A former archaeologist, Kurt Menke is a Certified GIS Professional (GISP) based out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. He received a Master’s degree in Geography from the University of New Mexico in 2000. That same year he founded Bird’s Eye View to apply his expertise with GIS technology towards ecological conservation. Along with conservation, his other focus areas are public health and education.

He is an avid open source GIS proponent, recently authoring Mastering QGIS for Packt Publishing. In 2015 he became an OsGeo Charter Member. He is an experienced FOSS4G educator and is a co-author of the GeoAcademy. In 2015 he was awarded the Global Educator of the Year Team Award by GeoForAll as part of the GeoAcademy team. His latest book is Discover QGIS with Locate Press, an update of the GeoAcademy curriclum in a workbook format.