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Maps 2.0 – Geospatial Tools for Nonprofits and Humanitarian Relief
Challenges Entered:
Maps 2.0, a collaboration already under way, will launch the first online resource for nonprofit and humanitarian organizations to share best practices in geographic information systems (GIS) and digital mapping tools.
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Since the Asia tsunami disaster in 2004 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005, a growing number of nonprofit and humanitarian organizations have recognized the tremendous potential of Web-delivered maps and map-based analysis. Google Earth and other Web services have demonstrated the power of online mapping tools, often known as geographic information systems (GIS) or geospatial analysis.
The HumaniNet team and our nonprofit partners believe that this revolution in mapping tools will change the way we think about projects with social, environmental, and humanitarian purposes. Geospatial, map-based data management will improve program monitoring and evaluation, reporting, overall transparency with beneficiaries and donors, and the speed and effectiveness of humanitarian responses.
A growing number of nonprofit teams and initiatives have begun to use geospatial tools to create maps for disaster teams, study environmental and global warming trends, and analyze "layers" of data in community projects. While there are hundreds of examples and success stories, there is no single clearinghouse for sharing best practices, learning of new open source GIS tools, and connecting with others in the nonprofit community with common needs.
Maps 2.0 will establish the first nonprofit online resource for sharing best practices in GIS and digital maps. In partnership with Aspiration and Mercy Corps, HumaniNet has already formed an advisory team for creating a volunteer-based community of practice in GIS.
Using Aspiration's Social Source Commons and other Open Source collaborative tools, the Maps 2.0 team will review and post significant and promising GIS developments and facilitate networking with other GIS experts and users. HumaniNet's experience in leading collaborative communities and partnering with over 100 global organizations will be a key advantage.
The Maps 2.0 community will be a quantum boost to the nonprofit and humanitarian teams that are otherwise "on their own" to find, evaluate, and implement map-based tools in support of such projects as community action, affordable housing, preserving endangered species, water and agricultural development projects, and of course disaster response.
WHAT WE NEED:
The participating partners seek $10,000 of funding for project management, hosting, and expenses to launch the online GIS community resource over a six-month period. The cost of launch includes:
- Project management
- GIS technology team and research leadership
- Hosting, conferencing, and incidental expenses
A follow-on project, with larger scope, is also being planned that would expand the Maps 2.0 project to include a "help desk" function, leadership of GIS subcommunities, expanded content, and Webcasts and full case studies of success stories.
Location
Portland, OR
United States
See map: Google Maps
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Support for your project
It's a good initiative and I am sure it will make good for many people. GIS, GNSS and satelite imagery are technologies that will be sought after from every sector of the society.
let's support this!
Your project seems very interesting and useful. I hope you can get all the help that you need . A recently launched website aiming to help get funds/ budget for projects like this may help you get it done as soon as possible… Check out www.micro-capital.com.
Let's support this project!
Rio
Maps 2.0: A non-profit view of the GIS landscape
Connecting people with real-world experience, to help them figure out what works and what doesn't, has always been at the core of HumaniNet's activities. I like this approach because it's not about reinventing wheels, but rather telling stories about wheels: what works off-road, how hard it is to change a tire quickly in the field, what kind of pump will work best, and how much pressure to put in the tire based on the terrain and other needs of the situation.
Maps 2.0 would create a growing library of the kind of on-the-ground insight that is so critical for successfully implementing technology projects. In addition, developers will get attention for their projects and feedback to improve them, and supporters and funders will have an expanded perspective of the non-profit GIS landscape. Such a resource would benefit a broad and diverse set of organizations.
Maps 2.0, Please check our Imanote, our software tool
Yesterday we posted Imanote our software tool on Net (2) Case Studies. You should check it out because you kmight be able to use it in your project.
Best regards,
Lily
ImaNote
We'll look forward to checking it out, Lily - looks very interesting. Thank you!
maps 2.0
Looks like a great idea and long overdue. Looking forward to seeing how this works out.
