Asian Surveying & Mapping
Breaking News
China Launches Earth Observation Satellite Gaofen-13 02 for Remote Sensing
China on Friday sent a new Earth observation satellite...
ISRO to conduct young scientist programme in Bengaluru
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is organising a...
Egypt launches second remote-sensing satellite from China
The Egyptian Space Agency’s CEO, Sherif Sedky, announced the...
Israeli-developed DRONE DOME to secure Dubai from aerial attacks
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. is supplying the system...
China launches 2nd Horus remote-sensing satellite for Egypt (video)
China has launched a second remote-sensing satellite for Egypt,...
China obstructs new subsea cable to Taiwan
Southeast Asia-Japan Cable 2 connecting Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong,...
Scientific collaboration between China and US key to tackling climate change, experts say
Efforts to combat climate change bore the brunt of...
ISRO Receives India-US Jointly Built NISAR Earth Observation Satellite, Begins Preparations For Launch
US space agency NASA has handed over NISAR earth...
ISRO conducts parachute deployment tests on rail tracks for Gaganyaan Mission
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has conducted Rail Track...
OceanX helps Riyadh boost best up-and-comers in GEOINT
The Saudi Space Commission has given OceanX the difficult...

July 13th, 2022
Celebrating 40 Years of Mapps

40 years ago on this day, July 12, 1982, a group of about 20 visionary photogrammetry firm owners and senior executives gathered in a hotel at O’Hare Airport in Chicago. Out of the remnants of the Legislative Council for Photogrammetry (LCP), which had recently disbanded, a new organization was formed – the Management Association for Private Photogrammetric Surveyors (MAPPS).

In 1982, I was hired as the first government affairs director of the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM), now known as the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS), and the American Society of Photogrammetry (ASP), now known as the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS). The coincidental creation of an ACSM-ASP joint government affairs program and my employment as its director that same year led to MAPPS being an all-volunteer organization in its early years, with the new association providing grassroots, as well as financial support for my program. Having a voice and advocate on behalf of the surveying and mapping profession in Washington, DC was a goal of LCP and MAPPS, so the new ACSM-ASP program was met with enthusiasm by those participating in the Chicago meeting.

From that first year, I was honored to be embraced by the MAPPS leadership and membership and a strong relationship was fostered. As the government affairs programs grew, so too did that relationship. In addition to financial contributions to the ACSM-ASP program, MAPPS engaged me as a consultant to help plan its conferences, edit and publish a newsletter, and provide speakers. In 1987, I was retained as the first Executive Director of MAPPS.

For the next 30 years, MAPPS grew in membership, stature, and influence. At its pinnacle, it attracted more than 200 member firms, had revenues of almost $1 million, won White House endorsement of its top public policy priority, and build a significant record of legislative accomplishment in Congress. In 2017, the leadership of MAPPS at the time decided to move in a different direction and my relationship with the organization ended.

Today is a day to salute three leaders, Larry Edwards, Clayton Smith, and Jim Spell, the surviving members of that confab would found MAPPS in Chicago 40 years ago, and pay tribute to the legacy they left behind.

On behalf of all of us at the U.S. Geospatial Executives Organization (U.S. GEO), a coalition of the principals, owners, partners, and other senior decision-makers (described by one participant as “those with skin in the game”) of the leading geospatial firms in the market, we want to congratulate the three pioneers of MAPPS on 40-years dedicated to the profession.

 

Miller/Wenhold is a reliable provider of lobbying, government relations, advocacy, public policy, association management, and related services. The bipartisan team of professionals specializes in developing a close, personal working relationship with each client and delivering effective results. The firm works with associations, corporations, nonprofit organizations, and coalitions to provide full-service management and policy solutions and relationships with Congress, the White House, and Federal agencies.