2026 Big Sky GeoCon - From Data to Design

Required Software or Hardware: 
The Montana State Library will provide a computer lab with sample data. Participants are welcome to bring their own data and computer with ArcGIS Pro.
Description:
A full day lecture and hands on training for GIS addressing and becoming NG9-1-1 GIS compliant for local GIS professionals. The Montana State Library will be bringing its computer lab with sample data. You are welcome to bring your own data and computer with ArcGIS Pro . This training will focus on strong data management, constancy, MSL’s 9-1-1 GIS Data Validation and Aggregation Portal and other tools that are available to you.
Morning Session
NG9-1-1 The GIS Data

• NENA Required, Recommended, Optional Layers and Fields
• Basic Topological Requirements
• Legacy Data Requirements MSAG and ALI
• Domains

Planning for success

• Data Infrastructure, Database Locations, and Schemas
• Data Transformations
• Legacy Data Requirements MSAG and ALI
• Domains

Data Maintenance and sharing

• Hacking ESRI’s Address Management Solution
• Locators and data dissemination tools
• Legacy Data Requirements MSAG and ALI
• Domains

Afternoon Session
Montana GIS Data Validation and Aggregation Portal - Getting Started

• Getting Started
• Running your first validation
• Fixing issues and managing validation results
• Exceptions

Montana GIS Data Validation and Aggregation Portal - Advanced topics

• Legacy Data Checks
• Multiple Layer Validations
• Data Aggregation
• Master Sessions

ArcGIS Plug-in Submission Manager

• Using ArcGIS Plug-in for full functionality of portal from within ArcGIS Pro

 

Intended Audience/Description: 
This course is specifically designed for GIS professionals who have little to no programming experience. If you’re a GIS analyst performing repetitive tasks, a GIS technician looking to increase productivity, or someone who has been intimidated by coding in the past, this course will show you how AI assistance makes automation accessible and achievable—no programming background required.
Even if you have some Python experience, you’ll discover a transformative new approach to development. Whether you’ve dabbled in Python and want to write better code faster, understand basic programming concepts but struggle with ArcPy syntax, or simply want to expand your automation capabilities quickly, leveraging AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude will accelerate your workflow development in ways traditional coding never could.
You’ll particularly benefit from this course if you perform repetitive geoprocessing tasks regularly, need to process multiple datasets with the same workflow, or create maps and layouts that require frequent updates. This training is also ideal if you want to standardize and document your GIS workflows or have been curious about AI-assisted coding but don’t know where to start. The bottom line: you don’t need to be a programmer to automate your work—you just need to know how to describe what you want and validate the results, and we’ll teach you exactly how to do that.
Software and Licenses/Technical Requirements: 
Students will need a computer with ArcGIS Pro installed and licensed. This should be verified prior to the start of class. Students will also need a login to either ChatGPT or Claude. The free version of either will work fine.
Course Modules:

• Module 1: Getting Started with AI-Assisted Python Automation
• Module 2: Core Geoprocessing with ArcPy
• Module 3: Data Access Module – Working with Cursors
• Module 4: Mapping Module – Automating Map Production
• Module 5: Advanced Techniques & Best Practices

Summary:
Accelerate your ArcGIS Pro automation skills by leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Claude as your AI coding assistants. In this intensive one-day workshop, you’ll learn to automate geoprocessing tasks, manipulate data with cursors, and control map layouts—all using Python and ArcPy with AI assistance. Whether you’re new to programming or have some Python experience, you’ll leave with practical scripts and the confidence to automate your daily workflows.
 

We will share our practical lessons learned from migrating and operating enterprise GIS in the cloud, specifically AWS and Azure based implementations. Topics include right sized architectures; performance tuning (caching, tiling, storage tiers); secure identity, roles, and governance; data pipelines that connect CAD/BIM, IoT, and analytics; and automation for updates and deployments. Attendees will learn migration patterns to pursue and avoid and a lightweight operating model for cost control, reliability, and collaboration. Throughout this presentation we will focus on three key topics, 1. Cost Benefits, 2. Security Benefits, and 3. Maintenance Benefits.

This workshop provides a practical, end-to-end overview of using unmanned aerial systems (UAS) with Esri Site Scan to capture, process, and deliver high-value geospatial data. Participants will learn how drone-collected imagery and reality capture products integrate directly into the Esri ecosystem to support mapping, analysis, and decision-making workflows.
The session will cover core concepts of drone operations, data collection best practices, and how Site Scan streamlines flight planning, data management, processing, and collaboration. Emphasis will be placed on turning raw aerial data into actionable GIS deliverables such as orthomosaics, digital surface models, point clouds, and 3D content that can be shared across teams.
Attendees will gain insight into real-world use cases including surveying, construction monitoring, asset inspection, public safety, and infrastructure management. The workshop will also highlight accuracy considerations, operational efficiencies, and how organizations can scale drone programs while maintaining consistency and data quality.
By the end of the workshop, participants will understand how to effectively connect drone workflows with Esri Site Scan to move from flight to finished GIS products faster, more efficiently, and with greater confidence.

