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engaged with the Human Geography team to brief geo staffs on the outputs. A lecture to the MSc programme includes Human Geography. Several MSc thesis topics have focused on Human Geography issues. Visits to DGC by RE Geo staff always include a session on Human Geography, and the experience of users has provided a valuable source of feedback for the analysts. However, there is still scope for more interaction.
One of the main elements of the team leader’s role has been to provide briefings to the broader community on the work of the team and to forge links with potential collaborators. These links were formalised in 2013 by the establishment of the Human Dimension Community of Interest (COI) which aimed to bring user and producer communities together in a more organised setting to than the informal networks that had existed until then. Through the mechanism of the COI, DSTL commissioned contractors (Helyx) to develop guidance and assist in the development of standards. There is now a set of definitions, a Taxonomy (or glossary) of Human Geography terms, a group of guidelines on the use of sources and significant progress made in standards development.
Controversies
There has been a longstanding (and continuing) debate as to whether Human Geography products are intelligence or geography outputs. There are organisations across the community that are using source data and answering questions that fall very obviously within the intelligence sphere. They tend to be characterised by problems looking at issues at a large scale and in near time using classified sources. The focus of DGC Human Geography effort is on providing situational awareness, at a smaller scale and with few time dependencies, reinforcing the argument that this work is geography. There has always been a strong academic focus on this work. Members of the team have sought to work closely with academia, both in the UK and internationally, and, as a means of engaging with others in the discipline, DGC initiated a conference in collaboration with the US Army Corps of Engineers Engineering Research and Development Center in 2008. The Spatial Sociocultural Knowledge Workshop, organised with the Defence Academy at Shrivenham, has run for 12 years (though unfortunately, the 2020 event was cancelled) and has become one of the leading international fora for the discussion of Human Geography issues.
What we don’t do
The exponential growth of the use of social media in recent years has established a new discipline analysing vast quantities of information on the behaviour of people, their attitudes, and intentions. Much of this data has a geospatial element, and other agencies already realise its value. However, this is not an area in which DGC has taken a proactive role. DGC continues to work with others who are developing capabilities to advise and contribute where appropriate.
Where next?
As strategists and commanders’ understanding of the potential of Human Geography has grown, increasing numbers of international partners have sought to develop their capability or adapt their ways of working to build a more formal international collaborative partnership. The many emergencies that nations have been called upon to respond to in the last decade, either individually or through coalition efforts, have driven these efforts and encouraged the investment of resources.
As has been demonstrated with previous programmes, the best way to coordinate efforts is through international collaboration. Thus, the International Program for Human Geography (IPHG) was proposed by the US in 2016. The IPHG aims to encourage member nations to coordinate requirements for data and exchange data wherever possible and to work to common specifications and methods using existing standards and themes, whilst continuing to respond to their respective requirements. The lead nations are USA, Germany, and the UK.
To date, 19 nations have declared an intention to collaborate. The Technical Arrangement was finalised in July 2019 and is currently open to those nations to sign. DGC signed the Technical Arrangement in Spring 2020.
DGC has contributed significant input on content, particularly building on DGC-led ground-breaking work to develop data standards and guidance on the use of sources. The IPHG has become an integral part of DGC’s international business. The leadership role in the IPHG requires the UK to make a significant commitment to training and guiding other nations in earlier stages of development. Still, it will reap the rewards and should deliver a strong return on the UK’s investment in years to come, not least in allowing us to continue to have a decisive say in how Human Geography develops in the future.
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