Latest Contributions by WilliamTarpai

WOW. @EzraCheruiyot I have spent more than 3 hours going through MAPMAKER How To videos and can't wait to introduce teachers and students to the resources that are available to help promote learning.....    Imagine how many African student we might be able to introduce this incredible software to.   Let's count the schools and students in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa, Rwanda, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.....   Ready, set, go ... View more

@Gletham   Thanks for posting.  You have provide a great summary of the facts.  I spent lots of time focusing on how to integrate private sector engagements with government actions, especially it relates to 1) the ESRI - Microsoft collaborations; and 2) the ESRI - Nartional Geographic collaborations.   "GIS—Creating a More Intelligent World" was really well addressed and a great theme for UC2026 ... View more

@Jason_Sawle    Thanks for posting about Map Maker.  WONDERFUL work....   Any idea how to get 'software bundles' delivered to more schools where the SDG rankings (achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) are below 100 (out of 192 countries in the UN system)?    ... View more

Thanks for posting, and welcome to ESRI Community.  Keep up posting about Quetta and your GIS mapping.  I would like to request posting a map about water use on the polo grounds, or places to stop when crossing the border traveling by bus from Kandahar to Quetta. Back to your request....   Water management is a very important issue to many people attending 2026 ESRI UC - I hope you have a chance to watch some of the Plenary. videos https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/events/uc/agenda/plenary#videos.  It is quite important the point you are making about data, but there is lots downloadable from UN country team.  Check the 2026 Sustainable Development Solutions Network - SD report as well.  ESRI and its Atlas are packed with good links.        I would encourage you to contact a local ESRI office to inquire about water management research that may be ongoing.... Definitely encourage local schools to find out about MAP MAKER, and help school children to learn and hone GIS skill sets. ... View more

Thanks for posting.  Hope you have had an opportunity to follow some of the events at 2026 ESRI UC.....  https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/events/uc/agenda/plenary#videos.   Allow me to ask how many schools in and around Gwadar have MAP MAKER software, or use ESRI software and tools?   Scroll down towards the bottom of the Plenary session videos, but definitely watch as much of the 3 full plenary sessions as you are able. Saddened that war is so close to your region.  As I was reviewing your post, it reminded me of the years, I spent traveling in all 7 of the Central Asian STANS, including 3 train trips from Quetta to Zahedan on Pakistan railways.... ... View more

Plenary sessions broken down into bit parts - https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/events/uc/agenda/plenary#videos.     Imagining children in rural Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda learning to explore geography --  @EzraCheruiyot  ... View more

Welcome to ESRI Community - - It is a wonderful opportunity for people to collaborate for development, no matter whether you are just learning and honing your GIS skills, or whether you have been mapping for years.  I recall once flying from Dar es Salaam to Nairobi, and the pilot of the plane flew low over Mt Kilamanjaro.  Now I'm really interested in helping students from rural areas that border Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda build and hone GIS skill sets, despite the challenges needed to overcome challenges like lack of dependable electric supply, lack of computers able to run GIS software, and limited knowledge and support for students and their teachers.   Hope you are able to tune into the 2026 ESRI User Conference, starting with the plenary sessions.  Like almost anything, you will find rewards for your involvement with this platform will be dependent upon the time and efforts you put into it.  But lots of opportunties to succeed when you are able to grow your network. ... View more

@HannahAltendorf   If you didn't have a chance, allow me to urge you to spend time listening to #ScienceDay2026 at the UN https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k16/k16kkwn9td?utm_source=SDSN&utm_campaign=748c5149eb-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_10_31_04_36_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-01f09620b9-179322688&mc_cid=748c5149eb&mc_eid=ac585669f8 The biggest barriers to achieving sustainable development preventing science from implementing more SDG success stories IS man.   It's sad, but true.   The 2026 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) was a special event organized by the International Science Council (ISC), the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), and UN DESA.  Bringing together approximately 300 participants, including representatives of Member States, UN entities, the scientific community, civil society, and youth organizations, to discuss the role of science in accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.  Understanding 2026 ESRI UC is bringing together many times more than the HLPF, it is important to spread the word, and hopefully see comments from GIS pros who want to become more involved, especially providing entryways for students and their universities to get involved. ... View more

