Creating and Analyzing Regional Cartograms

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03-03-2016 10:59 PM
JosephKerski
Esri Notable Contributor
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In my last post, I discussed how to easily create compelling Cartograms in ArcGIS.  I would now like to point out one of the best things about the tool:  You are not confined to creating cartograms of variables by countries of the world.  Think outside the box!  You can create cartograms for any set of polygons that you choose!  A set of provinces or states, neighborhoods in your community, or even watersheds are all good candidates.

Let's take population from 1900 to 2000 for a state, such as the great state of Kansas.  You and your students can certainly create standard choropleth maps showing the population each census year and even a animation to help visualize the changes.  But creating cartograms of the population in each county provides additional insight.  See the output from selected years, below.  The cartograms show the settlement of the high plains (western Kansas) from 1900 to 1930, followed by population loss that continues in some counties all the way to 2010.  Coupled with that is the rise of the urban centers of Wichita (south central Kansas) and Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City (northeast Kansas).  The combination of these trends, brought about by social, physical, and economic forces, squeeze some of the northern and western counties so much that they are almost invisible by 2010.  I've been to many of these counties, though, and rest assured that there are some vibrant communities and good people there!

Think about doing this for your own area--population change in your own state over time, water quality or river flow differences by watershed, or crime rates or median age by neighborhood in your own community.  If you do this, I think it is advantageous if the readers of your cartograms know what the areas that you are analyzing look like as a standard map for comparison purposes.  Thus, you might consider providing this standard map at the front of your set of cartograms, as I do below.  That way, your audience will more readily understand how the variables you are mapping distort the "standard" way of looking at that area.

The possibilities for increased spatial literacy and understanding with cartograms and ArcGIS are endless.
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State of Kansas - Counties and cities - Standard View

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Population in 1900 by county in Kansas. Many of the eastern and central Kansas counties had similar population totals.

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Population in 1930 by county in Kansas. The western third has now been settled, but the east continues to increase at a more rapid rate.

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Population in 1960 by county in Kansas. Many western counties have lost population or gained very little compared to the rise of the major urban centers of Wichita, Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City.

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Population in 2010 by county in Kansas. Urbanization continues, particularly Johnson County (suburban Kansas City) although selected rural counties are gaining population as well.

About the Author
I believe that spatial thinking can transform education and society through the application of Geographic Information Systems for instruction, research, administration, and policy. I hold 3 degrees in Geography, have served at NOAA, the US Census Bureau, and USGS as a cartographer and geographer, and teach a variety of F2F (Face to Face) (including T3G) and online courses. I have authored a variety of books and textbooks about the environment, STEM, GIS, and education. These include "Interpreting Our World", "Essentials of the Environment", "Tribal GIS", "The GIS Guide to Public Domain Data", "International Perspectives on Teaching and Learning with GIS In Secondary Education", "Spatial Mathematics" and others. I write for 2 blogs, 2 monthly podcasts, and a variety of journals, and have created over 5,000 videos on the Our Earth YouTube channel. Yet, as time passes, the more I realize my own limitations and that this is a lifelong learning endeavor and thus I actively seek mentors and collaborators.