Distinguished guests attending the conference included:
·  Ms. Nguyễn Thị Mỹ Hằng – Member of the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, Head of the City Party Committee’s Internal Affairs Commission;
·  Mr. Huỳnh Phạm Tuấn Anh – Deputy Director of the Department of Planning and Architecture of Ho Chi Minh City;
·  Mr. Phạm Văn Bông – Former Provincial Party Member of Binh Duong Province, former Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Binh Duong Province;
·  Prof. Yuei-An Liou – Center for Space and Remote Sensing Research, National Central University, Taiwan;
·  Prof. Dr. Nguyễn Kim Lợi – Director of the Center for Climate Change Research, Nong Lam University Ho Chi Minh City.
The event also brought together nearly 100 scientists and managers nationwide and abroad. Representing Thu Dau Mot University were Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lê Tuấn Anh – Chair of the University Council; Dr. Đoàn Ngọc Xuân – Rector; alongside leaders, lecturers, and staff from various departments and units.
GIS Forum 2025: Promoting Research and Technology for Smart Urban Development
First held in 2009, the National GIS Application Conference has been organized annually for 16 consecutive years, becoming a prestigious academic forum that attracts numerous researchers and experts in Geographic Information Systems. Beyond the national scale, the conference has expanded international cooperation with partners from Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and others—creating a dynamic academic environment where scientists share research findings and practical experiences in applying GIS, GPS, and Remote Sensing for resource management, disaster monitoring, and urban development planning. As the host institution in 2025, Thu Dau Mot University made thorough preparations to ensure a successful event in both scale and academic quality. The Organizing Committee received more than 100 submissions focusing on GIS applications in smart urban planning and management in connection with green technologies and sustainable development. Among these, 40 papers were selected for publication in the Conference Proceedings (with ISBN) by Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City Press, and 06 papers were published in the Thu Dau Mot University Journal of Science. Notably, the conference continued its English-language publication series under IOP Publishing, indexed in Scopus, contributing to the international dissemination of Vietnam’s scientific research.
In the opening remarks, Dr. Đoàn Ngọc Xuân, Rector of Thu Dau Mot University, highlighted the importance and significance of the conference in advancing GIS applications for smart urban planning and management. He emphasized that in the digital era, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and geospatial technologies have become essential foundations for promoting sustainable socio-economic development. He noted that Vietnam’s National Data Strategy to 2030 identifies data as a “new resource,” encouraging the integration and sharing of geospatial data based on GIS technologies to support planning, resource management, and environmental governance. Therefore, GIS plays an increasingly crucial and decisive role in promoting sustainable development.“Following the themes of previous GIS forums, the research findings, models, and recommendations shared at this conference not only hold academic value but also offer high practical relevance. They provide essential references for local authorities and management agencies in policy formulation, designing solutions for climate change adaptation, effective resource management, and promoting digital transformation in the fields of planning, architecture, and environment,” Dr. Xuân asserted.
Affirming the practical significance of the conference, Mr. Huỳnh Phạm Tuấn Anh, Deputy Director of the Department of Planning and Architecture of Ho Chi Minh City, emphasized that in modern urban structures, integrating planning with digital and geospatial data (GIS) has become a core tool for coordinating spatial development, controlling architecture and landscapes, and shaping the future of smart, green, and sustainable cities. He shared that Ho Chi Minh City is currently pursuing a multi-center urban development model with specialized functional zones operating flexibly and efficiently connected. In this context, geospatial data and GIS technology play a vital role in simulating and visualizing the overall urban structure, supporting planning decisions, and ensuring transparency in land management, architecture, and construction order.mAlongside AI, IoT, and Big Data, GIS is driving significant transformation in the planning and architecture sector—shifting from static planning approaches to dynamic, data-driven planning. This model enables the monitoring of urban changes, forecasting development trends, and supporting infrastructure, transport, energy, and environmental management. “The research outcomes and initiatives from the GIS scientific community—including the active contributions of Thu Dau Mot University and international partners from Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan—provide valuable data and knowledge for current urban planning efforts. The models and solutions shared at today’s conference will be key references for completing the Ho Chi Minh City Regional Planning – Architecture Strategy for 2026–2035, with a vision toward 2050,” Mr. Tuấn Anh emphasized.
GIS, GPS & Remote Sensing: Technological Solutions for Smart Cities and Sustainable Resource Management
From the overarching theme, the conference was organized into three working sessions with 40 presentations delivered across five specialized subcommittees and a Poster Session. At the plenary session, delegates listened to four keynote presentations showcasing emerging research directions and innovative applications in GIS, artificial intelligence, and sustainable urban development. Specifically:
·  Prof. Dr. Nguyễn Kim Lợi – Director of the Center for Climate Change Research, Nong Lam University Ho Chi Minh City, presented “Integrating AI–GIS in Developing Disaster Prevention Solutions under Climate Change Impacts.”
·  Prof. Yuei-An Liou – National Central University, Taiwan, delivered the talk “Advancing Climate Risk and Resilience with Geospatial Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI).”
