Hi, I’m Aaron. I grew up in Florida and now live in Ithaca, New York, working with the NYS Geospatial Services team. Before that, I spent eight years mapping with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. I try to push myself creatively on every project I do, whether that’s experimenting with the way something looks or going out of the way to learn a new tool or skill. That goes for both my professional and personal projects, the latter of which can be found on this website.
I’ve been working professionally in Geographic Information Systems since 2016 and dabbling with maps since middle school—starting with smudgy, penciled expansions of Middle Earth. When not making maps, you can usually find me making something else: woodworking, printmaking, photography, stained glass—whatever has my curiosity at the moment. 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 (data ETL and administration, or crunching fantasy football stats)
- Assorted software
- ArcGIS suite (Pro / Online / Field apps / Enterprise, 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
Talks / Features
- 2019 Esri SEUC — Take Action Today: Hurricane Response & ArcGIS Online
- 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
Recognition
- 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
