President's Message: Celebrating KommITS 20th Anniversary!
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One of the many strengths of GMIS International is our collaborative relationships with our seven similar international organizations in Australia, Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden and the United Kingdom through LOLA (Linked Organisation of Local Authority ICT Societies).
Last week I had the honor to represent GMIS International at the Sweden KommITS Conference celebrating KommITS 20th anniversary (http://www.kommits.se/). During the three day conference more than 300 KommITS members and over 30 vendor partners, and an international delegation from Sweden, USA, Canada, England, Holland and Belgium met in Malmo, Sweden, to gain new knowledge, discuss collaborative opportunities, forge new relationships, and spend time with colleagues and friends.
One of the highlights of our international delegation time together in Sweden was a pre-conference excursion to the Island of Hven and a visit to the underground observatory of Tycho Brahe.
Tycho Brahe (1546-1601)
[Source: http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/brahe.html]
Tyge (Latinized as Tycho) Brahe was born on 14 December 1546 in Skane, then in Denmark, now in Sweden. He was the eldest son of Otto Brahe and Beatte Bille, both from families in the high nobility of Denmark. He was brought up by his paternal uncle Jorgen Brahe and became his heir. He attended the universities of Copenhagen and Leipzig, and then traveled through the German region, studying further at the universities of Wittenberg, Rostock, and Basel. During this period his interest in alchemy and astronomy was aroused, and he bought several astronomical instruments. In a duel with another student, in Wittenberg in 1566, Tycho lost part of his nose. For the rest of his life he wore a metal insert over the missing part. He returned to Denmark in 1570.
In 1572 Tycho observed the new star in Cassiopeia and published a brief tract about it the following year. In 1574 he gave a course of lectures on astronomy at the University of Copenhagen. He was now convinced that the improvement of astronomy hinged on accurate observations. After another tour of Germany, where he visited astronomers, Tycho accepted an offer from the King Frederick II to fund an observatory. He was given the little island of Hven in the Sont near Copenhagen, and there he built his observatory, Uraniburg, which became the finest observatory in Europe.
Overall, it was a stellar conference and a beneficial opportunity to learn more about what we have in common and where we differ in public sector IT with our international colleagues! Some of our international colleagues are making plans to join us in Atlantic City at our conference August 14-18th. I am hoping you are planning to attend as well as it will be one of our best conferences ever! It will be a great opportunity to meet our international colleagues, gain new knowledge, cultivate new relationships, have fun , and enjoy time with old GMIS friends!
Brian D. Kelley | President, CGCIO
GMIS International
bkelley@portangeco.com
www.gmis.org
