Latest Contributions by JosephKerski

Like many of you, I frequently create Esri story maps and ArcGIS Online presentations for events, workshops, webinars, courses, and curricula.  Then I often want to modify those story maps and presentations for a different purpose, but yet preserve the original version so people can still access it.  The ArcGIS Online Assistant is the perfect tool for this.  It can be used for copying web mapping applications such as story maps, ArcGIS Online maps, layers, scenes, and other items from one folder to another, or between organizations, or even to the same folder within an organization.  It can also be used to view the underlying JSON for any item in ArcGIS Online or Portal, and to modify the URLs for services in web maps and registered applications. Another very helpful feature about the ArcGIS Online Assistant is that it quickly lets you scroll through all of your content your organizational account.  If you have a lot of content in your organization, saves a great deal of time over the standard method of going through each page of your standard “My Contents” zone in ArcGIS Online. Note that the copying procedure does not copy all of your data that your web mapping applications may refer to, but just the application or presentation that points to them. If you need even more functionality, look into the tools created by Geo Jobe.  In the free version of their tools, there is a tool labeled "Copy Items" that acts like the AGO Assistant tool.  Their tools also allow for a filter that can select multiple items at once.  In the Pro/Portal version of their tools, you can "Clone Items", which not only copies the selected item, but also copies and rewires all the data and content that the selected item depends on.  As noted above, the AGO Assistant does not do this, but Geo Jobe allows you to truly copy everything, including the source data. For more information, see the GeoNet discussion on this topic, and for best practices and tools related to ArcGIS Online organizations, see the ArcGIS Organization Administration Wiki on GitHub. After using the ArcGIS Online Assistant, I now have a copy of my original item in ArcGIS Online, which I can now rename and modify. ... View more

4pm Gregory Hall 161 - Fri 22 Jan 2016 - I am giving the following presentation - all are welcome! Why Data Quality Matters—Now More Than Ever Joseph J. Kerski, PhD, GISP Cloud-based data services and maps make it easy for anyone to obtain vast amounts of data in a short amount of time. In an environment where such a wide variety and volume of geospatial and other data is available, is data quality still of concern?  Join geographer and educator Joseph Kerski as he makes the case that data quality considerations matter now more than ever. Through examples such as “Be critical of the data—especially when it’s your own!”, we will explore real-world examples that illustrate the necessity of understanding the benefits but also the challenges in successfully navigating our geodata-saturated world. ... View more

Mapillary is a tool that allows anyone to create their own street level photographs, map them, and share them via web GIS technology.  The idea behind Mapillary is a simple but powerful one:  Take photos of a place of interest as you walk along using the Mapillary mobile app.  Next, upload the photos to Mapillary again using the app. They will be connected with others’ and combined into a street level photo view.  Then, explore your places and those from thousands of other users around the world. Mapillary is part of the rapidly growing crowdsourcing movement, also known as citizen science, which seeks to generate "volunteered geographic information" content from ordinary citizens.  Mapillary is therefore more than a set of tools--it is a community, with its own MeetUps and ambassadors.  Mapillary is also a new Esri partner, and through an ArcGIS integration, local governments and other organizations can understand their communities in real-time, and "the projects they’re working on that either require a quick turnaround or frequent updates, can be more streamlined."  These include managing inventory and city assets, monitoring repairs, inspecting pavement or sign quality, and assessing sites for new train tracks.   Other organizations are also using Mapillary:  For example, the Missing Maps Project is a collaboration between the American Red Cross, British Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières-UK (MSF-UK, or Doctors Without Borders-UK), and the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team. The project aims to map the most vulnerable places in the developing world so that NGOs and individuals can use the maps and data to better respond to crises affecting these areas. On the discovery section of Mapillary, you can take a tour through the ancient city Teotihuacán in Mexico, Astypalaia, one of the Dodecanese Islands in Greece, Pompeii, or Antarctica.  But if you create an account and join the Mapillary community, you can access the live web map and click on any of the mapped tracks. Mapillary can serve as an excellent way to help your students get outside, think spatially, use mobile apps, and use geotechnologies.  Why stop at streets?  You or your students could map trails, as I have done while hiking or biking, or  map rivers and lakes from a kayak or canoe.  There is much to be mapped, explored, studied, and enjoyed.  If you'd like extra help in mapping your campus, town, or field trip with Mapillary, send an email to Mapillary and let the team know what you have in mind.  They can help you and your students get started with ideas and tips (and bike mounts, if you need them). For about 18 months, I have been using Mapillary to map trails and streets.  I used the Mapillary app on my smartphone, generating photographs and locations as I hiked along. One of the trails that I mapped is shown below and also on the global map that everyone in the Mapillary community can access.  I have spoken with the Mapillary staff and salute their efforts. I look forward to hearing your reactions and how you use this tool. Mapillary tool for generating and sharing street level photos and maps. ... View more

