Greek National Spatial Data Infrastructure. Attempts towards design and implementation

Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) is a long term, evolving process without a priori known results. Different countries try to develop a National SDI (NSDI) not always with a successful outcome. Although the successes are presented thoroughly (e.g. SDI best practice), it is equally important to highlight unsuccessful efforts in order to comprehensively examine different aspects of the SDI development and to acquire a more holistic approach and integrated perspective on the subject. The first Greek NSDI effort that is presented in this paper is an example of an unfruitful first attempt. Examination and assessment of this effort, lead to interesting and hopefully constructive conclusions towards a broader understanding of the SDI development. In order to assess this first effort, we define three main periods in the Greek spatial data evolution. In this paper only the first two periods are thoroughly analyzed, since the third and most recent one is still shaping. The study of the two periods showed that people, concepts and inadequacies of the first period appeared also during the second one, forming a kind of pattern. The discussion of aspects that influenced and characterized this effort reveal the multiple difficulties and problems the Greek NSDI development had to face. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non commercial Works 3.0 License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 543 Howard Street, 5 th Floor, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA. DOI: 10.2902/1725-0463.2013.08.art2 International Journal of Spatial Data Infrastructures Research, 2013, Vol.8, 21-42 22