The Esri Educational Institution Agreement Overview is a must read document for those interested in helping to make our world a better place to live.   2026 ESRI UC is going on now in San Diego, and many educators are there trying to figure out the way forward.  Time for doing more to engage students, especially in higher education to find entryways working with the SDG challenge.    Amazingly  MAP MAKER SUSTAIN – designed by ESRI and National Geographic.( start 47.5 minutes into session 3. CEO Jill Tiefenthaler and ESRI's Jack Dangermond highlight the importance of getting students engaged  Plenary on demand - https://www.esri.com/en-us/home Lots of learning opportunities.      ... View more

Excellent post -  MAP MAKER – designed by collaboration between ESRI and National Geographic.  ( start 47.5 minutes into 2026 Plenary session 3. CEO Jill Tiefenthaler and ESRI Jack Dangermond.   Very good for involving young students learning about GIS and  measurements.  Lots of learning opportunities.  Plenary on demand - https://www.esri.com/en-us/home ... View more

Thank you ESRI for your consistently high quality demo and continuing support for CREATING A MORE INTELLIGENT WORLD.  Dashboards are used by many countries to exhibit their SDG rankings, but.still underused... @EzraCheruiyot Truly as my UN colleagues are saying lots of "...contributions will help shape the Post-2030 Youth Education and Learning Agenda and ensure youth voices are reflected in global discussions on the future of education".  ESRI User Conference 2026 is certainly bringing together some incredible talent.    As I have continued to attest, people with GIS skills and accomplishments should be challenged to guide US  when it presents its first Voluntary National Review (VNR) during an upcoming UNGA.  It is possible to be improving on the US falling global rankings (45th place in 2026) measuring progress achieving the 17 global goals (from the 2015-2030 15 year global challenge for making our world a better place).     The US can not only be improving our SDG ranking, but by showing US leadership to the world on how it can be done, it can help to speed up rankings from many vulnerable populations now in need of scaling and speeding up how they can achieve SDG success stories in this decade.  ... View more

@AyodeleFaiyetole Welcome to ESRI COMMUNITY - I hope you have had an opportunity to contact an ESRI office in your country to ask the questions to them.   Definitely spend time listening to the 3 Plenary sessions that open ESRI User Conference this year in San Diego. Moving beyond creating to innovation and dissemination of knowledge is so critical to development.    Today GIS is promising to expand our abilities to reason together.  Collective knowledge being used as a tool.  Geography and spatial thinking are building blocks to help us organize and integrate.  GIS is helping us to create a more intelligent world. Check out which universities near you already might be using various ESRI software and tools.   Get involved.  Finally, check out MAP MAKER – designed by ESRI and National Geographic.    One thing that ESRI does well is provide information and support.   Hope you find what you are looking for. ... View more

Things happening so fast during ESRI UC 2026 - People I truly have found amazing thus far during the 2nd of 3 plenary sessions - Thank you for contributing:  Sam Libby, Lauren Bennet, Alberto Nieto, Elisa Coyle,  Scott Rawhouser,  Peter Erlenbach,  HannaJane Prichett, Megan Hendrick, Alanna Arujo, Nicole Miller, Andrew Norris,Brian Boulmay, Christine Ma, Madeline Schueren, Luigi Contestibile and Pier Paolo Olla  Allow me to say again, the world needs people like you!!!  Keep up your good works. Of course, I am typically focused on the 'bottom billion', and people who live in places where technology has not yet arrived, and thus whose lives really need to be, over the long term perhaps, finding ways of catching up. There are indeed so many places that might scale up on some of the good works displayed in this plenary session. My notes from Plenary session 2 (of 3) focused on important messages like - STAY CURRENT, Continue to learn and evolve- Continue to research fragmented and disconnected data. How do we make better data connections –  As we BUILD TOWARDS TIME ENABLED developments, and BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT outcomes might work the best in less developed communities, it was great to see what work is being done, and how GIS helps to define investment decisions – (perhaps bring in new funding).   Thank you ESRI for the great work you are helping to accomplish in so many places in the US and around the globe. THANK YOU TO PRESENTERS for providing us with of your truly important contributions towards improving life on our planet. I  ... View more

ESRI EU 2026 is rocking.   Are there Malawi watch parties going on?   https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/events/uc/agenda/plenary#videos ... View more