2024 Annual TNGIC Conference

Montgomery Bell State Park - April 9-11th, 2024

Welcome!  The TN Geographic Information Council's Annual Conference is a great opportunity for networking, GIS data workflows, learning, and sharing the work that you do.  Explore below, and join the TN GIS community!  

For first timers, we have training on the first day and the following two days include keynotes and member presentations. We have fantastic business partners who are there to provide solutions and help you solve problems. The community is welcoming and there are opportunities to find members to assist, share data with you, connect about a job opportunity or just chat about GIS. Additionally, we have great social events and a golf outing if you are interested.

Where

Montgomery Bell State Park Lodge - 1000 Hotel Ave. Burns, TN 37029

When/Overview

April 9th, 2024 -  Pre-Conference Training, Golf Tournament, New Member Social, Informal Pre-Conference Social, Service Projects

April 10th, 2024 - Keynote by Dr. Budhu Bhaduri (ORNL), presentations, networking, TNGIC Social!

April 11th, 2024 - Keynote by Dr. Nikolas Smilovsky (Bad Elf), presentations, TNGIC business meeting, networking

 Agenda

• Agenda At-A-Glance (pdf)
• Full Agenda (pdf)
• Concurrent Sessions Schedule (pdf)

Keynote Details

Dr. Budhu Bhaduri, Director, Geospatial Science and Human Security Division, ORNL

Dr. Budhendra “Budhu’ Bhaduri is the director of the Geospatial Science and Human Security Division and a Corporate Research Fellow at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).  In that capacity he is responsible for an interdisciplinary research portfolio focused on human dynamics, geographic data science, remote sensing, scalable geocomputation, and special communications and autonomous systems.  Previously he led the Geographic Information Science & Technology research group in Computational Science and Engineering Division.  Additionally, between 2014-2019, he founded and led ORNL’s Urban Dynamics Institute, a cross-disciplinary initiative across the laboratory that fostered a data driven understanding of complex urban systems.  Over his career, he has catalyzed the integration of geographical sciences in the laboratory’s as well as the Department of Energy’s mission.  His professional interests and experience cover novel implementation of geospatial science and technology for a wide variety of programs supporting energy, environment, and national security missions across the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Homeland Security.  Dr. Bhaduri’s research has had global impact and has benefited the U.S. federal missions, international organizations, and private foundations. 

Dr. Nikolas Smilovsky, Geospatial Solutions Director, Bad Elf

Dr. Smilovsky is the Geospatial Solutions Director for Bad Elf, a GNSS technologies company. Dr S is a faculty member at Arizona State University teaching various GIS and design classes. He is a certified Geographic Information Systems Professional, a certified Arborist, and a Part 107 certified UAV pilot. As a geospatial evangelist, custom geospatial solutions provider, and geographic researcher Dr. S is widely versed in all things geodetic. He is a proud Geoholic!

Registration Costs

WE HAVE NOW MAXED OUT OUR SPACE AND HAVE HAD TO CLOSE REGISTRATION!

Thank you to everyone for helping make this event so well attended!  We will see everyone at the conference!  If you were unable to register for the event, we appologize, but we hope you will be able to join us at our fall forums later this year and in 2025.  More details coming soon!

TNGIC has tried to coincide membership with the Conference as much as possible. If you are a new member, your membership has expired or is nearing the renewal date, the registration form will ask to include membership fees of $40.00. Your expiration date is shown in the "My Profile" section of your TNGIC Member Home Page.  If you are part of an organization your Key Contact may need to first renew your membership.

• *Student Volunteer/Assistantship - waved fee - Apply Here)
• Social Guest Attendee - $25.00 to cover food - (Register Here)

Conference Registration and Membership

Wednesday Night Social Details

TNGIC is hosting a social on Wednesday April 10 beginning at 6:00 pm at the Lake Acorn Pavilion at Montgomery Bell State Park. TNGIC is providing dinner, games, and music. Be sure to sign up to attend the social when you register. You can also add a +1 to bring a guest (cost covers food).

