From 24–29 May 2026, the 28th FIG World Congress convenes in Cape Town, bringing together the global surveying, geospatial and land administration community under the theme “The Future We Want – The SDGs and Beyond.”

As the leading international gathering for geomatics professionals, the Congress provides a platform for policymakers, scientists and practitioners to explore how geospatial intelligence and land governance can drive sustainable development, resilience and innovation in the years ahead.

ISO/TC 211 and FIG: a long-standing standards partnership
A key feature of the Congress is the strong presence of international standards bodies, notably ISO/TC 211 Geographic information, whose work underpins global geospatial interoperability.

ISO/TC 211 maintains a liaison relationship with FIG, reflecting an active and formal collaboration in the development and application of standards relevant to the surveying profession.
 
This relationship is further reinforced through the FIG Standards Network, where dedicated representatives ensure alignment between surveying practice and international geospatial standards development.

Through its portfolio of over a hundred standards covering data models, services, metadata, and spatial-temporal schemas, ISO/TC 211 provides the framework for consistent management, integration and sharing of geographic information worldwide.

This work is critical to FIG’s mission: enabling professional practice that is fit for emerging global challenges, including climate resilience, land management, digital transformation and sustainable urban development.

Standards enabling global sustainability goals
At FIG 2026, the role of standards in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a major theme. ISO/TC 211’s standards directly support a wide range of SDGs by enabling:
•    Interoperable geospatial data infrastructures
•    Reliable land administration and cadastral systems
•    Integration of environmental, infrastructure and socio-economic data
•    Scalable solutions for monitoring climate and disaster impacts

Highlight session: Geospatial innovation for climate and resilience

A focal point of the Congress programme is the session:
“Geospatial Innovations towards managing Disasters, Land Degradation and Climate Change”

Wednesday 27 May, 14:00
A key highlight will be a joint presentation by ISO/TC 211 and OGC on:

“The contribution of Geospatial International Standards in support of the SDGs, Climate and the broader societal Environment.”
The presentation underscores how coordinated international standards ecosystems are increasingly essential to:
•    Climate monitoring and resilience planning
•    Disaster risk reduction and response
•    Environmental protection and land-use management
•    Integration of emerging technologies such as AI, digital twins and geospatial data cubes

The joint ISO–OGC work demonstrates how standards are evolving alongside innovation—ensuring that new capabilities such as APIs, AI-enabled data processing and digital twin infrastructures can be trusted, interoperable and globally scalable.

Looking ahead
As the geospatial community gathers in Cape Town, the message is clear:

Standards are no longer a background enabler—they are central to addressing the world’s most complex societal and environmental challenges.

Through its partnership with FIG and OGC, ISO/TC 211 continues to play a pivotal role in ensuring that geospatial information is trusted, interoperable, and ready to support decision-making at global scale.