What's New?

GeoConnections is redesigning its website to better reflect the information needs and preferences of its stakeholders, who now include not only technology developers, but also end-users and decision-makers in four priority areas: public health, public safety and security, the environment and sustainable development, and issues of importance to Aboriginal communities.

The program helped identify the web needs and preferences of these diverse audiences by conducting and analyzing a user-needs assessment last fall and winter. The results of that assessment have influenced several new elements in the redesign:

• The provision of five separate areas for each type of audience to foster a distinct sense of community and to make the ever-expanding site easier to navigate
• The addition of friendly, subject-appropriate imagery to welcome users into the site and engage them
• A renewed emphasis on helping people find what they're looking for, be it locating standards or policy documents, obtaining technology solutions, developing partnerships, or securing project funding
• The introduction of useful background information and plain-language overviews for all sections
• The provision of direct access to relevant datasets, tools, and applications
• The incorporation of direct links to core components of the Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure (CGDI): GeoBase, GeoGratis, the Atlas of Canada, the Discovery Portal, and other data portals

We plan to make the new website live in early Spring 2007. As the launch date approaches, GeoConnections will offer a link to the revamped site so that you can become familiar with all of the new features of the redesign before it goes live.