Hi, I’m Aaron. I grew up in Florida and recently relocated to Ithaca, New York. Currently, I work with the NYS ITS Geospatial Services team. Prior, I worked eight years with Florida Department of Environmental Protection, where I helped to provide enterprise GIS support to its many program areas. I try to push myself creatively on every project I do. Sometimes that’s experimenting with new styles or layouts, other times its learning a new tool or skill. That goes for both my professional and personal mapping projects, the latter of which can be found on this website.
I’ve been working professionally in Geographic Information Systems since 2016 and playing with maps since middle school—starting with smudgy, penciled expansions of Middle Earth. When not making maps, you can find me pursuing other creative outlets like woodworking, printmaking, photography, or stained glass. Kayaks are my transportation of choice, and I have a dog named Wedge, who is the best co-pup in the galaxy.
Work
- NYS ITS Geospatial Services (2024–)
- FL DEP Enterprise GIS and FL Geographic Information Office (2016–2024)
- GTM National Estuarine Research Reserve (2016)
- Unmappy things, like sweeping tennis courts and installing fire alarms (–2016)
Education
- B.S. Environmental Science / English Minor—Florida State University (2013)
- Graduate Certificate in GIS—University of West Florida (2015)
Groups
- Atlas of Design Editorial Team, Volumes 6 & 7 (2021—2025)
- GISP Certification #160970 (2021—)
- North American Cartographic Information Society (2019—)
Skillset
- Cartography and data visualization
- GIS analysis and data management
- Python (spatial data processing and workflow automation, sometimes crunching fantasy football stats)
- Assorted software
- ArcGIS suite (Pro / Online / Field apps / Portal, etc.)
- Adobe suite (Illustrator / InDesign / Photoshop / Lightroom)
- A bit of QGIS, Blender, Meshroom
- Procreate
- An eye (or two) for detail
- Measuring twice and cutting once
- Setting off fire alarms, constructively
Presentations / Features
- 2019 Esri SEUC — Take Action Today: Hurricane Response & ArcGIS Online
- 2021 ArcUser — Digitally Transforming Field Data Capture to Save Sea Turtles
- 2022 NACIS Conference — Design as Defined by Atlas of Design Contributors
- 2023 Esri SEUC & SHRUGinar — Animating Harmful Algal Blooms Using Multidimensional Rasters
- 2025 Maps.com — Back to the Map: Map Turtles Mapped
- 2025 ArcGIS Blog — Where curiosity leads: Crafting stories with Aaron Koelker
Awards
- A Map of the Boston Marathon
- 2024 CaGIS Map Design Competition – “Other” category winner
- FL DEP Emergency Response Hub
- 2022 Florida TaxWatch Productivity Award
- Map Turtles Mapped!
- 2022 Esri User Conference – Most Innovative Map
- St Vincent Island
- 2021 Esri User Conference – 3rd place Reference Map
- Grave Smoky Mountains National Park
- 2021 Esri Map Book Volume 36
- 2020 Atlas of Design Volume 5
- 2020 Esri User Conference – Best Cartography
- 2020 Esri User Conference – Cartography Special Interest Group Excellence
- 2020 Esri User Conference – 2nd place Reference Map
- Algal Bloom Sampling Status Dashboard
- 2019 OneDEP Award