• Dinner
• BBQ feast with chicken^ and pulled pork^, baked beans, potato salad, coleslaw, buns, cookies, and iced tea.
• ^ Be sure to indicate any dietary restrictions when registering for the conference.
• Games
• Cornhole is back and better than ever! Sign up your two-person team during the day on Wednesday.
• We will set up two Giant Jenga games too.
• TNGIC will be providing cornhole sets and Giant Jenga as prizes. That means if you win, you better save some room in your car.

 Student Volunteer Assistantship Application

TNGIC has a limited number of student assistantships available for the conference. In exchange for volunteering at the conference, TNGIC waives the conference registration fee. Students are still responsible for their own transportation and lodging costs. Any Tennessee undergraduate or graduate student, full or part-time, is eligible to apply. This includes both two-year and four-year college students.

• Applications are due by Wednesday February 28, 2024
• Students will be notified no later than Friday March 1, 2024 of their assistantship status

Student Assistantship Application

TNView Student Fellowship Application

NEW THIS YEAR | TNView has a limited number of student fellowships available for the conference. You MUST be participating in the TNView contest (see below) to be eligible for a fellowship.

• Applications are due by Wednesday February 28, 2024
• Students will be notified no later than Friday March 1, 2024 of their award status
• Students will coordinate with TNView and the UT Knoxville Department of Geography and Sustainability to receive their awards. Please note that it may take some time to get you processed through the UTK system to receive your award.

TNView Student Fellowship Application

Business Partner Registration

If your organization is interested in being a business partner please register below. Partners will receive coupon codes for conference registration.  ALL BOOTH SPACES HAVE BEEN ALLOCATED!  NON-EXHIBITING BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS ARE STILL AVAILABLE.

Business Partner Registration

Call for Presentations

We would love to hear about what you do and the projects that you and your organization are undertaking.  Share a workflow, share successes and learning opportunities!

Submit a presentation

TNView Student Remote Sensing Presentations and Contest

NEW THIS YEAR | Students interested in remote sensing are encouraged to submit a presentation for the TNView Remote Sensing Contest. The TNView remote sensing competition awards at the TNGIC Annual Conference are comprised of one first-place award valued at $300, two second-place awards valued at $200 each, and three third-place awards valued at $100 each. See the TNView website for full details.

To submit a presentation for the contest, use the regular presentation submission form and select "Yes" when asked if you are submitting for the contest.

Submit a student remote sensing presentation

Map Gallery

TNGIC hosts an annual Map Gallery Competition for the GIS Community to share their work. It is just another great way to see what TNGIC Members are working on. Share your work below!

What to Expect: Physical maps are to be checked in at the conference registration table. Authors may be available in the map gallery at a time designated in the conference agenda to answer questions about their map (attendance during judging is optional). Award recipients will be announced during lunch of the second day of the conference and be posted on the TNGIC website.

We have five categories we will be judging for Map Gallery Awards:

Submit a Map to the TNGIC Map Gallery

Holiday Inn Express Dickson, TN Lodging Information

Location: 100 Barzani Blvd, Dickson, TN 37055 (note that it takes approximately 25 minutes to drive from the hotel to the Lodge at Montgomery Bell State Park)

Booking: Hotel reservations can be made online HERE or you can call directly 1-615-560-1531 and use the group code TNGIC. Discounted rate will be $129.00 per night plus taxes and fees.  If you are tax exempt you will need to bring your exemption form with you at check-in. The deadline for using the group code is April 1, 2024. 

Government Rate: The government rate is $107. If you are using the government rate, please do NOT use the group code.

Arriving Early/Staying Late: The conference rate is only available for Tuesday and Wednesday nights. If you would like to arrive on Monday or stay Thursday, you will need to call the hotel at 1-615-560-1531 to make that reservation.

