Geoinformatics Today
Course summary
Geoinformatics is essentially concerned with the management and processing of spatial data, but also includes data collection processes, spatial analysis, and map visualisation. In this course, we give answers to the latest questions related to the current development of geoinformatics, and to do so in a way that students will acquire theoretical knowledge while solving concrete practical examples using the latest technologies and mainly online solutions.
Geoinformatics is present in our daily life, being part of a large number of activities that we do every day without being aware of its presence. Geonformatics is the base not only for planning multiple economic activities, but also is important giving answers to social and political questions. Geoinformatics is the is a key element of the navigation systems that people find in our cars and even the younger generations enjoy the various options it offers when, e.g., they orient themselves with the help of any online mapping service.
The courses are held by the institute's instructors and researchers, who try to update the content annually with the latest research results obtained in our institute. The courses consist not only of theoretical lessons, but also of practices too and its success is ensured with the equipment acquired by the institute.
Sustainability is present in the practices in an indirect and direct way. Despite the fact that, for reasons of funding and time, we are not able to organize a survey in nature for data collection, the content of the tasks to be solved by the students allow them to understand the role that geoinformatics plays e.g., in answering questions related to nature and environmental protection or developing possible solutions for problems caused by the inappropriate exploitation of natural resources or the failure preventing environmental pollution.
Geoinformatics is an effective tool in many fields of science and in many activities related to the economy and society. Its interdisciplinary character is more than confirmed by the fact that it combines cartographic knowledge with data science and analysis, as well as computer sciences in the interest of finding answers to critical problems in our current world. The possibility of inviting specialists from other institutions to present their experiences working in this area is not ruled out.
Course period
21 July- 03 August
Credits
Our course recommends 5 ECTS points, which may be accepted for credit transfer by the participants' home universities. Those who wish to obtain these credits should inquire about the possible transfer at their home institution prior to their enrollment. The International Strategy Office will send a transcript to those who have fulfilled all the necessary course requirements and request one.
Application deadline
30 May 2025 (max. 15- 20 participants)
Course fee
590 EUR; includes: tuition fee, course materials, meals (coffee break and lunch), local transport, opening ceremony and the cost of the leisure time programs, excursions
Course requirements
At least level B2 (CEFR) English proficiency
It is recommended that those interested to register in this course have at least very basic and elementary knowledge related to GIS.
Application
Application form: https://www.elte.hu/en/content/.f.675
Meet the lecturers
Mátyás GEDE
Mátyás Gede is an associate professor at the Institute of Cartography and Geoinformatics at ELTE. His major fields of interest are web mapping APIs and digital approaches to cartographic heritage. He also serves as the director of the institute and Chairperson of the Commission on Cartographic Heritage into the Digital in the International Cartographic Association (ICA).
András JUNG
András Jung is a professor at the Institute of Cartography and Geoinformatics at ELTE, Budapest, where he teaches geoinformatics, photogrammetry, and remote sensing. His research focuses on high-resolution remote sensing, hyperspectral imaging, and field spectroscopy in soil and vegetation studies. He has extensive international experiences in education, research, and industrial developments.
Márton PÁL
Márton Pál is a cartographer and holds a PhD in Earth Sciences. He currently works at the ELTE Eötvös Loránd University as an assistant professor and teaches courses on numeric methods in geoscientific mapping, fieldwork, thematic cartography, and GIS. His research topics are the GIS connections of geodiversity and geoheritage, web-based cartography, and UAV-based remote sensing.
Jesús REYES
José Jesús Reyes Nunez is Associate Professor at Eötvös Loránd University. His research interests lie in school cartography (teaching of cartographic concepts, map use and new map-based solutions in elementary and secondary schools), digital and GIS cartography, web cartography and geovisualization. He has given lectures and offered courses in 19 institutions of 9 countries. The International Cartographic Association (ICA) awarded him with the Diploma for Outstandings Services to ICA in 2015.
Zsuzsanna UNGVÁRI
Assistant professor since 2017, her research focus is diverse, she is interested in cartographic generalization, digitisation of cartographic heritage (globes, relief model), geoinformatics databases, and as well as cartography of board games. She teaches the following subjects in English or in Hungarian: Introductory database-management, Spatial databases, Data mining and cloud-based solution, Introduction to geoinformatics L, Introduction to QGIS, Development scripts and plugins with geoinformatics software, Globe digitisation and archiving, Cartographic products etc.
Zsófia VARGA
Since 2013 she has been working as university researcher and since 2020 at the Institute of Cartography and Geoinformatics at ELTE. Her main research interests are the use and methodological development of remote sensing sensors, and sustainable industrial technologies including renewable energy systems.
László ZENTAI
László Zentai is a Professor of Cartography and the former Director of the Institute of Cartography and Geoinformatics (2006-2024) at ELTE. His main research areas are computer cartography, topographic maps and relief representation. He was serving as Secretary General of the International Cartographic Association (ICA) from 2011 to 2019 and Vice-President between 2019 and 2023.
