The Geographic Information Network of Alaska at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF-GINA) is a widely recognized geospatial leader in Alaskan mapping. Over the past decade GINA’s tile and web mapping services have sent over 60,000 maps per day to user screens – a map every second around the clock.

In 2017 we added an on-the-ground component to our support of the Alaska mapping community by co-hosting mapathons for Open Street Maps. Our Delta Junction, AK mapathon and North Slope mapathon updated and improved maps for communities with moderate to little coverage. For Delta Junction, the OSM mapping was used to update dispatch and emergency management tools. For the North Slope we were able to improve mapping of some of the United States’ most remote communities. North Slope communities needed updating due to boom and bust development, and infrastructure changes due to coastal erosion and permafrost thaw.