Go Maps 2.0
Getting mapping right for the nonprofit sector is a must in the coming years. Maps 2.0 would be a great step forward in leveraging the existing good mapping work being done and would shine a light on the gaps especially the chasms that separate existing tools/resources from those working in the field of humanitarian assistance and international development. Looking forward to seeing this become a reality!
We love Maps 2.0!
Aspiration is really psyched to partner with Humaninet in moving the vision of Maps 2.0 forward.
Humaninet has a practical, field-tested and long-term vision for how mapping tools and better documentation about the same can help humanitarian efforts and in general benefit social change organizations.
And we can't wait to make more exciting announcements about fun things we're cooking up to make the world a mappier place!
Excellent Initiative
Access to maps, especially those that provide a summary and analysis of available data, is essential to timely and effective disaster response. I strongly support any initiative that will facilitate this, especially one that will capture the best from those actively engaged in this arena. Having benefitted from the excellent support services Humaninet currently provides and knowing the level of professionalism and attention paid to detail that is the norm for the Humaninet collaborative, I am excited at what the outcome of Maps 2.0 will be.
Robert Patton
Emergency Management Coordinator Asia region
Has great potential to meet a real need
Greg,
I'm glad to see this project being launched. It is quite timely, and has great potential to serve the rapidly-growing GIS needs of international humanitarian and relief & development programs.
The GIS world is changing so rapidly and, thankfully, more people with excellent GIS knowledge and experience are wanting to get directly involved to make a difference. I see Maps 2.0 being a strategic service to link valuable information and expertise with critical needs around the world.
Mike O'Rear, President
Global Mapping International (www.gmi.org)
Addressing key obstacle to wider and more effective use of GIS
Maps 2.0 can be as helpful for GIS tools as TechSoup is for broad-based IT tools. The domain of knowledge is more narrow and deeper, so the need for expert guidance and assistance may be felt more sharply.
While GIS has been incorporated with success into the environmental/conservation community, it is by and large a missed opportunity and a huge one in the humanitarian relief and development one. There are some notable demonstrations of success, and these are exceptions, not the rule. This project addresses a major obstacle to adoption as common and effective practice.
Geospatial Knowledge & Technology Transfer (win/win for NGOs)
Maps 2.0 will provide maximum benefit to any NGO or Humanitarian Relief Organization interested in bringing mapping tools to their organization.
Providing sound, unbiased, information on best practices and implementation advice on all types of geospatial technologies will enable NGOs to select the best tools for their specific organizational needs.
Desiring continued success for others, MAPS 2.0 envisions more than just handing over a "GIS black box" and walking away. Rather, this group seeks to educate, collaborate and partner with NGOs and Humanitarian Relief Organizations - transferring not only geospatial technology, but also providing relevant applied geospatial knowledge.
--Harold Feinberg
public-private partnerships
HumaniNet is one of the three most effective, inclusive and productive consortia working to improve emergency communications and tech operations in the field of disaster response and humanitarian relief. The Disaster Resource Network relies on HumaniNet as a source of information on current developments in the field, which in turn we use to help business/industry leaders in the communications and technology sectors improve the quality and value of their contributions to international disaster response.
KathleenConnolly, Associate Director
Disaster Resource Network, An Initiative of the World Economic Forum
MyMaps
Gregg,
I've asked this of a few mapping projects (just out of curiosity)- does Google's release of MyMaps change your goals/strategies, etc?
Just curious,
Phil, Cauzoo
The current strategy
The current strategy proposed by Maps 2.0 and Humaninet is still appropriate to the NGO, Non-Profit and Humanitarian Relief communities. Building up the geospatial awareness and GIS capabilities of these communities is as the heart of the effort.
Google's MyMaps is a great step forward for users of Google Maps & the increased ability to put the vector onto the Google Earth interface as well makes MyMaps even better for users.
However, where Google Maps GE (and most other mashup technologies as well) still fall short is in the area of analysis. Analysis is the heart of GIS & Remote Sensing whereas most mashups are concerned with map display.
