Re: 2018 Esri User Conference Proposal

To: From:

I would like to attend the Esri User Conference July 9 - 13, 2018, in San Diego, California. It’s the best way to ensure we’re getting the most from our GIS investment. For five days, this conference provides over 450 hours of training, hundreds of user presentations that share best practices, and opportunities for me to get our specific technical questions answered one-on-one by Esri subject matter experts, developers, industry leaders, and more! The UC also includes an EXPO full of vendor exhibits featuring innovative GIS solutions and special interest group meetings that will connect me with GIS users from our region and industry. Over 18,000 professionals across industries attend the Esri UC, representing nearly every commercial sector, government organization, and non-profit field. This abundance of user‐to‐user communication and collaboration is essential to learning about real-life GIS experiences, best practices, tips and tricks, and more. This is an especially important year for me to learn about the latest advances in geospatial technology because of rapid transformation in the field. With GIS becoming more powerful and accessible, I need to know how we can leverage its capabilities to make the most of our resources and stay ahead of the digital curve. These are three projects that could benefit from my attendance: 1) 2) 3)

There are also four concurrent events that I can attend prior to the Esri UC:

To add the Education Summit @ Esri UC to your request: The weekend before the Esri UC, GIS professionals in the education field will gather for a more specialized GIS event called the Education Summit @ Esri UC. I would like to attend this event as well to get more in-depth insight into GIS issues specific to education. The Summit focuses on how GIS improves critical thinking skills and decision making inside the classroom, across campus operations, and in policymaking. It offers hands-on workshops and access to teaching materials and other educational resources. To add the National Security and Public Safety Summit @ Esri UC to your request: The weekend before the Esri UC, GIS professionals in the homeland security field will gather for a more specialized GIS event called the National Security and Public Safety Summit @ Esri UC. I would like to attend this event as well to learn about best practices from top public safety professionals and get more in-depth insight into how organizations use GIS to better meet their missions and integrate information systems to optimize technology investments. To add the Business Summit @ Esri UC to your request: The weekend before the Esri UC, professionals in business organizations will gather for a more specialized GIS event called the Business Summit @ Esri UC. I would like to attend this event as well to gain more insight and perspectives into location- based mapping. This event draws professionals in financial services, retail, insurance, media, location intelligence, real estate, facilities management, fleet management, marketing, IT, and other businesses. To add the Imagery Summit @ Esri UC to your request: The weekend before the Esri UC, GIS professionals in the imaging and mapping field will gather for a more specialized GIS event called the Imagery Summit @ Esri UC. I would like to attend this event as well to get more in-depth insight into high- accuracy mapping. This event draws professionals in surveying, civil engineering, transportation, GIS, IT, application development, education, and business.

I’m looking at ways to reduce expenses through complimentary registration, special hotel and airfare rates, ride sharing, and meals with vendors. Here’s an approximate breakdown of conference costs:

Registration: Airfare: Transportation: (round-trip taxi from airport to hotel) Hotel: (Five nights at $200) Meals: (Six days at $60) Total:

If I attend, I would submit a post-conference summary, including a set of recommended actions to further our GIS work. I’d also be more than happy to share relevant information with other staff members and departments. Thank you for your consideration in this matter. I look forward to your reply.