 Montgomery Bell State Park Lodging Information

LODGE IS CURRENTLY SOLD OUT

Location: 1000 Hotel Ave, Burns, TN

Booking:  [March 8, 2024 UPDATE] As of March 8 all rooms at the lodge are booked. [February 23, 2024 UPDATE] It's a long story, but if you call the 888 number and try to make a reservation with "TNGIC", we show up as cancelled in the state park computer system. Instead, ask for the "TN GEOLOGIC Information Council with dates of April 9-11. The irony of being listed as a geology conference is not lost on me. [February 13, 2024 UPDATE] As of February 13 we no longer have the ability to use the room reservation code when making online reservations. (Apparently MBSP updated a computer system and they do not know when/if the problem will get resolved. We will update the website if/when the problem is fixed.) At this moment, you will have to call the 1-888-TN-PARKS number and tell them the name of our group (TNGIC TN GEOLOGIC Information Council) to get the conference room rate. You may be able to bypass the 888 number by calling the lodge directly at 615-797-1600.

Hotel reservations can be made HERE or you can call directly 1-888-TN-PARKS and use the block code 2810. Discounted rate will be $107.00 ($107 is the government rate) per night plus taxes and fees.  If you are tax exempt you will need to bring your exemption form with you at check-in. The deadline for using the block code is March 9, 2024. 

Government Rate: The conference rate is the same as the government rate. Please reserve your rooms using the block code 2810 so that we meet our minimum room requirement.

Arriving Early/Staying Late: The conference rate is only available for Tuesday and Wednesday nights. If you would like to arrive on Monday or stay Thursday, you will need to call the 1-888-TN-PARKS number to make that reservation. Just be sure to include the block code 2810.

 Training

The following IN-PERSON training options are available. Full details, times, room numbers (TBD), and reservation are available on the conference training webpage.

• Cloud Computing with Google Earth Engine and Geemap - Dr. Qiusheng Wu
• Using QGIS and LIDAR Data - Randal Hale
• GRASS GIS 101: From GUI Clicks to Writing Scripts - Dr. Veronica Andreo and Caitlin Haedrich
• ArcGIS Experience Builder & Arcade Across the ArcGIS Platform - Mike Sweeney
• Can We Talk Business? Equipping the GIS Professional to be the Trusted Advisor their customers want and need. - Tim Poe and Phillip Waldron [CANCELLED]

 Additional Activities

TNGIC Annual Golf Scramble at GreyStone Golf Course

When: April 9th, 2024 |  Buffet Lunch starts @ 10:45AM & Tee Off start at 12:00PM (CST)

Location: Greystone Golf Club -2555 Hwy 70 East, Dickson, 37055

Designed by PGA Tour pro Mark McCumber, GreyStone Golf Club offers a challenging yet fun round of golf to competitors of all skill levels. Located in historic Dickson, the golf course is a short drive from Montgomery Bell State Park.

Register: Please register here OR send check (made out to TNGIC) to: Sam Moffat, 701 East Scott Ave, Knoxville, TN 37917

Format: 4‐person scramble. Sign up and we will assign 4 person teams the day of the tourney or if you have a team already formed, please email Sam Moffat ([email protected]) with your team member names. Please note – all team members must be registered for the golf tourney even if you are paying the day of the event.

Price: $90, includes green fees, range balls, cart, lunch, and a chance of some good prizes and closest to pin and long drive competitions.

Corporate Sponsor: Sign up for a corporate sponsor for $360 - includes 4 people, logo, and recognition.

 MBSP Service Projects

NEW THIS YEAR | TNGIC is pleased to coordinate several service project opportunities with Montgomery Bell State Park and Ranger Eric Runkle. Full details on these service opportunities are on the service projects webpage.

• Mountain Bike Trail Asset Data Collection
• Downed Trees on Trails Data Collection

Canoe and Kayak Rentals for Acorn Lake

NEW FOR 2024 | TNGIC member Andy Zimmerman, who operates Broken Paddle Outfitters, is the official source for canoe and kayak rentals at Montgomery Bell State Park. Andy is offering TNGIC members a 15% discount on rentals on Tuesday (April 9) from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm and Wednesday (April 10) from 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm. The last rental is available at 5:00 and all paddlers have to be off the water by 6:00 pm. Text Andy at (615)-669-8196 to reserve in advance. Otherwise, rentals are first come, first served. 

 TNGIC Board of Director's Business and Elections

Join us for lots of great information, awards, and the changing of the Board of Director's leadership.  Voting will occur to fill 4 open Board of Director positions at the Annual Conference.  We have 4 nominees for 4 open positions! 

Check out our 2024 Board Nominees