward a living, interconnected geospatial ecosystem opens new possibilities—and new responsibilities. It’s not just about improving technology; it’s about strengthening coordination, trust, and the ability to act with clarity across systems, sectors, and borders.
At OGC, this transition is guiding a new generation of services, tools, and partnerships. We are
- Modernizing standards to be modular, reusable, and community-driven
- Automating validation and compliance for real-time interoperability assurance
- Enabling decentralized ecosystems where communities and governments manage their own vocabularies, registers, and services
- Accelerating innovation through agile development and open experimentation
- Advancing semantic interoperability to power automation, integration, and responsible AI
Why It Matters Now
This isn’t a future vision. It’s already happening. From national agencies to international coalitions, stakeholders are looking for frameworks that go beyond data access—and toward meaningful, secure, and scalable geospatial collaboration.
Moving Forward Together: The Emergence of the Interconnected Geospatial Ecosystem offers a blueprint for that transition: grounded in standards, shaped by real-world experience, and designed for adaptability. It reflects years of work, tested approaches, and a growing consensus around what’s needed to meet the next decade of geospatial demands.
We invite you to explore the full paper and consider how this shift applies to your context—whether you’re designing policy, building systems, or working to unlock the power of location in your domain.
Read the full paper: Moving Forward Together: The Emergence of the Interconnected Geospatial Ecosystem.
This blog is part of our “10 Ideas in 10 Weeks” series, highlighting bold ideas and real-world innovation across the OGC community.
Explore previous insights:
- Week 1: Navigating the Era of Synthetic Imagery—Why Trust in Geospatial Data Matters
- Week 2: From Data to Decisions—Aligning for the Space Economy
- Week 3: From Wildfires to Water Scarcity—OGC’s Open Science Demonstrator Is Turning Research into Real-World Impact
- Week 4: How Esri’s Adoption of 3D Tiles Accelerates the Open Geospatial Future
- Week 5: What Lies Beneath—The Standard Making Underground Infrastructure Smarter and Safer
- Week 6: The OGC Simple Features Standard—The Silent Backbone of Modern Mapping
- Week 7: The Vital Role of Undersea Cable Infrastructure and the Importance of Geospatial Standards
Follow us on LinkedIn for more stories about the people, projects, and standards shaping the future of geospatial.