Public works agencies rely on dashboards to track service delivery and performance across streets, utilities, and field operations. Much of this information originates in Cityworks, which manages work orders, inspections, and asset data before publishing it to ArcGIS Dashboards. This session shows how Arcade transforms Cityworks‑derived datasets into accurate KPIs by performing tasks dashboards can’t handle natively, including fiscal‑year calculations, conditional formatting, multi‑layer metrics, and real‑time data cleaning. Using practical public‑works examples, we’ll demonstrate how Arcade bridges the gap between Cityworks data structures and dashboard needs. Attendees will leave with adaptable patterns for producing clear, user‑friendly KPI visualizations.

NOAA's National Geodetic Survey (NGS) defines, maintains, and provides access to the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS), which is a common foundation for geospatial data that serves as the basis for civilian surveying and mapping in the United States. Changes in technology and a better understanding of the dynamic earth have made it necessary to improve the NSRS to be of better use for modern applications. Currently, NGS is in the process of modernizing the NSRS, updating the existing horizontal datums with a suite of geometric reference frames and the vertical datums with a gravimetrically-derived geopotential datum.

This presentation mandates annual updates to the Forest Cover Type (FCT) dataset and centralized storage in the BIA Enterprise portal. It defines data standards, standardized workflows, and staff training to ensure integrity, accuracy, and efficient collection, processing, and sharing. FCT supports the Regional Forest Management Plan, reflecting evolving inventories, management goals, and past actions. Originally developed regionally (2003–2018) and revised notably in 2013–2014 using NAIP imagery, the protocol consolidates update procedures and user instructions for field and office contributors.

The Montana DPHHS CONNECT program described here provides critical health services to Montana community members. https://connectmontana.org/ , https://dphhs.mt.gov/publichealth/ConnectMT/CONNECTReferralSystem , To communicate what agencies participate in the program, DPHHS built a modernized GIS directory dashboard that makes great use of the ArcGIS Experience Builder platform. This application allows users to do a variety of spatial operations to interact and learn about the program that will be covered in this session. For those interested in spatial approaches for assessing access to care in rural places, this talk will be right up their alley. The dashboard has not yet been finalized but should be at time of presentation. Additional efforts on accessibility of the resource will be covered as well.

TrialWear is a new medical device designed to improve health care outcomes in Montana and beyond. Developed by an interdisciplinary team from Montana State University, the device utilizes ArcGIS GeoEvent Server and built-in geofencing to alert providers when a clinical trial patient enters a medical facility. The goal of TrialWear is to promote rural representation in clinical trials by removing communication barriers between researchers and providers, allow more patients access to life-saving treatments, and increase the safety of clinical trial participants.

Since the 1980s, the Montana DNRC’s Stand Level Inventory (SLI) has supported forest management on Trust Lands through walkthrough-based field assessments of stand conditions. While foundational, this method presented challenges in data consistency, repeatability, and maintenance. Leveraging recent statewide LiDAR acquisition, DNRC developed the Remote Forest Inventory (RFI), integrating timber cruise data with LiDAR to produce spatially continuous, landscape-scale forest metrics. This presentation highlights DNRC’s application of GIS and remote sensing in developing the RFI, a modernization effort that transformed legacy inventory methods into a precise, efficient, and scalable framework for forest data management.
 

Illegal dumping in remote areas has surged by up to 30%, threatening ecosystems and public health. Traditional monitoring methods can’t keep pace—limited access and resources leave agencies reactive instead of proactive. This presentation highlights how satellite imagery and AI analytics revolutionize enforcement. Using Antelope Valley, CA as a case study, we’ll show how high-resolution imagery, cloud-based detection, and GIS dashboards cut patrol time, improve safety, and accelerate investigations. We’ll share a vision for AI-driven tools that turn complex geospatial data into actionable strategies, enabling agencies to protect natural resources and combat dumping with unprecedented efficiency.

A large rainfall event triggered multiple landslides across Bridger Bowl Ski Area in southwest Montana on July 29, 2025. The Geospatial Core Facility at Montana State University conducted a UAV-based LiDAR survey over a landslide path along the northern boundary of Bridger Bowl and generated a 1-m resolution post-event digital elevation model (DEM). A pre-event 1-m DEM was obtained from the U.S. Geological Survey. Raster differencing between the pre- and post-event DEMs was used to estimate a volumetric displacement of 16,000 m3. These results demonstrate the value of UAV LiDAR for post-event landslide assessment and terrain management in alpine environments.

