Speakers

Prof. Shunji Mura

Japan Association of Surveyors

Shunji Murai was born in Tokyo, Japan on the 19th September, 1939. He graduated Civil Engineering Department, University of Tokyo in 1963.

He became Associated Professor at Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo in 1971 after he was awarded Doctor of Engineering in 1970. He was upgraded to Professor in 1983. He was specialized photogrammetry and remote sensing. He initiated the First Asian Conference on Remote Sensing (ACRS) in 1980 in Bangkok, Thailand. In 1981 at the second ACRS held in Beijing, China he was elected as General Secretary of Asian Association on Remote Sensing (AARS) newly established in the year. He continued the General Secretary until the 30th ACRS held in Beijing China in 2009.

In 1984 Shunji Murai succeeded to be elected as Congress Director for the forthcoming ISPRS Congress to be held in 1988. Accordingly he joined the Council of ISPRS. He organized Kyoto ISPRS Congress successfully in 1988 when he was elected as Secretary General at the General Assembly for the period of 1988-1992. He was elected as President of ISPRS for the period of 1992-1996. He worked at Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) located in Bangkok, Thailand for five years in total for 1992-1995 and 1997-1999. In the end of March 2000, he was retired from University of Tokyo. He was elected as President, Japan Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (JSPRS) in May 2000. In May 2007 he was elected as President, Japan Association of Surveyors as well.

Shunji Murai was awarded several awards such as Honorary Fellow, ITC, the Netherlands in 1993, Honorary Professor , Wuhan University, China, Boon Indrambarya Gold Medal, Thailand in 1995, Most Exalted Order, 2nd Class of the White Elephant in 1997, Honorary Doctor, ETH Switzerland in 1998, Emeritus Professor, University of Tokyo and Honorary Member, ISPRS in 2000 and Honorary Member, AARS in 2009.

Prof. em. Dr. Armin Gruen

Institute of Conservation and Building Research Zurich,
ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Prof. Dr. Armin Gruen was since 1984 Professor and Head of the Chair of Photogrammetry at the Institute of Geodesy and Photogrammetry, Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland. Since 1 August 2009 he is retired and is no with the Institute of Conservation and Building Research, Department of Architecture, ETH Zurich.

He graduated 1968 as Dipl.-Ing. in Geodetic Science and obtained his doctorate degree 1974 in Photogrammetry, both from the Technical University Munich, Germany. Prof. Gruen has lectured at University level since 1969, with photogrammetry and remote sensing as major subjects, and surveying, cartography and adjustment calculus as minor subjects. He served as the Head of the Department of Geodetic Sciences 1996-97 and as the Dean of Faculty "Rural Engineering and Surveying" of ETH Zurich (1996-98). He is promoter and was Director of the Continuing Education Course "Spatial Information Systems" at ETH Zurich. Through the Commission for Remote Sensing he was Member of the Swiss National Academy of Natural Sciences. He is Member of the Editorial Boards of several scientific journals. He has published more than 400 articles and papers and is Editor and Coeditor of over 21 books and Conference Proceedings.

He is co-founder of the ETH spin-off companies CyberCity AG, Zurich and 4DiXplorer AG, Zurich, Switzerland. He served as the President of ISPRS Commission V (ISPRS...International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing), as ISPRS Council Member (Second Vice President) and Council Member of IUSM (International Union of Surveys and Mapping) and as Chairman of the ISPRS Financial Commission. He is currently Chairman of the ISPRS International Scientific Advisory Committee (ISAC) and the ISPRS Ad-hoc Committee on ¡°Knowledge Transfer¡±, International Member of the Fourth Academic Committee of the State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, China, Member of the First Academic Committee of the Key Laboratory of Mapping from Space of the Chinese Academy of Surveying and Mapping (CASM), Beijing, China and Member of the Executive Board of the Digital Earth Society, Member of the International Expert Committee for Strategic Development of CEODE (Center for Earth Observation and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences), Beijing.