On November 19th, 1999 the Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space (EOS) hosted over 100 students and faculty at an open house for the first annual Worldwide GIS Day in the second floor atrium of Morse Hall. Worldwide GIS Day is sponsored by Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc., the National Geographic Society, and the Association of American Geographers and is meant to help propagate geographic knowledge and make people more aware of the fact that geography-based GIS technology is a part of their lives.

At EOS, and throughout the entire University, geographic databases and geography-based GIS technologies are being built, and used to propagate geographic knowledge through applications, academics, and research at the local, state, regional, national and global scales. In recognition of all efforts to this end, EOS displayed GIS products from the UNH GIS community as well as products from local planning commissions. In addition, demonstrations of GIS and related technologies were conducted, and tours were provided of the EOS GIS facilities.

Representatives from the NH GRANIT project, the Global Hydrologic Archive and Analysis System project, the ESIPs project, the China Land Use and Land Cover Change project, the GLOBE Project, the University of New Hampshire Geography Club, and the Rockingham Regional Planning Commission all participated in a successful day of geography and technology transfer with all attendees.