Our mission
CEN CAL GIS is a woman-owned LLC founded in 2020 by Emily Aiken with a mission to drive action through applying geospatial thinking and GIS technologies to solving a wide array of problems.
our STORY
In 2010, Emily dove into the Monterey Bay to research rockfish in their native habitats, but as a noisy diver, and with limited time under water, she could only sample a small glimpse of their lives. One challenge faced across many organizations, such as NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuaries (NMS), is not having the necessary time and funding to collect enough data to inform resource management decisions, like the implementation of marine protected areas. She used ArcMap (before the release of ArcGIS Pro) as a tool to extrapolate data beyond the limited sampled areas throughout the entire area of interest and produced a map that illustrated where rockfish were likely to occur. This map helped the NMS resource management staff visualize their valuable resources and highlighted optimal locations for the designation of a new Essential Fish Habitat.
Applying geospatial problem-solving to take action in protecting marine resources was a defining moment for Emily to continue using GIS technologies that would make positive impacts on her community and on the management of resources she loves and values.
Over the past 14 years, she developed her expertise in ESRI’s GIS mapping software, creating data-driven, aesthetic maps with ArcGIS Pro, building web-mapping applications with AppBuilder for ArcGIS, designing field maps for use in ArcCollector and Avenza, illustrating Story Maps for communicating complex concepts and managing ArcGIS Online Organizational accounts.
With her extensive background using GIS in the academic research, private and public safety sectors, she felt ready to build CEN CAL GIS as a platform for helping her community in tackling complex issues with customized geospatial solutions.