Nonoko Tsukada: The DNA of Maps

October 13, 2022

Since our establishment in 1962, we have consistently contributed to society through our work in maps and geospatial information, and we take pride in our sense of mission to support social infrastructure from behind the scenes.

My father, the founder, was a topographical representation engineer who worked on creating topographical maps at the Land Survey Department of the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office before the war, and became independent about a decade after the war. From a young age, I grew up surrounded by topographical maps, multi-meter railway maps, and land-use maps. While it was an unparalleled environment for a map lover, to be honest, it was "pearls before swine" for me. I had two turning points: first, when I experienced a part of map digitization during a part-time job at an aerial surveying company in college, and second, when I learned about the concepts of IT management and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) while studying for my MBA in the United States. Under the NII (National Information Infrastructure) initiative, the implementation of spatial information infrastructure began, and I was greatly inspired by the scale and advanced nature of the U.S., as well as the importance and potential of maps.

After returning to Japan in 1994, I worked as a researcher at Tokyo Map Research Co., Ltd., while also spending several years as a visiting researcher at the Kubo Laboratory in Keio's Faculty of Environment and Information Studies. It was a very valuable experience to work with such enthusiastic people on the vast and advanced SFC campus, including Mr. Itsuki (now President of the GIS Association of Japan) and Mr. Furuya (then a graduate student, now a professor at the Faculty of Policy Management).

One thing that made me happy as a Keio University alumni was assisting with the "Keio University Hiyoshi Campus Map" published in March 2015. At the invitation of Professor Hiroshi Ota of the Keio Futsubu School (at the time), I worked on digitizing the campus map used as teaching material in the Hiyoshi liberal arts curriculum and created materials for the "Hiyoshi Studies" course. Through this, I rediscovered the rich topography and nature of the Hiyoshi Campus that I hadn't noticed during my student days. I also reaffirmed the power of maps to visualize the invisible.

In the 20-plus years since I became president, our business has diversified amidst waves of technological change to include WebGIS, support for various navigation systems, and GIS consulting. Furthermore, the younger generation in our company is creating new value through map outreach—such as developing our signature "Dekoboko Map Series" and providing maps for the TV show "Bura Tamori"—as well as obtaining patents for topographical representation, which is our company's root. I hope to continue evolving the map DNA inherited from our founding to meet the needs of the times and deliver value that goes beyond the existing framework of maps.