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| Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de Información Geoespacial | |
|---|---|
| Name | Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de Información Geoespacial |
| Native name | Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de Información Geoespacial |
| Established | 2000 |
| Type | Research institute |
| City | Mexico City |
| Country | Mexico |
| Affiliations | UNAM, CONACYT, INEGI |
Centro de Investigación en Ciencias de Información Geoespacial is a Mexican research center focused on spatial data sciences, geospatial analysis, and geographic information systems. The center operates within a network of academic, governmental, and international institutions to develop methods for mapping, remote sensing, spatial databases, and geostatistics. Its work informs public policy, environmental assessment, urban planning, and disaster risk management across Latin America.
Founded in 2000 amid growth in geospatial technologies, the center emerged from collaborations among Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT), and the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía. Early partnerships included projects with European Space Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and International Hydrological Programme. The 2005 expansion coincided with advances at Landsat and Sentinel missions and with regional initiatives such as Mesoamerican Biological Corridor mapping. During the 2010s the center consolidated ties to Inter-American Development Bank, World Bank, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for applied research on resilience and climate. Institutional milestones involved agreements with Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados (CINVESTAV), and the Instituto Politécnico Nacional.
The center's mission aligns with strategic programs of CONACYT and regional agendas like Agenda 2030; objectives emphasize creation, curation, and dissemination of geospatial information to support decision-making. Key goals include advancing algorithms inspired by work at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, promoting interoperable standards akin to Open Geospatial Consortium recommendations, and strengthening capacity through partnerships with Universidad de Guadalajara and Tecnológico de Monterrey. The center also seeks to contribute to initiatives such as Group on Earth Observations, GEOSS, and collaborative efforts linked to Global Earth Observation System of Systems.
Governance follows models observed at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México research centers and at institutes like Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas: a directorate, scientific advisory board, and administrative council. The advisory board draws experts from CONACYT, INEGI, Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, and international partners including European Commission research networks. Funding sources combine grants from Fondo Sectorial, contracts with Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes, and competitive awards from foundations such as Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Ford Foundation. Institutional affiliations include formal ties with National Autonomous University of Mexico, regional consortia with Universidad Veracruzana, and memoranda of understanding with Instituto Nacional de Ecología.
Research spans remote sensing applications using data from Landsat, Sentinel-2, and MODIS; spatial statistics drawing on methods from Geostatistics and machine learning approaches developed at Carnegie Mellon University and Stanford University; and semantic interoperability following ISO geospatial standards and Open Geospatial Consortium protocols. The center investigates land-use change in contexts such as Chiapas and Yucatán Peninsula, urban growth in Mexico City and Monterrey, and watershed modeling for basins like Grijalva River and Balsas River. Thematic lines include biodiversity mapping connected to CONABIO, hazard mapping related to Servicio Sismológico Nacional, and socioeconomic spatial analysis using census frameworks from INEGI. Comparative studies reference datasets and methods used by European Space Agency programs and the United States Geological Survey.
Major projects include national mapping initiatives with INEGI, climate adaptation planning with Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, and biodiversity monitoring with Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO). International collaborations range from joint research with European Space Agency teams to development programs funded by Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank grants. The center has participated in multi-institution consortia alongside CIMMYT, CIAT, and CIESAS for rural land-use studies, and with RedGeo and Red de Información Científica networks. Project outputs have been shared at conferences like International Symposium on Remote Sensing, FOSS4G, and American Geophysical Union meetings.
The center contributes to postgraduate programs at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, offers specialized diplomas in collaboration with Tecnológico de Monterrey, and supervises theses for students from Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León and Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro. Training courses cover tools such as QGIS, ArcGIS, and programming languages used at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Carnegie Mellon University curricula, including Python and R. Capacity-building workshops have been delivered for personnel from Secretaría de Salud, Protección Civil, and municipal governments of Guadalajara and Puebla.
Facilities include high-performance computing clusters interoperable with platforms like Google Earth Engine and data archives compatible with OpenStreetMap contributions. Remote sensing labs host calibration equipment for sensors used in Landsat and drone campaigns aligned with Civil Aviation Authority rules. The center's GIS lab supports connections to servers maintained by INEGI and repositories following FAO data policies. Field equipment and partnerships enable campaigns in regions such as Sierra Madre Occidental, Sierra Madre Oriental, and coastal zones of Gulf of Mexico.
Category:Research institutes in Mexico