Old data models for a new world?

WLA says that Mapping and BIM are hot trends for 2023, while Map Happenings just posted a piece declaring that geospatial data is stuck in the year 1955.

 

Trends in 2023

World Landscape Architect identified what they see as the top trends for 2023. They include a few fairly obvious trends like the changing climate and biodiversity but also mapping (mapping!) and education. I sear, I did not write this list.

Are you ready for what this year might bring?

Pyrus calleryana

Callery pears are now illegal in Ohio.

Does New Jersey need a law to control invasive species? Tom Gilbert of the NJCF says we do.

Phil Lewis

The Wikipedia entry for Phil Lewis isn't great, but has some helpful details. His 1964 resource map of Wisconsin was a remarkable step.

Ian McBlog

Looking for something new to read? The UPenn Ian McHarg Center shares ideas and news through a blog that it calls Ian McBlog. It captures current thinking from a variety of voices and may well push readers in some new directions. Take a look.

Trail job

 The NY NJ Trail Conference is now hiring for their 2023 Conservation Corps. 

California stormwater

With extensive flooding in California this winter, people are asking whether there is a way to capture some of the stormwater and use it to replenish the groundwater and reservoirs that are desperately low. While at first it sounds like an engineering problem, Politico presents it as a political or policy problem. After all, the state might have to fix the existing water infrastructure before it can add a newer water capture and movement system:

The pumps, aqueducts and reservoirs California relies on are “outdated and vulnerable to climate change” and limit the amount of water that can be stored during winter storms, acknowledged the director of the Department of Water Resources, Karla Nemeth.

 One of the local experts suggested to Politico that it was the start of a "new era" for California, by which it sounds like there is going to have to be an entirely new model for thinking about water.

10 most read Dirt posts of 2022

 ASLA's The Dirt reviewed 2022 and listed their 10 most read posts of last year. The list includes an impressive variety of landscape architecture and planning stories. Personally, I really like the look at Yosemite's influence on Olmsted. But there is something there for sports fans and a reflection on Superstorm Sandy for those of us in New Jersey and New York.