CGI is proud to support this year’s TechNExt Festival, taking place across the North East from 15–19 June 2026.

TechNExt celebrates the region’s thriving technology sector, bringing together thousands of attendees over five days to showcase the people, businesses and innovations shaping the future of tech in the North East.

As part of the festival, CGI is sponsoring the Tech for Good Hub, taking place at The Village, North Tyneside, on Tuesday 16 June 2026. The Hub will bring together technologists, VCSE organisations and public sector representatives to explore how technology can create positive social and environmental impact, from digital inclusion and accessibility to sustainability and community innovation.

CGI session: Geospatial data and innovation in context for a sustainable future

Our session will highlight how CGI’s geospatial team is helping organisations transform location data into strategic insight that supports sustainability goals and delivers meaningful outcomes.

The session will explore how location intelligence can support organisations to:

  • Mitigate climate change
  • Understand and protect habitats
  • Deliver biodiversity net gain
  • Build more sustainable communities
  • Support green energy projects
  • De-risk supply chains

The session will also showcase CGI’s collaboration with Project Seagrass. Together, we have developed an open-source algorithm that helps locate, quantify and track seagrass meadows across the UK.

Using the CGI GeoData360 Earth Observation Platform and data from the European Space Agency’s Copernicus satellite mission, the solution delivers insights that support conservation and restoration activities. Project Seagrass uses these insights to help protect and restore seagrass habitats, which play an important role in carbon capture and coastal ecosystems.

The algorithm has been made open source to maximise its value to academic institutions, conservation groups and government organisations working to improve the health and scale of the UK’s coastal seagrass environments.

Session format

The workshop will include a speaker-led presentation on CGI’s geospatial innovation and Project Seagrass insights, followed by a panel discussion, which will also explore real examples of how CGI is helping to improve digital inclusion and education.

Speakers

Pascal Coulon
Vice-President Consulting Expert – Geospatial, CGI

Pascal Coulon is a Vice-President Consulting Expert focused on the geospatial industry. He has more than 20 years’ experience in international consultancies and a background in IT applied to geosciences. Pascal has designed, implemented and integrated enterprise solutions for public and private sector clients, and is passionate about the role of location data and services in solving complex challenges.

Marc Russell
Vice President Consulting Services, CGI

Marc Russell works with clients across the North East to deliver digital transformation and technology-enabled outcomes. Marc will join the session to share CGI perspectives on how technology, data and inclusive innovation can support better outcomes for communities, organisations and the environment.

Join us at TechNExt Festival

Join CGI at the Tech for Good Hub to explore how technology can help create a more sustainable, inclusive and resilient future. We look forward to sharing how collaboration, innovation and responsible technology can help communities and organisations deliver lasting environmental and social impact.

Register to attend