MAPS 2.0 will encourage and most certainly leverage the use of mashup technology, but for now most of the tools for web based geospatial analysis are either commercial or open source tools, requiring at least some development.
In other words the map (in GE, Virtual Earth, World Wind) is often just the starting point for many other questions.
--Harold Feinberg
MyMaps
Great question, Phil,
The Maps 2.0 team will evaluate anything that is helpful to nonprofits and humanitarian groups, including MyMaps, from the user perspective. There are usually special considerations, for example testing how the tool works over a satellite or cellular connection (disaster relief), suitability of the maps for the project, training and usability factors, etc. If nonprofits use it with success, we will let the community know.
I'll ask some of our GIS experts to weigh in also.
Gregg, HumaniNet
Now there's a project that needs support!
As one who has been in disasters all over the world, I can tell you first-hand that this is a much needed tool.
Also, as one who will now be looking seriously into tapping into this resource, and as one who will be doing so in the midst of disasters and wars, I hope their potential obstacle concerns are not realized.
This is one deserving of support. I'm anxious to meet these people.
Randy Roberson - Disaster Logistics
H.E.L.P.
rroberson@disasterlogistics.org
www.disasterlogistics.org
Good to hear. This means the
Good to hear. This means the development cycle will be a lot quicker and that's something we can all look forward to.
Best wishes,<a href="http://freeworlddvd.com/">Freeworlddvd</a>.
Actual need for integration & support
I definitely agree that the use of GIS tools can greatly aid need and disaster relief efforts. However, this project appears to just be creating a catalog & review of existing tools rather than focusing on building use cases and support of these tools for these efforts. <a href="http://osgeo.org">OSGeo</a> is already a large organization that centrally incubates, supports, and integrates Open-Source GIS tools. How will Maps 2.0 address the need to distribute and make these tools available to users and support their integration into needed areas?
Maps 2.0 - a community of practice
Thanks, Andrew, for your question, for your agreement on the value of GIS tools, and for mentioning OSGeo. We are very encouraged by the good work of OSGeo in its first year. For other readers, OSGeo's mission is "to support and promote the collaborative development of open geospatial technologies and data." Its focus is on development of Open Source GIS tools and data sets, for public benefit. This mission dovetails perfectly with Maps 2.0, which is centered on a user community, or community of practice. Nonprofits and relief teams need qualified "native guides" to navigate through the forest of GIS tools and find the solutions that work for them. The Maps 2.0 community will illuminate success stories and best practices in *implementing* within the nonprofit and humanitarian universe. This is much more than selecting and integrating the software. Planning, understanding information needs, rollout, and field support are among the essential project elements. With Maps 2.0, the user experience and field results will be central. Our team, a collaboration of user organizations, will certainly utilize OSGeo as a valuable resource. Our scope also includes commercial GIS software, another difference. A good illustration can be found straight up on this page - the reply from Randy Roberson of H.E.L.P. As a field user who is busy tackling relief projects (over 300 disasters occur every year worldwide) Randy is typical of the humanitarian or nonprofit manager who has neither time nor resources to "get smart" on the array of GIS tools. We look forward to helping him and every nonprofit manager who needs assistance. The Maps 2.0 partners will deliver this assistance on the Web and by email to subscribers. We will communicate through numerous existing networks, such as Aspiration and NetSquared. Nonprofit users will be able to consult with our expanded team of GIS practitioners as they select and implement GIS.
Partnership with ReliefWeb?
Gregg - Great idea, and quite a large scope. Will your project attempt to partner with already existing mapmakers in the humanitarian realm like United Nations' ReliefWeb?
See: http://reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/doc114?OpenForm
Yes - collaboration is the right approach
Thanks for asking, JC - yes, we have been in touch with ReliefWeb for over two years and will definitely look to them and others with proven geospatial solutions. And not only for disaster relief - the community of practice should include HungerMaps and any GIS team that is willing to share their success stories.
Last year, we hosted Sebastian Naidoo, a ReliefWeb director, on a Webcast that was very well received. The GIS community should look at Webcasts as an excellent means of cross-fertilization.