By Valrie Grant
Managing Director GeoTechVision
Have you ever used a map? Most likely you have. There are very few persons who have never used a map. We use maps in our personal or business travels to get directions from one place to the next. If we get lost, we may use maps to determine where on the map we are, and then navigate towards our intended destination. The visual picture we create in our minds when someone gives us direction is actually the process of map creation to help us find our way. In this week’s article we will talk about the power of maps – what do they do? Whose interests do they serve? And how can they be used in more innovative ways?
The process of mapping or creation of maps can be much become much more involved and complex than the simple task drawing to give directions. Adding non-directional information (layers or features) to maps is what gives rise to Geographic Information Systems (GIS)