ABSTRACT
Educated and informed citizens are essential in a democracy where power is vested in the people and exercised by them. Policy and decision-making at all levels of government frequently involve geographically related issues such as the environment, transportation, natural resources, energy, agriculture, defense, trade, economics, and social welfare. GIS technology is the golden thread that is weaving its way through the fabric of democracy. Fundamental to many of the societal issues that are surfacing in the twenty-first century, the widespread use of GIS has value beyond simple efficiency, profitability, or even communication (Figure 22.1).
