IowaView staff have launched a study to understand the current use of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) software and technology in K-12 public school classrooms across the state as well as to gauge interest among non-users. The study has two surveys: one for superintendents and one for K-12 teachers. These surveys will provide a snapshot of GIS in K-12 education as well as identify barriers and opportunities for the use of GIS technology among non-users.
Today we will be joining Joseph Kerski, a Geographer and GIS education enthusiast, exploring Weird Earth: Exploring the Earth with Interesting, Bizarre, and Odd Imagery. Joseph provides a narrated video on Youtube (primarily targeted at educators) but you can also explore these fascinating places on your own using this ArcGIS Online map. Thank you, Joseph, for taking us to new places and uncover hidden gems on our planet!
OpenStreetMap is a publicly editable map of the world. It’s is often referred to as Wikipedia for maps. Anyone can sign up for an account and begin adding to the map. Edits to the map are reviewed and validated by other members of the community.
In 2010, OpenStreetMap was used as a humanitarian disaster relief tool after an earthquake in Haiti. Volunteers from across the world mapped buildings and roads from satellite imagery in areas that been damaged by the earthquake. Then teams on the ground were able to use that information to assess damage and begin recovery efforts.
Since that time the use of Humanitarian OpenStreetMap has spread around the globe helping in disaster response as well as disaster prevention and many other humanitarian efforts. We encourage you to take time during Geography Awareness Week to volunteer your time and talent to help with some of the following projects:
Suggested International Projects:
Public Lab Mongolia – https://tasks.hotosm.org/projects/9560/ Public Lab Mongolia (PLM), a local non-governmental organization in Mongolia, is leading the Mongolian chapter for volunteer mappers through the HOTmicrogrant COVID-19 project, as part of their mission to promote open data and disaster preparedness. This mapping will also help with COVID-19 response efforts. This project is to map Ulaanbaatar capital city of Mongolia, is organized by PLM in collaboration with the Mongolian Geo-spatial Association and local universities.
Hurricane Eta – Nicaragua – https://tasks.hotosm.org/projects/9765 Hurricane Eta brought wind, rain and storm surge to the coast of Nicaragua. This project is to finish the basemap of Bilwi (Puerto Cabezas) by digitizing buildings from MAXAR imagery. Available to beginners, there may be tricky tasks in this project as some areas have been partially mapped with older imagery and vegetation can often hide parts of structures. Maker sure to review the instructions for tips on how to overcome these challenges and provide high quality data.
Let’s kick off Geography Awareness Week with some trivia: https://treasurehunts.storymaps.esri.com/pioneers/. Test your knowledge of some of the pioneers of geography and GIS. Good luck! Learn something new!
Join us this week, November 15-21, 2020, as we celebrate Geography Awareness Week. Throughout we will be posting various activities and videos from our friends at OpenStreetMap, National Geographic, and Esri to help you get engage and get informed.
As a way to celebrate GIS Day and OpenStreetMap, we are encouraging everyone to go online either during this week or on GIS Day and contribute to the OpenStreetMap basemap. If you are interested and would like more information about how to get started, please email, Amy Logan.
ESRI has put together a fun Halloween themed Geography Treasure Hunt that uses their story map technology to test your halloween trivia and world geography knowledge. Good luck.
Another exciting Halloween opportunity for those in the Ames area is Reiman Gardens Spirits in the Gardens event. Participants will enjoy walking through a garden path of hundreds of beautifully carved pumpkins. It is a ticketed event, registration information here. IowaView staff member, Amy Logan, will be at the event on Sunday, November 1st from 5-7pm, discussing remote sensing and GIS and handing out goodie bags of Earthshot trading cards while supplies last.
VirginiaView, in partnership with Virginia Tech and other partners, recently published a new video tutorial series called “Working with Lidar Using ArcGIS Pro”. This resource is appropriate for 2-year and 4-year college faculty who would like to integrate additional online (and self-paced) educational resources with their courses.
Previous tutorial topics have also been popular with geospatial professionals who are seeking a cost effective and self-paced opportunity to sharpen their geospatial skills. The new tutorial series (and other topics listed below) might be appropriate for professionals working with local/regional/state/federal governments, as well as in the private sector.
