VZCZCXRO0777
RR RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD
DE RUEHHE #0185 1201350
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 291350Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY HELSINKI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4265
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE

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