Category: Data
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The Power of Location
Why Location Data Matters More Than Ever Location-based services (LBS) are transforming the way we interact with the world. Using geographical data, these services provide personalized, real-time information that enhances experiences across various industries. Businesses use LBS to deliver targeted content, while individuals rely on tools like Google Maps for navigation. From marketing and entertainment…
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Why Urban Planning Needs AI and AR
Using Technology to Build More Inclusive, Smart, and Resilient Cities Urban planning shapes how we live, work, and move within cities. At its best, it creates economic opportunities, promotes social connections, and ensures that infrastructure, housing, and public spaces serve everyone. But as cities grow at unprecedented rates, urban planning struggles to keep up. Population…
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From Aerial Imagery to Machine Learning
Innovating Land Mapping and Accessibility for Sustainable Development Spatial Collective, Radiant Earth, the Kenyan Space Agency (KSA), and PLACE collaborated on a pilot project to collect and curate labeling high-resolution agricultural data for open access and public benefit in Kenya. This post describes the practical steps taken by Spatial Collective during the project implementation, encompassing…
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Transforming Data Accessibility Through Location-Based Engagement
In this piece, I will mostly discuss the topic of data accessibility in informal settlements, however, accessing relevant data to make informed decisions about one’s life is a brother issue and touches on most aspects of everyday life. In today’s digital era, data has become a vital asset in driving informed decision-making. From healthcare and…
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Kenya Digital Public Works
Between 2021 and 2022, we carried out a project called Kenya Digital Public Works. Here’s a short description of the project with more on the way in the future. The goal of the Digital Public Works project was to produce the information necessary for informal settlement upgrading by engaging with and providing short-term employment opportunities…
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Thoughts on Analyzing and Visualizing Text Messages
This blog post discusses the challenges of analyzing text messages and how to make the data useful.
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Household Survey
This is part of a series on the Industrial Training of Students on Zanzibar by Spatial Collective. You can read parts one, two, three, four, five, and six here. One of the topics covered during the training was on using mobile phones to collect data on households. The goal was to introduce the students to…
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Mapping Drainage
This is part of a series on the Industrial Training of Students on Zanzibar by Spatial Collective. You can read parts one, two, three, four, and five here. As mentioned in previous blog posts, at the start of the training, the students met with the stakeholders from the civil society, government and the private sector…
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Half a million buildings mapped
This is part of a series on the Industrial Training of Students on Zanzibar by Spatial Collective. You can read parts one, two, three, and four here. Building upon previous efforts (read here and here), the State University of Zanzibar students finalized digitization of buildings on the Zanzibar Archipelago (Unguja and Pemba Islands). Fifty students…
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Creating a Base Map of Zanzibar
This is part of a series on the Industrial Training of Students on Zanzibar by Spatial Collective. You can read part one, two and three here. Geo-services are becoming an essential part of the fabric of society and geographical information is now interwoven with many aspects of life. Key to that service is accurate, up…