Landsat Thematic Bands Web Mapping Application - my write up: Landsat Thematic Bands Web Mapping Application in ArcGIS Online | Spatial Reserves --Joseph Kerski ... View more

We’ve had a few discussions on this and other lists about ways to get into the world of GIS web app development.  That’s why I’m happy to announce the following upcoming, free, hands-on MOOC: Do It Yourself GeoApps 3 Feb – 2 March 2016 Register and find out more here: http://www.esri.com/mooc/diy-geo-apps Anyone can build apps on the ArcGIS Platform. You don’t have to be a software developer to build valuable geo-enabled apps that make your communities smarter and businesses more successful. This course will show you how to combine location and narrative in one application to better communicate and broadcast your story, create custom web applications that solve problems in your community, and build powerful native applications for iOS and Android devices without touching a piece of code. If you are a developer, you’ll be interested in Esri’s APIs, SDKs, and the buzzing GeoDev community. ... View more

A new activity based on ArcGIS Online invites students to analyze real-time weather data. I wrote the activity for university students but upper secondary students with some GIS background could use it as well, particularly if beforehand they work through the How's the Weather? Geoinquiry. Using real-time weather feeds from NOAA, the activity asks students to note the relationships between pressure, temperature, wind speed, wind direction, proximity to coasts, latitude, and elevation.  Students also create interpolated surfaces from the real time weather station data, classify and symbolize data in a number of ways, and predict upcoming weather at specific locations.  ArcGIS Online enables students to quickly and easily analyze spatial data such as this.  Weather is an engaging topic, and the activity connects to geography, earth science, and meteorology courses and curricula, and in the process, fosters skills in critical thinking, GIS, spatial analysis, and spatial data. Analyzing current weather data and maps in ArcGIS Online. ... View more

How would you explain to fellow educators, to students, parents, or the general public why Geographic Information Systems (GIS) matters in education and in society?  One idea is to start with a document entitled "Why Maps Matter". While spatial thinking is much more than "maps", I aimed at a phrase that would attract people to this workshop.  I frequently choose similar presentation titles depending on my audience, such as "Mapping Your Educational Research" or "Mapping The Social Studies." Themes of this workshop include:  Maps foster understanding, tell stories, and enable decision making.  I included my favorite maps and map books for a personal touch. Topics include population, land use, urban, economics, health, and natural hazards, with frequent mention of scale, systems thinking, critical thinking, time and space, and place. The workshop is taught through an inquiry-driven, hands-on, problem-based format. I've posted related resources in the form of three videos and 20 resources for sharing GIS with others.  I look forward to hearing how you share "why maps matter" with others. Why Maps Matter Presentation and Workshop. ... View more

