GeoDesign

GeoDesign is a fairly new word that has been going around the Geographic Information System (GIS) community for the past couple years. GIS and design merging is the main concept of GeoDesign, and the word first came to ear in 2008 at a meeting at the University of California at Santa Barbara. GeoDesign enthusiasts have a very accepted definition of the issues that GeoDesign aims to answer/focus on; "to what extent are the fundamental spacial concepts that lie behind GIS relevant in design?" or "to what extent can the fundamental spacial concepts of design be addressed by GIS?"

 GeoDesign attempts to bring GIS into the process of designing human built environments. Other definitions focus more on defining GeoDesign as attempting to have an active role in shaping our surroundings to our desired uses. The link between the entity being designed and its geographic context provides "the tangible basis for doing both science-based and evidence-based design." By integrating geographic information science with design, GeoDesign brings geospatial computing capacity into the process of design. With this somewhat new process, a methodology has come about that can be used for spatial planning and decision making. Programs in curricula are being pushed by GeoDesign enthusiasts, and will have a goal of teaching the fundamental interrelationships between the earth's physical and human systems.


Lee, M. (2012). Teaching GeoDesign: A Campus-Wide Initiative. Sustainability on the UT Campus: A Symposium, 1-4. Retrieved February 8, 2015.