SEI-workshop on Participatory Geographic Information Systems

Written by Sturle hauge Simonsen

Wednesday, 26 August 2009 09:32

SEI York researchers Steve Cinderby and Annemarieke de Bruin delivered a five day workshop programme on Participatory Geographic Information Systems (PGIS) in Ougadougou, Burkina Faso.

The workshop was hosted by the INERA who are project partners with SEI and the University of York on the UK Natural Environment Research Council and Department for International Development funded project investigating ecosystem services and policy alleviation in the Sahel region of Africa.

The workshop was attended by fifteen participants originating from Burkina Faso, Niger (including project partners from CRESA and the Universite Abdou Moumouni), Ghana and Sweden. It covered the development and application of PGIS and involved hands-on exercises including mental mapping, community mapping and the use of GPS in collecting participatory data. Participants were able to apply these techniques with villagers during fieldtrip to a community in the north of Burkina Faso.

The workshop forms one component of a partnership building one year scoping study which completes in March 2010.