What did you do for GIS Day this year?  Since 1999, GIS Day has been set aside to promote, celebrate, and demonstrate the real-world applications that are making a difference in society using Geographic Information Systems technology. GIS Day always occurs during the Wednesday of Geography Awareness Week, and thus provides a good excuse for incorporating geographic perspectives, geography content, and spatial thinking into the activities. I had a great GIS Day and Geography Awareness Week.  As the week began, I finished presenting and exhibiting at the National Council for the Social Studies conference in New Orleans, where I met some wonderful economics, geography, history, and civics instructors.  I then flew to Philadelphia and visited one of my favorite programs that use GIS to make a positive difference in the lives of young people, Hopeworks 'N Camden.   Hopeworks 'N Camden is a nonprofit that has been working for over 15 years with Camden youth. Utilizing an advanced training curriculum in web design and development, GIS, and Salesforce, Hopeworks works with youth aged 14­-23 to get back in school and discover a safe pathway to their future.  One of their projects with GIS involves mapping all of the city's water infrastructure--valves, fire hydrants, and mains--for the American Water Works Company. Next, I visited Temple University's Department of Geography and Urban Studies, which recently began a new undergraduate GIS certificate program.   Next, I was invited to Penn State University to support their GIS Day activities, teaching a workshop, operating an information table, giving a presentation, and meeting with their innovative faculty across the campus who are using GIS in their courses and programs.  I also highly enjoyed speaking to two classes--an undergraduate course in professional development for geography students, and a first year seminar for earth and environmental students. Next, I visited Cornell University in New York, teaching a hands-on workshop for students and faculty, followed the next day by a workshop for the New York 4H community, In all of these visits I was highly encouraged by the energy and expertise of the students, staff, and faculty, and did my utmost to give plenty of encouragement and support in return. Share the stories of what you did on the GIS Day web site, by replying to this essay below, or in GeoNet. GIS Day events: Working with faculty, staff, and students. ... View more

An article I wrote in NASA's Geographia invites exploration of land use change using USGS historical topographic maps and historical and current Landsat satellite imagery, beginning in Lake Havasu, Arizona.  Humans have modified the landscape of Planet Earth in many ways. This modification is nothing new—it began as the earliest humans began burning of local grasslands to encourage new growth, tilling the soil for the first agricultural experiments, and building small dams to ensure a water source. Yet today’s changes are more frequent and also larger in area, from the construction of cities, reservoirs, and tunnels, to widespread land use change through the conversion of the natural land cover to cropland, grazing pastures, mining sites, and other uses. One of the ways that humans have modified the landscape is in their attempt to make parts of deserts more habitable. Some of the most famous examples include the transformation of coastal fishing villages in the United Arab Emirates into major world cities, and the creation of resort areas around the world in Australia’s outback, Namibia, Morocco, and in the USA, including the cities of Las Vegas, Palm Springs, and Lake Havasu City, shown on the series of topographic maps below. Use the Esri USGS Historical Map viewer, the Change Matters Landsat viewer, and the Landsat Look viewer to examine land use change in your own area of interest! 1911 USGS map at 1:125,000 scale of Parker. 1970 map at 1:24,000 scale, Lake Havasu City South. 1994 map at 1:24,000 scale, Lake Havasu City South. ... View more

The Partnership for 21st Century Learning, P21, has teamed with the Pearson Foundation to capture and share exemplary 21st century learning practices that are improving schools, student learning and opportunities in classrooms and communities across the United States. In addition to identifying, documenting, sharing and celebrating the 21st century practices of exemplar schools, they report on the broader common features– the Patterns of Innovation– that emerge across exemplar schools and appear to be at the heart of their effective transformation into 21st Century Learning Environments. The 5 essential ingredients that P21 has thus far identified as contributing to exemplar schools' success are: Student Voice Engaged Community Distributed Leadership Climate of Achievement Evidence & Research Besides being able to search the exemplar schools, one can search by state, educational level, and topic (such as professional development or technology). I could not help but notice that many characteristics of these exemplar schools are evident in schools where GIS is being used by educators and students, and where GIS is supported by the school and district administration.  For example, take a look at some of these videos of students who use GIS in their educational journey from primary school to university level:  The "student voice" mentioned by P21 is evident in each story told.  Explore why and how students are using GIS in education, and dig into some of the case studies of real students, faculty, and administrators doing real work with GIS.  These represent the "engaged community" identified by P21. As my colleagues and I have written in this blog and elsewhere for many years, it's not just the technology that has merit--it is the critical thinking, community connections, career pathways, media fluency, holistic thinking, and problem-based learning that is fostered when students engage in geotechnologies.  In short, GIS fosters the P21 tenet of the "climate of achievement."  In the past, my colleagues and I wrote the Geography Skills map for P21, which draws further connections between P21 goals and GIS. Finally, touching on the P21's identification of  "evidence and research", see the GIS education bibliography for studies measuring student achievement, educator professional development, and more. Using Geographic Information Systems in Education. ... View more