Course Syllabus
| 22.07.2025 Tuesday |
24.07.2025 Thursday |
25.07.2025 Friday |
29.07.2025 Tuesday |
31.07.2025 Thursday |
01.08.2025 Friday |
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| 9:00-10:30 | Title of the lecture | Introduction & GIS-based cartography | Cartographics elements in Geoinformatics | GIS in geosciences – lecture | Basics of Google Earth and KML format | Developing open source interactive web maps using Leaflet (1st part) | Remote sensing sensors – practical course |
| Lecturer's name | Jesús Reyes | Zentai László | Márton Pál | Ungvári Zsuzsanna | Gede Mátyás | Varga Zsófia | |
| Short summary | Students can learn about the relation between geoinformatics and graphics. Students will be shortly introduced to the importing and georeferencing of GIS files into a graphic environment, as well as preparing base maps, working with attributes, creating thematic maps and formatting a map sheet using a GIS module in a general graphic software. Results will be finally displayed online using interactive digital media (e.g. web and mobile devices). | A theoretical introduction to the use of thematics maps in geoinformatics, giving answer to questions as how to represent different types of data on thematic maps using diverse graphic solutions. | This lecture gives a theoretical base for the following practical courses: what kind of IT technologies are used in earth science, what are the basic geo-information that a GIS professional must be aware of, and what cartographic materials are relevant for both IT and geosciences. | Navigation, geocoding, layers, markers, lines, areas in the Google Earth. The KML and KMZ format. Editing KML files. | Participants learn how to build websites with interactive web maps. - HTML and JavaScript basics; embedding a Leaflet map viewer - Tile map layers - Displaying and styling vector data |
The downsizing of RS sensors has led to the development of complex systems that support the technological developments of Industry 4.0, involving a wide range of device carriers (UAVs, robots). During the course, participants will gain insight into the use of multispectral, thermal and LiDAR sensors, their data processing and data visualisation, and the practical possibilities of their main application areas. | |
| 10:30-11:00 |
Break |
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| 11:00-12:30 | Title of the lecture | Online GIS for everybody: ArcGIS Online & StoryMaps (1st part) | Spaceborne Remote Sensing | GIS in geosciences – practical course 1 (data acquisition methods) | Become a professional traveller -Illustrate your journey with animated maps | Developing open source interactive web maps using Leaflet (2nd part) | Deep learning methods in Remote sensed data sciences/( Deep learning methods in Remote sensing) |
| Lecturer's name | Jesús Reyes | András Jung | Márton Pál | Ungvári Zsuzsanna | Gede Mátyás | Varga Zsófia | |
| Short summary | Examples for the use of ArcGIS Online to solve different tasks, from making of simple thematic maps to interactive multimedia presentations (StoryMaps) on the web. | Recent developments in Earth observation show that satellite based remote sensing will play a significant role in our daily life and we are facing a new generation of satellites and applications to use and understand. The main goal of the presentation is to introduce the concepts and driving ideas of spaceborne data acquisition. | Students are introduced to the trending data gathering technologies of geoscientists. They will have the opportunity to measure with various GPS devices (from m to cm accuracy) and do a UAV survey next to the university. | Creating markers with popup windows (names, descriptions), HTML formatting in popups. Animation along the a path (gx:track animation) | Participants learn how to build websites with interactive web maps. - HTML and JavaScript basics; embedding a Leaflet map viewer - Tile map layers - Displaying and styling vector data |
Presentation of deep learning models and packages that can be integrated into QGIS or Copernicus Browser. Their design and operation based on sample data and their potential for further development. | |
| 12:30-13:30 |
Break |
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| 13:30-15:00 | Title of the lecture | Online GIS for everybody: ArcGIS Online & StoryMaps (2nd part) | Latest results of PhD research in the institute (1st part) | GIS in geosciences – practical course 2 (data processing and visualisation) | Animated maps in Google Earth | Latest results of PhD research in the institute (2nd part) | Latest results of PhD research in the institute (3rd part) |
| Lecturer's name | Jesús Reyes | PhD student to be named later | Márton Pál | Ungvári Zsuzsanna | PhD student to be named later | PhD student to be named later | |
| Short summary | Examples for the use of ArcGIS Online to solve different tasks, from making of simple thematic maps to interactive multimedia presentations (StoryMaps) on the web. | Our PhD students present the development and results of their research activities in the Cartography-Geoinformatics programme of the Doctoral School of Earth Sciences of the ELTE Faculty of Natural Sciences, as well as in the Geoinformatics and Spatial Data Science of the Doctoral School of Informatics of the ELTE Faculty of Informatics | Students are introduced to the IT-based data processing techniques of geoscientists. We will use the gathered data from Lecture 2 and external sources to compile various maps and models: 1) a digital elevation model, 2) a GIS-based topographic map, and a 3) 3D model from a previously surveyed object. In the end of the lecture, we will publish our results on the Internet using the toolset of webcartography. | Styling placemarks in Google Earth, Timespan animation, making 3D maps | Our PhD students present the development and results of their research activities in the Cartography-Geoinformatics programme of the Doctoral School of Earth Sciences of the ELTE Faculty of Natural Sciences, as well as in the Geoinformatics and Spatial Data Science of the Doctoral School of Informatics of the ELTE Faculty of Informatics | Our PhD students present the development and results of their research activities in the Cartography-Geoinformatics programme of the Doctoral School of Earth Sciences of the ELTE Faculty of Natural Sciences, as well as in the Geoinformatics and Spatial Data Science of the Doctoral School of Informatics of the ELTE Faculty of Informatics | |