This book is an initiative presented by the Commission on Geographical Education of the
International Geographical Union. It focuses particularly on what has been learned from
geospatial projects and research from the past decades of implementing geospatial technologies
(GST) in formal and informal education. The objective of this publication is to inform an
international audience of teachers professionals scholars and policymakers about the state
of the art and prospects of geospatial practices (GPs) as organized activities that use GST and
lessons learned in relation to geographical education. GST make up an advanced body of
knowledge developed by practitioners of geographic information systems (GIS) remote sensing
(RS) global positioning systems (GPS) and digital cartography (DC). GST have long been
applied in many different sectors however their first use in higher education began in the
early 1980s and then diffused to secondary schools during the 1990s. Starting with GIS and RS
it evolved into a much broader context as GST expanded to include GPS and DC with new
communication technologies and Internet applications. GST have been used around the world as a
combination of tools and special techniques to make research teaching and learning more
effective.
