Esri President Honored by Peers

Brock Gold Medal

The International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) presented the Brock Gold Medal Award to Jack Dangermond, president of Esri, for his outstanding achievements in the evolution of spatial information sciences.

The award was presented on July 17, 2000, at the ISPRS Congress held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. ISPRS is devoted to the development of international cooperation for the advancement of photogrammetry and remote sensing including members from all over the globe. The Brock Gold Medal is given once every four years.

Professor John Trinder, ISPRS secretary general, says, "Jack Dangermond was chosen because he is the recognized leader in tahe international adoption and advancement of technologies for processing, analysis, and management of geospatial information systems."

The adoption of Esri's software for the management and exploitation of spatial data has accelerated the use of photogrammatically and remote sensing derived data into new areas, creating a larger outlet for these technologies.

"I am honored by the award and excited by the benefits that result from the mutual evolution of GIS, remote sensing, and photogrammetry," says Dangermond. "The integration of these technologies has brought us to a new level in the application of geographic knowledge to all of the world's serious problems. Members of the ISPRS are perhaps some of the most important professionals in the world. They are responsible for defining and refining the fundamental methods and applications of the earth's measurement. Their work will provide the foundation for earth science, planning, engineering and environmental protection."

The Brock Gold Medal Award was established in 1952 to encourage the advancement of photogrammetry.

LaGasse Medal

The American Society of Landscape Architects is presenting a LaGasse Medal to Jack Dangermond, president of Esri, on October 30, 2000. The medal is awarded to individuals who, through the professional practice or utilization of landscape architecture, have made notable contributions to the management of natural resources, public lands, or other lands in the public interest. Dangermond receives the annual medal in the Landscape Architect category.

Dr. Julius Fabos, an ASLA fellow and professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, was the nominator. "I recommended Jack Dangermond most enthusiastically for his enormous and unique contributions to ASLA and the larger environmental fields nationally and internationally. Indeed, Jack's brilliance and inventive mind have made him the developer of a most successful technology," says Fabos. "Jack's enormous management skills also make him the number one contributor to a valuable knowledge base for landscape architecture and relevant professions."

Dangermond, who holds a master's degree in landscape architecture from Harvard's Graduate School of Design, accepts the award at the society's annual meeting in St. Louis, Missouri.

"GIS technology is helping to make spatial data readily available to users such as landscape architects who play a major role in managing the increasingly complex problems our societies face," says Dangermond.

The ASLA is a national professional society that represents the landscape architecture profession in the United States. Founded in 1899, the ASLA represents more than 13,500 members and has 48 chapters across the country.

The LaGasse Medal was named in honor of Alfred B. LaGasse, a landscape architect who served as director of the American Institute of Park Executives and later as vice president of the National Recreation and Parks Association.

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