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RS/GIS services - January, 2008

The service support from the RS/GIS unit is now well established. In this regard, please note the following:

	Work philosophy			RS/GIS Workshop @ IWMI HQ (June)
	Research support (minor)			Request to researchers for data, knowledge, and science applications
	Research support (significant)			Benchmark basin and/or other data warehouse
	Research partnership (major)			Copyrights
	Work coordination			Metadata
	Budget code procedure			Final word
	Data streamlining

1. Work philosophy

We have re-organized work so that you get maximum benefit. For example, when a work is assigned it is taken by the best expert to do that work and depending on who has time. This will lead to better quality and timely turn around.

2. Research support (minor)

If you have minor requests (e.g., digitizing, reprojection, rectification) just give to Sarath Gunasinghe or Ranjith Alankara and they will coordinate with staff and have it done for you.

Most of these are 1-2 day work and on a rare basis. When researchers have several 1-2 day work routinely it is no more a minor support. Minor work needs no budget codes.

3. Research support (significant)

When a researcher anticipates 1 or more months of RS/GIS work in a year, it is considered substantial. In such cases please discuss with Prasad Thenkabail.

Such work will require your budget code. You will be charged for staff time.

4. Research partnership (major)

Some projects have major RS/GIS components. In such cases, we will need to discuss the project support to ensure how best we can achieve project goals. In certain cases it may be possible to assign some of our staff for 3-4 months over a year exclusively for your project. In certain other cases you may have to hire someone to do this job. Currently we are implementing both strategies in a number of projects.

But when you visualize such major work, please discuss this well in advance and add a budget line for hardware, software, and expertise. You will be charged for staff time.

This is no more research support, but research partnership where RS/GIS staff will be part of your team and will be given adequate credit and opportunity for research and publication.

In the past we have performed such work for drought monitoring and wetlands.

5. Work coordination

Item 2 requests can go directly to Sarath Gunasinghe or Ranjith Alankara. They will handle this and ensure your work is completed in time. You can make requests over e-mail or in person.

For Item 2 and 3 requests, please discuss with me directly (HQ staff) or through e-mail (outstation staff) and we will assign the best person/s for you to get the job done or may also suggest alternative routes to achieve your goals if all our staff are fully booked. This will require understanding your requests and trying to meet them with best possible approach and with minimum costs.

6. Budget code procedure

When you request staff time, please transfer the appropriate amount to RS/GIS budget. ' For example, if you need a staff time of 10 days from someone with charging rate of $150 per day, then you will transfer $1500/-.

Similarly, when printing and other similar requests are made you will be required to fill a form. An amount will be mentioned in the form for the printing and other services. This amount will be credited to RS/GIS budget.

7. Data streamlining

We currently streamlined a large proportion of the IWMI spatial data. What this will mean will be:

8. RS/GIS Workshop @ IWMI HQ (June)

9. Request to researchers for data, knowledge, and science applications

A number of you are working on RS/GIS data in your projects or programs (e.g., GIAM, Ruhuna, Krishna, CP basins). If you have any spatial data or knowledge generated that you can share, please provide all data to one of our staff mentioned in point 6.0 for catalogue and streamlining.

Currently, much of our RS data holdings comes off Hugh Ural lead GIAM project. There are number of others who have significant RS/GIS components that we expect you share with other IWMI researchers.

We will always provide proper acknowledgements.

10. Benchmark basin and/or other data warehouse

I am sure a number of you have some excellent field data (e.g., stream discharge, rainfall, soils) for benchmark basins and for other study areas. Can we put this data on the network as well?. Please help us do this so that other researchers can benefit from it.

Data may not be always in spatial formats that we can either keep in non spatial formats or endeavor to convert to spatial formats.

11. Copyrights

All IWMIDSP data are shared by adhering to intellectual property rights.

12. Metadata

All IWMIDSP data will soon have metadata in standard metadata formats. Already a significant propotion of the IWMIDSP metadata has been ingested into FGDC servers and CSI GeoNetwork.

13. Final word

Please note the entire system is set up to enable the best possible RS/GIS service and research support that is possible within available resources and time. I request you to work with us to make this functional. There are a number of you who are using extensive spatial and non-spatial data. Discuss with us to see how you can make this data or information available to everyone through this system.

Researchers, project managers, theme leaders, and top management we seek your advice and support. If you see something not right, bring to our notice. It is basically in your interest and we facilitate and will have no problem taking your advice to make it all work to best satisfaction of all.