Extreme heat and rapid urbanization are converging challenges for the Arabian Peninsula, yet their fine-grained interactions remain poorly understood. We present a high-resolution assessment of land-cover land-use change, population growth, and land surface temperature (LST) from 2000 to 2020. We found that newly urbanized areas converted from desert exhibited significantly lower warming (+1.78°C) than existing urban areas (+2.39°C) and unchanged desert (+2.97°C). However, these newly urbanized areas maintained higher mean LST than existing urban areas by 2020 (42.68°C versus 41.29°C), creating a counter intuitive thermal where 13.1 million new residents live in places that experienced relative cooling yet higher absolute LST exposure. We furthermore identified distinct population-thermal pathways: small Gulf states achieved population growth with minimal warming through densification, while larger countries showed sprawl-dominated patterns with varied thermal outcomes. Our findings demonstrate that desert cities experience fundamentally different thermal dynamics than temperate regions and require a revised adaptation framework accounting for urban cooling potential and extreme baseline temperatures.

Federal wildfire fuel reduction projects lack systematic methods for identifying affected populations. The Wildfire Adapted Missoula project authorizes hazardous fuels treatments without environmental justice analysis despite federal mandates. This study develops a parcel-level, terrain-aware distance decay framework to identify affected populations based on spatial accessibility. Using the Blue Mountain treatment area, three distance metrics are compared: Euclidean (baseline planar distance), topographic (slope-adjusted), and fire transmission (cost-distance accounting for terrain and fuel conditions that constrain fire spread). Results inform environmental justice screening where spatial equity assessment remains absent from federal wildfire decision-making.

This presentation will focus on the GIS methods and challenges involved in structure surveying and inventory in the Yellowstone River Basin for Montana DNRC for the purpose of updating regulatory floodplain maps and how our GIS team utilized ArcGIS Field Maps to deploy structure and data forms for field crews to reference and collect data in the field. GIS field solutions proved themselves invaluable for daily and long-range planning for this project. Data collected was delivered in FEMA complaint databases comprised of structure location, information, and dimensions for 482 structures and 1446 bathymetric cross sections on 641 miles of river.

Many of the major themes within Environmental Education rely upon remote sensing and orbital data collection. This unit was developed to introduce students in grades 11-12 to the science behind the maps and graphics they see in class. It ranges from a review of the physics of the electromagnetic spectrum to data manipulation, ground-truthing, and ArcGIS workflows.
The unit begins with a physical modeling of active vs. passive sensing and spectral signatures, teaching students to recognize that every land cover—from healthy forest to impervious urban surfaces—possesses a unique "spectral fingerprint." Students use resources from NASA and the USGS to develop an understanding of how global change can be detected remotely.
As the unit progresses, students access primary data via USGS EarthExplorer, perform change-detection analysis of their local area using Landsat time-series data, and calculate the Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR) to model ecological disturbance. An infrared sensor and an air quality sensor are used to collect data around the school campus. This field data is crowdsourced via ArcGIS Survey123 and visualized alongside satellite imagery in ArcGIS Living Atlas in an attempt to demonstrate "ground-truthing." The unit culminates in an ArcGIS workflow that helps students build a comprehensive ArcGIS StoryMap portfolio detailing their learning progress throughout the unit.

Climate projection datasets pose major challenges for traditional GIS workflows due to their size and dimensionality. This study uses the NASA NEX-GDDP-CMIP6 dataset, comprising 65 years of historical simulations and four 85-year future scenarios across multiple models, totaling approximately 7.4 TB of data. To enable scalable analysis, we employ Dask and Xarray to construct spatiotemporal data cubes with lazy loading, chunking, and pixelwise computation. This workflow enables mesoscale GIS-ready analysis of changes in the thermodynamic drivers of humid-heat across the Arabian Peninsula.

NOTE: This workshop can be taken virtually as well, as Frank will be teaching the workshop remotely from his Florida office. Frank will provide the Zoom meeting link to participates the week of the conference.
Description: 
This half-day workshop will extend the attendee's understanding of Esri's ArcGIS Pro Parcel Fabric and examine the effect and impact of the arcade language, attribute rules, the configuration of the project file, a discussion on branch versioning, options for dimensioning in an Enterprise environment, the line labeling expression, a review of procedures to correct issues within the parcel fabric and a discussion on condominium unit mapping. While a link to download the sample data and project file will be provided, it is recommended that the attendee primarily treat this as a lecture/demo/questions workshop.