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You probably heard the question “How can citizens benefit from the European Union” many times already, and might have wondered about that too. After all, we often hear that things get regulated like crazy and that the EU is too bureaucratic. The European Union has brought a lot of advantages to the citizens of its members and associated countries, such as:Investments into infrastructure, especially in less developed areas through structural funding Clean lakes and Rivers through the Water Framework Directive Better air quality through lead-free patrol and air quality reporting Less noise through the Noise Directive More consumer rights, e.g. in air travel and telecommunications Labour protection and workplace security Simplified travel and exchange of goods Strong wildlife protection (Habitats Directive, Natura 2000, many others)If you scratch the surface, the INSPIRE directive doesn’t seem to have much to do with the list above. If you look deeper, however, INSPIRE actually supports many of these activities directly. INSPIRE is thus more than making your network services interoperable. It ensures that information can be shared between agencies, citizens and businesses with maximum efficiency. By harnessing the full power of interoperable geodata, it is not only the GIS community that benefits. Interoperable geodata creates a ripple effect which makes life easier for inter-governmental decision-makers and organizations. As boundaries between data disappear, policy decisions take less time and have better outcomes. The INSPIRE Directive encompasses 34 different data themes, all of which help the population in certain capacities. Here are a couple of highlights. Read More