UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Department of Geography’s GeoGraphics Lab will host its first Community Mapping Day on Saturday, April 5, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Walker Building at University Park. The event, free and open to the public, will kick off with an optional breakfast at 8 a.m. and bring together students, faculty and community members for a day of hands-on mapping, creative geospatial storytelling and collaborative problem-solving centered on sustainability and local climate action.
The event will focus on the theme "Envisioning Sustainable Cities & Communities" and will include a collaborative mapping project in partnership with Penn State’s Local Climate Action Plan team and the Global Youth Storytelling and Research Lab.
Participants will work on a key community initiative: developing pollinator pathway maps for Easttown Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, to support biodiversity and ecological resilience. Additionally, attendees will contribute to a geospatial storytelling device — a wooden cabinet designed to display artistic spatial representations of community resilience in response to climate challenges such as flooding. By combining mapping and storytelling techniques, the event aims to engage participants in actively contributing to sustainability efforts from local to global scales.
"This event enables students to expand their burgeoning skillsets and design portfolios in team-based efforts that demonstrate their preparedness for employment in the fields of cartography and GIScience," said Alicia Adelle Iverson, GeoGraphics Lab manager, referring to geographic information science. "It also encourages cross-disciplinary conversations, creative experimentation and community-engaged design practices, empowering participants to use mapping as a tool for social and environmental change."
Participants will have the opportunity to engage in mapping exercises, discussions and presentations throughout the day. The event supports the Penn State geography department’s 2020-25 strategic plan, which emphasizes community engagement and student experiences that directly impact regional stakeholders. Organizers said they envision Community Mapping Day as an annual tradition that will provide ongoing opportunities for collaboration and research.
The GeoGraphics Lab is a multimedia cartography lab dedicated to advancing geospatial design and research. Through client-based projects, the lab provides students with opportunities to develop their cartographic and design skills while applying them to real-world challenges. Community Mapping Day is designed to help students expand their portfolios, foster interdisciplinary collaboration and experiment with innovative mapping techniques.
The event is open to participants of all experience levels, from first-time mappers to geospatial professionals. Free food will be available throughout the day, and participants will have the opportunity to earn a portfolio certificate recognizing their contributions.
Please register for this event in advance at this link by Sunday, March 23. For more information, contact Alicia Adelle Iverson at aliciaiverson@psu.edu or visit the GeoGraphics Lab webpage.