Message from Editor-in-Chief for Vol.18, No.1 Feb2022 Special Issue on GISCA2021

Abstract

The 2021 GIS-in-Central-Asia Conference which was 15^th in the series has continued the long tradition of GISCA conferences and this time was conducted in new normal of Covid in a regionally distributed format across several 'hub' locations. Presentations were offered at these centers (i.e. in Almaty, Bishkek, Dushanbe, Tashkent and Urumqi) during individual sessions, or online from a distance. The entire conference was streamed online May 31 - June 2, 2021. I would like to recollect the mandate and vision of GISCA: establishing a regional community of practice with a geospatial perspective, supporting better management of livelihoods. I am sure the assembly of geoinformatics experts is giving a tremendous boost to adopt geoinformatics for a more sustainable future of the Central Asian countries.

I would like to commend the efforts of Prof. Dr. Josef Strobl and Dr. Ainura Nazarkulova, Guest Editors of the Special Issue in bringing out a rich collection of peer reviewed papers which will serve as a standard document of reference for future research and development in the region and motivate young researchers.

This issue contains research papers on disaster assessment using UAV and also spatio-temporal distributions of strong Earthquakes in Kyrgyzstan. It is very interesting to read the article on GIS based analysis of human capital in Kazakhstan. It is a novel idea to optimize the agricultural land use using GIS technologies. There is another interesting research on land suitability for cotton cultivation in Uzbekistan. Digital photogrammetry is making its imprint in this issue through demonstrating a new approach to create the large-scale topographic maps and plans in Uzbekistan. Vertical accuracy of available global DEM is always a question, and it is nice that there is a paper in this special issue to dwell on this. There are papers on time series Glacier mapping during 1942 to 2020. This may serve as a useful ready reference for scientists involved in snow and avalanche and water. I commend the work on Open data cube of satellite images and environmental products as a tool for pasture monitoring.

I am sure this special issue lays a strong foundation for future research. Here, I would like to draw attention towards using geospatial technologies for health care and disease surveillance and prevention strategies. I think it is highly desirable as whole world is jolted heavily by Covid 19 trauma. Another issue which research may ponder, and concentrate is climate change adaptability in Central Asia region and remote sensing and GIS can be very powerful tools. I wish all the best for the next GISCA and hope it will be face to face.

With best wishes for the year 2022 to all the members of the editorial board, reviewer panel and authors, I present the volume 18 issue number 1 for your happy reading. I also thank you for supporting International Journal of Geoinformatics scale new levels of quality.