·  Prof. Dr. Võ Quang Minh – Can Tho University, presented “GIS and Remote Sensing in Green Economy and Smart Urban Management.”
·  Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyễn Anh Thi – Thu Dau Mot University, reported on “An Overview of Vietnam’s Low-Altitude Economic Ecosystem and Policy Recommendations for Development.”
At Subcommittee 1, themed “GIS, GPS & Remote Sensing, Cloud Computing, Big Data, AI, IoT – Applications in Land Management and Urban Planning,” presenters and participants focused on new research directions in GIS and digital technology for urban management.
Key topics discussed included:
·  Modeling and analyzing vegetation cover changes using GIS and multi-temporal remote sensing imagery in Võ Nhai District, Vietnam (2000–2025), with projections to 2050;
·  Detecting and forecasting land use and land cover changes using the Markov–CA model in the Kon and Ky Lo river basins, South Central Coastal Region;
·  Integrating GIS and remote sensing to analyze the spatiotemporal dynamics of urban livability potential in Thai Nguyen (1994–2024);
·  Developing GIS-based 3D models to simulate flood dynamics, with a case study in Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City.
At Subcommittee 2, themed “GIS, GPS & Remote Sensing, Cloud Computing, Big Data, AI, IoT – Applications in Smart Agriculture,” delegates and scientists discussed the use of artificial intelligence, big data, and remote sensing in promoting sustainable agricultural development. Notable presentations included:
·  Accurate diagnosis of tomato leaf diseases using deep learning and high-resolution image analysis;
·  Mapping rice cultivation models using MODIS data and phenology extraction techniques;
·  Assessing the adaptive potential of flood-based agricultural models under flood-control conditions in the Mekong Delta;
·  Monitoring seasonal forest dynamics in Yok Don National Park using NDVI time series and Principal Component Analysis (PCA);
·  Integrating GIS with group AHP and TOPSIS methods to evaluate the sustainability of dragon-fruit growing areas in Binh Thuan Province;
Subcommittees 3, 4, and 5, focusing on “Applications of GIS, GPS & Remote Sensing, Cloud Computing, Big Data, AI, IoT in Natural Resource and Environmental Management,” highlighted numerous research works with strong practical value. The reports covered topics such as:
·  Using multi-temporal SAR data from Sentinel-1 to rapidly assess typhoon-induced damage in coastal aquaculture areas (case study in Hai Phong);
·  Applying GIS combined with machine learning to predict landslides in the northern mountainous region of Vietnam;
·  Monitoring and analyzing harmful algal bloom dynamics in the South Central Coast using remote sensing data;
·  Modeling the Long Thuong domestic water treatment plant using machine learning methods;
·  Predicting potential distribution and identifying conservation hotspots for Cinnamomum balansae under climate change scenarios in Ta Dung National Park;
·  Mapping landslide susceptibility using both qualitative and quantitative approaches in Ba Be (Bac Kan);
·  Classifying wetlands in tropical monsoon coastal areas of Central Vietnam using multispectral imagery and the Random Forest algorithm;
·  Assessing shoreline changes of the Cu De River (2005–2025) using remote sensing and cross-section statistical analysis;
·  Evaluating the spatial distribution of Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) in Can Tho City using GIS and remote sensing;
·  Analyzing and designing a monitoring system to track water resource dynamics in the Ma and Ca river basins;
During the discussion sessions, scientists and delegates reached a consensus that, in the context of rapid urbanization, increasingly complex climate change, and rising demands for smart governance, the integration of digital technologies—GIS, AI, IoT, and Big Data—has become an inevitable trend in natural resource and environmental management, urban planning, and smart agriculture development. These technologies not only serve as decision-support tools but also form the foundation for shifting management models from reactive to proactive, and from manual statistics to data-driven analysis and forecasting. Participants emphasized that building and utilizing a unified geospatial data ecosystem will enhance monitoring, forecasting, and coordinated development toward sustainability. At the same time, it opens opportunities for deeper collaboration among policymakers, scientists, and enterprises in harnessing the value of data. The pioneering role of higher education institutions—including Thu Dau Mot University—was reaffirmed through their contributions in research, technology transfer, and the training of digital human resources to meet the demands of smart urban management and development.
 

The conference welcomed nearly 100 scientists and managers from domestic and international universities and research institutes.

Dr. Đoàn Ngọc Xuân, Rector of Thu Dau Mot University, delivered the opening remarks.

Mr. Huỳnh Phạm Tuấn Anh, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Planning and Architecture, emphasized the significance of the conference in his address.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lê Tuấn Anh, Chairman of the University Council, and Dr. Đoàn Ngọc Xuân presented flowers and letters of appreciation to the plenary speakers.

At the conference, the Organizing Committee handed over the rotating flag to representatives of the University of Education, University of Danang.

Prof. Dr. Nguyễn Kim Lợi, Director of the Center for Climate Change Research, Nong Lam University Ho Chi Minh City, delivered a presentation on “Integrating AI–GIS in Developing Disaster Prevention Solutions under Climate Change Impacts.”

Prof. Yuei-An Liou, National Central University, Taiwan, shared his research titled “Advancing Climate Risk and Resilience with Geospatial Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI).”

The research findings, models, and recommendations shared at the conference not only carry academic significance but also offer high practical value. They provide an important foundation for local authorities and management agencies to reference in policymaking, designing climate-change adaptation solutions, managing resources effectively, and accelerating digital transformation in the fields of planning, architecture, and environmental management.