HIGH TECH PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN HELSINKI

UNCLAS HELSINKI 000185 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECPS TSPL KPAO FI SUBJECT: HIGH TECH PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN HELSINKI THROUGH GEOCACHING ¶1. (U) Working in a high tech country provides opportunities to explore innovative public diplomacy avenues for outreach to a tech savvy crowd. Working closely with the Public Affairs Section, the Economic Section recently created a "geocache" in downtown Helsinki to encourage people to visit the American Resource Center (ARC) located in the Finnish National Library. Geocaching is a popular treasure hunt hobby in which participants use GPS (Global Positioning System) receivers to hide and seek "geocache" containers around the world. This "techno-treasure hunt" includes over 500,000 "caches" worldwide and some 5,000 caches in Finland. Visitors to the Embassy Helsinki's geocache (The Statue of Liberty in Helsinki - GC1A3PW) receive an information packet about GPS technology and learn about the other unique services the American Resource Center offers. ¶2. (U) When creating the Embassy's geocache, our objectives were to: ¶A. Advertise the ARC and promote the services the ARC provides. The ARC is a unique section in the Finnish National Library; however, it is enough off the beaten path that patrons generally don't "bump into it" which in many ways made it an ideal geocache site and provided Embassy Helsinki with a unique way to increase traffic to it. ¶B. Reinforce the unparalleled investment the United States Government has made to provide realtime navigation worldwide for free. This is especially timely as the EU's Galileo system has recently been approved by the various EU institutions, in theory paving the way for an on time completion in 2013. However, many believe the EU will ultimately charge subscriptions for at least some of Galileo's services, effectively ensuring GPS remains the most popular navigation service in the future. ¶C. Connect with the large tech savvy population in Finland in a creative way. ¶D. Provide official information on how GPS functions to clear up misconceptions, such as rumors about GPS being "turned off" or reengaging the "selective availability" feature that distorted the accuracy of GPS signals for civilian users prior to May 1, 2000. Last fall the Department of Defense announced that future GPSIII satellites will not feature selective availability, effectively making this policy permanent in the future. Unfortunately, these rumors have provided fodder for proponents of Galileo, the EU's own future satellite navigation system. ¶3. (U) Initial feedback from visitors to our geocache has been positive; with many expressing appreciation for introducing them to the American Resource Center. One visitor expressed, "Thank you for introducing us to this place. It was my first visit to the library and left a very positive impression. Who knows, maybe I'll come back some day?" ¶4. (U) With so many GPS devices in Finland, including many on mobile phones, geocaching is an innovative way for Embassy Helsinki to reach out to the tech- savvy public. Additionally, since geocaching is free, this effort was a no-cost means for doing public diplomacy. You can visit the Embassy's geocache at: http://finland.usembassy.gov/geocache.html or http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details. aspx?pf=&guid=475e5415-465e-4490-ace1- d5acf1c184a2&decrypt=y&log=&numlogs= Background on GPS ¶5. (U) GPS is a U.S. space-based radio navigation system that provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to civilian users on a continuous worldwide basis free of charge. Following several years of negotiations, the U.S. and the EU signed an agreement in 2004 establishing interoperability between GPS and Galileo, the EU's own future navigation network. Set to be operational no earlier than 2013, Galileo has been delayed several times due to cost overruns and political positioning by EU member states. Hence, for the near future GPS navigation is the only game in town. HYATT