QGIS and the Data to Policy Project

Diane Fritz, University of Colorado Denver
QGIS and the Data to Policy Project: Bringing a Geospatial Perspective to Student Research in Social Justice
The Data to Policy (D2P) Project in Denver, Colorado was formed to empower students as researchers and advocates through the use of data to create more equitable communities. The Auraria Library, where I work as the Geospatial Services Specialist, has been hosting D2P for the University of Colorado Denver and Metropolitan State University Denver as spring and fall symposiums since 2017. The D2P project was inspired by the desire to create an avenue for the voices of students frustrated with police violence, but has now extended its theme to Public Data for Public Good. As the D2P student and faculty liaison, I am often introducing geospatial data, such as census data, to the participating students through QGIS. Many of these students have never heard of GIS.
Striking a balance between empowering some students with research tools and not overwhelming them with tech is a challenge. I will give some insight on how these students approach and use QGIS, for simple to more complex problems. I’ll also propose the idea of creating a bare bones GUI version of the QGIS software for making geospatial technologies accessible to non-STEM students in a way that leaves an easy path to grow into the software.
Data to Policy Project website: library.auraria.edu/d2pproject

[@jimmclaughlin8845]

Great talk. How are you helping other communities adopt your approach? Did you obtain any special funding? Did you have help from the local legislators, and if so, how did you approach them?