Curitiba, July 8, 2013 - The 3rd edition of MundoGEO#Connect LatinAmerica, Conference and Trade Fair of Geomatics and Geospatial Solutions ( http://mundogeoconnect.com/2013/en/), was held last week in Sao Paulo, and demonstrated the strength of the geospatial market in Brazil and Latin America. In total 3,540 participants from over 25 countries attended the 20 activities of the event, besides 150 speakers and 65 exhibitors at a trade fair with 4,600 square meters.

Emerson Granemann, director of MundoGEO, says that 94% of the participants positively evaluated and 92% would indicate the event to a colleague. “89% approved the infrastructure, 93% enjoyed the novelties presented, 89% liked the content presented in seminars, forums and courses and 92% positively evaluated the organization of the event. These ratings confirm our expectations and make us improve the event for the participants, supporters and sponsors, “concludes Granemann.

The trade fair of MundoGEO#Connect 2013, besides presenting many features in softwares and solutions, this year exhbited varios Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). A growing technology in Brazil, UAVs attracted the attention of users and enthusiasts of this market. Over 10 models were exhbited. The trade fair was also a space for business and international partnerships, that were performed in the corridors, meeting rooms and booths of the Convention Center.

MegaTrends Seminar ( http://mundogeoconnect.com/2013/en/program/) was one of the great moments of the Conference, and was expected by suppliers, managers and users of geospatial information. Held on June 18, just after the official opening of the Conference, with lectures by experts from Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Canada and the United States, the seminar demonstrated what will become reality in the next years, and brought current issues for discussion with the public – on-site and online – such as the Rural Environmental Cadaster (CAR). To present this new tool, the conference brought Paulo Guilherme Cabral, representative of the Environment Ministry of Brazil.

“This is a very important event, because we can talk and learn about technologies, companies and professionals who are at the end of the process of services and technological resources deliveru for identifying and imaging rural areas in Brazil,” said Paulo Guilherme, Secretary of Extraction and Sustainable Rural Development in the Environment Ministry.

The Mega Trends Seminar was also attended by leaders in the international geospatial industry, such as the Intergeo; the German Association of Geodesy, Geoinformation and Land Management, GeoSUR; Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), Permanent Committee for Geospatial Data Infrastructure of the Americas (CP-IDEA), Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI).

At the end of the 1st day of the Conference, the Annual General Meeting of the Brazilian Institute of Geomatics and Geospatial Solutions Companies (IBG) was held, with the presence of 24 companies which elected the board for the next three years of the Institute, which has the main objective the creation of a competitive, sustainable, ethical and socially responsible industry.

On June 19 Location Intelligence Brazil was held (LI Brazil) ( http://www.locationintelligence.net/brazil/ ), an international conferenece the showed the main applications of geospatial technology in the business world. This event was possible thanks to a partnership between MundoGEO and Directions Magazine, international portal on geospatial solutions that performs Location Intelligence Conference in the United States annually. “It was a great opportunity to offer an educational forum, which addressed the applications of location technology in enterprise computing and business intelligence,” said Joe Francica, chief-editor of Directions Magazine. With simultaneous translation in English and Spanish, LI Brazil was sponsored by HERE – a Nokia business unit, Geofusion, MapLink and GeoConexion.

In the third day the conference featured Geointelligence for Defense and Security Forum ( http://mundogeoconnect.com/2013/en/palestrante/forum-geointeligencia-para-defesa-e-seguranca/ ), demonstrating how geographic information can ensure a better efficiency and reduce costs in managing the security and defense of a country, state or city. “A geographic information system allows not only the monitoring of the whole process of national security, but also provide predictive insight and situational awareness, common to the various areas concerned with the security of a country,” said João Canais, Esri Business Manager, Business Director in Esri.

“MundoGEO#Connect showed one more time that this an event with Latin America “way”, with presentations from local market experts, and also focusing on global trends,” says Eduardo Freitas, technical coordinator of the conference. “One of the highlights of the event was the awards ceremony held on Wednesday just after the Brazil soccer game, when there were recognized personalities, businesses and brands with greater prominence in the geospatial industry,” he concludes.

The 2013 edition of MundoGEO#Connect Awards ( http://mundogeoconnect.com/2013/en/mundogeoconnect-2013-awards/winners-in-2013/ ) took place on Wednesday, June 19, in second day of the event. The awards recognized companies, institutions, brands, softwares, equipments, and people that contributed to improve the geospatial industry over the last year. 70% of ths votes were from Brazil 30% from the rest of Latin America. In total, 27 awards were presented in a ceremony marked by excitement and vibration.

In 2013, MundoGEO#Connect Awards featured new categories such as “Best Facebook Page about Geospatial Technologies” and the “Most Memorable Global Brands”, both with great online participation. MundoGEO and Garmin – official sponsor of MundoGEO#Connect Awards congratulate all the winners as well as the other finalists, which strengthen the geospatial global market. Check out the winners of the 24 categories of MundoGEO#Connect Awards, chosen through online voting, and also the institutions that received three special awards.

In 2014 MundoGEO#Connect will take place 7-9 May at the Frei Caneca Convention Center, in Sao Paulo. There ir an expansion planned, corresponding to the fourth floor of the Convention Center, where innovative and challenging activities will be conducted.

To access the presentations of the forums, seminars, courses and workshops, please visit MundoGEO#Connect LatinAmerica 2013 website. Further information about MundoGEO#Connect 2014 will be available soon in www.mundogeoconnect.com .

About MundoGEO#Connect LatinAmerica

MundoGEO#Connect LatinAmerica - Conference and Trade Fair on Geomatics and Geospatial Solutions - is the largest and most important event in Latin America in the geoinformation sector. The third edition will be held from June 18 to 20 of 2013 in the Frei Caneca Convention Center, in Sao Paulo (SP), Brazil, with the main purpose to provide a new type of interactive experience between experts, researchers, end-users and industry operators using innovative models of dynamic models of debates and lectures, which favors the exchange of ideas and interaction among participants and panelists.