Recap from Frankfurt Book Fair
IMIA continued its annual tradition of hosting a Member Collective Booth for planned meetings and informal discussions throughout the multi-day Frankfurt Book Fair, including socials with IMIA members and guests.
Thank you to the IMIA Member companies that participated in this year’s collective stand:
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Thank you to Interkart GmbH, Räthgloben 1917 Verlag and Tecnodidattica Spa for sponsoring our Wine Reception on the first evening of the Book Fair.
Beginning November 1: Nominate Products for the Industry Choice Award
IMIA is searching for the best map product that members have produced to showcase at the 2026 Mapping Leaders Forum in Toronto.
The IMIA Industry Choice Award celebrates an outstanding product in the field of cartography and geospatial representation. It aims to recognize innovative, impactful, and high-quality map products that demonstrate excellence in design, technique, communication, and relevance.
Learn what you need to prepare for your submission at this link >
Welcome New Members
Running close to 600 pages and listing around 50,000 trains, the Thomas Cook European Rail Timetable was long considered the InterRailer’s bible until it was discontinued in August 2013. However, thanks to the persistence of John Potter, one of its original compilers, the timetable was re-launched as an independent guide after Thomas Cook handed over the rights to the publication. Aside from the duration of World War 2, the timetable has been in continuous publication since 1873 and we are proud to continue its heritage. In 2024 the business was sold to a new owner, a long standing subscriber, who is working behind the scenes to update business systems and our product range so that the Timetable can reach its 200th birthday in good shape.
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Founded in 2010 by two brothers—a talented, globe-trotting artist and an entrepreneurial geographer and outdoor enthusiast—Xplorer Maps was born from a shared mission: to create uniquely hand-drawn, antique-styled story maps of national parks and iconic travel destinations that foster lasting connections between people and places.
With an ever-expanding collection of map products, Xplorer Maps continues to inspire connection, curiosity, and appreciation for the world’s most remarkable places—one hand-drawn map at a time.
Member News
MAIRDUMONT/Kompass and freytag & berndt join forces to build the world’s largest cartography publisher
MAIRDUMONT GmbH & Co. KG, Europe’s leading provider of travel media, has taken over the cartography division of the long-established Viennese company freytag & berndt through its subsidiary Kompass Karten GmbH. With this step, the world’s largest cartography publisher with analogue and digital products is created under the name Kompass Freytag & Berndt.
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Membership Upgrade: Patrick Kaltenbacher
Patrick Kaltenbacher joined the IMIA as the first student member in the summer of 2024 and recently graduated from the University of Colorado – Denver with a master’s degree in Applied Geography and Geospatial Science. Shortly after graduating, he joined the Colorado Department of Public Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management as their new Geospatial Analyst.
In this exciting and fast-paced new role, Patrick is responsible for mapping various disasters, managing sensitive geospatial data, developing live data dashboards, creating custom geospatial tools, and more. He is expanding his knowledge of geospatial systems and building on the skills he developed in his master’s degree on a daily basis.
Patrick is excited to be part of the IMIA, now as an individual member, and become more involved and connected within this strong mapping community.
See more of Patrick’s geospatial work on his portfolio site >
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Winners announced for the Stanfords Award for Printed Mapping
Stanfords is honored to work with IMIA affiliate, the British Cartographic Society, to offer the Stanfords Award for Printed Mapping. This annual award is open to any mapping in the printed form, and aims to celebrate cartographic excellence from around the world.
This year’s award winners were announced at the British Cartographic Society’s annual conference on 4th September 2025 by Stanfords CEO Vivien Godfrey.
Congratulations to Atlas of Finance: Mapping the Global Story of Money by Dariusz Wojcik.
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Stanfords Map of the Month
Freytag & Berndt (IMIA Member)
Double-Sided Political and Physical Map 1:20,000,000
The freytag & berndt World Map at a scale of 1:20.000.000 shows the political map on the front and the physical map on the back.
James Cheshire
After Professor James Cheshire stumbled upon a long-forgotten map library, he was stunned to uncover some of the most significant maps and atlases from the last two centuries – many of which had not been seen for decades.
IMIA Events
December 11, 2025 | Virtual
IMIA Members-only event to celebrate this year’s successes, vote on the new board slate, and learn more about what we’re looking forward to in 2026.
March 9, 2026 | London, UK
Presentations during the afternoon at the Ordnance Survey Geovation Hub, followed by an evening reception at Stanfords on the eve of the London Book Fair.
Registration will be opening soon.
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May 12: Amazing Race Around Toronto
May 13-14: Forum Day 1-2: Presentations, Panel discussions, Speed Networking, and more!
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Event sponsorships are now available. Registration for individual tickets will open soon.
Upcoming Industry Events
Membership Information
Join our Board!
IMIA has expanded its board of directors by a few seats across all three regions: North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. The term is for two years, January 2026 through December 2027. You may nominate yourself or a close colleague. This request involves a very quick turnaround; nominations are due by November 5 and should be sent to [email protected].
The criteria for board members are simply to be an IMIA member in good standing (individual or company representative) with interest in contributing your skills and time to the advancement of the organization. The primary responsibility is to attend the monthly board meetings on the last Tuesday of each month at 11 AM Eastern Time (US). During these meetings, we discuss and vote on IMIA business, including membership initiatives, event plans, marketing content, award programs, finance & governance, and more. Please let us know if you have questions or a nominee to put forward.
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IMIA Members — is your directory listing up to date?
A benefit of IMIA membership includes promoting your company in our digital Member Directory. This provides other members and industry colleagues with real-time information to create new partnerships to grow your business.
Visit the IMIA Member Directory page and search your company name to verify that your information is up-to-date. If you would like to make changes to your listing, please contact Alina Canca at [email protected]. Thank you!
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Call for Committee Participation
Do you want to get more involved with the IMIA? This is your chance to join one of our active committees: Events, Marketing or Membership & Sponsorship. Help us plan the 2026 calendar, assist with marketing efforts to showcase IMIA or strategize on membership growth to keep IMIA thriving.
If you are interested, please contact Donna De Marco at [email protected].
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IMIA Annual Sponsors
