The complexity of tenure claims in the informal settlements has been difficult to incorporate into the formal systems owing to their dynamic and continuously changing nature. Innovative tools are ...therefore required to capture these claims. This requires the development of a cadastral data model specifically for informal settlements that would document such claims to make it easier to manage the current situation as well as prepare for future formalization processes such as regularization or relocation. The main aim of this study was develop a typology of informal settlements in Kenya as a basis for developing a cadastral data model. A data model was developed based on the Social Tenure Domain Model (STDM) using open source geo-solution (SOLA). The model was found to be generally suitable for all the different informal settlement typologies.
Air pollution epidemiological studies increasingly rely on high-resolution exposure prediction models. However, to date, few models of this type exist for use in China.
We produced a national ...land-use regression model (LUR) to estimate monthly average PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 from 2014 to 2016 in China.
We developed a spatiotemporal semi-parametric model using generalized additive mixed models. A variety of predictor variables were included in model: time varying meteorological data, high resolution land cover data from Globaland30, satellite measures of aerosol optical depth, and Geographic Information System (GIS)-derived predictors. We assessed model performance with two cross-validation (CV) approaches, including hold-out CV, and 10-fold CV.
Over 22,000 monthly observations at 1382 monitoring locations were included to estimate the air pollution exposure. The time-varying spatial terms explained 87%, 71%, and 69% of variability with a hold-out cross-validated R2 of 0.85, 0.62, and 0.62 for PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 models, respectively. Models show that meteorological variables, population density, elevation, distance to road, and land cover types were important predictors for air pollution exposure.
we have developed a new nationwide model to estimate residence-level air pollution exposures, which can be used in studies of the chronic adverse effects of air pollution.
•We developed national scale spatiotemporal land use models to estimate monthly PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 concentrations in China.•For the PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 models, predictors explained 87%, 71%, and 69% of variability of the pollutant distributions.•Meteorological, AOD, and GIS-derived covariates were important predictors for air pollution exposure.
Urban green and blue spaces provide mental and physical health benefits for their surrounding communities, but the key to many of these benefits is the utilization of the urban greenspace for ...recreation or relaxation. For some communities, use is limited by physical access to the greenspace while for other communities, the characteristics of the greenspace play an important role in encouraging or discouraging use. What drives communities to use their local greenspace with respect to all other available greenspace in an urban area remains an underexplored question. To fill this gap, we leverage a large human mobility dataset to track a year of park visitation by residents across the Phoenix, AZ, metropolitan area combined with a spatial autoregressive model using spatially lagged dependent variables. Our results suggest that it is not vegetation but the presence of water features within a park that encourages higher visitation to local parks. Water features also influence visitation to parks outside a communities local area; its presence within a local park decreased how often individuals visited non-local parks as a proportion of their total park visitation. We discuss the implications of these finding in the context of a desert city that lacks both greenspace and water.
The use of GIS (Geographic Information System) systems to manage investments in cities is becoming more and more popular. Current technology enables the use of GIS system with the use of network ...technology. In this way, the same maps can be used by users of different units. Implementation of investments in cities often requires cooperation between different institutions, offices and other entities. For this purpose, it is possible to create electronic communities, which can be realized through electronic channels. This concept was called the Regional Business Spatial Community. The GIS tools can be considered as an integrating element between actors in the environment. GIS tools can be an element integrating the environments in which investments are made. On shared maps, not only existing facilities can be marked, but also implemented, planned or even postulated projects. The aim of the paper is to present the results of research conducted to identify whether, at a specific stage, the use of GIS technology in cities can serve as a platform conducive to the creation of regional electronic communities to facilitate investment in the city.
The study covered 10 largest cities in Poland in the form of observations. In the case of 5 entities, a questionnaire interview was conducted. Based on the analysis of the results, it can be concluded that from a technical point of view, GIS software can be such a platform. The problem is the business, information and organizational platforms.
The article deals with the application of GIS in different types of cities. The development of GIS technology is opening up new applications. In addition to the collection and cartographic ...visualisation of data, higher-level information functions such as automatic analysis, control, spatial planning or decision support can be realised. GIS technology can also be used to visualise abstract spaces. The article deals with the application of GIS in different types of cities. The article is intended to be the result of an analysis of the direction of the use of GIS technology in public administration in Poland. For this purpose, a model was developed to examine the state of GIS technology application. Two criteria were used to determine the state: groups of factors influencing the use of GIS technology (organisational, functional, informational and technical) and the level of maturity of GIS tools. Four levels were distinguished (from zero, i.e. no application of GIS technology, to a third level indicating the strategic importance of the tools studied). To this end, an empirical study was developed to determine the level of maturity of the application of the tools in question. After analysing the results, it can be concluded that the systems studied are still evolving. From the perspective of the proposed model, it can be assumed that the development of GIS tools has reached the second level in most of the surveyed offices. However, it will still be difficult to develop the software if not all the currently available GIS software capabilities are used.
Geographic information systems (GIS) are fundamental information technologies. The capabilities and applications of GIS continue to rapidly expand, requiring practitioners to have new skills and ...competencies, especially in computer science. There is little research, however, about how best to prepare the next generation of GIScientists with adequate computer science skills. This article explores how U.S. geography departments are introducing and developing computer science and programming skills in their geography and GIS degree programs. We review the degree requirements in fifty-five geography departments and discover that forty-four of them offer some kind of GIS programming course. Of the 210 separate degree options identified, however, only 22 require one of these courses for a degree. There is little consistency or emphasis on computer science and programming skills in geography or GIS degrees, despite the immense importance of these components in geography and GIS careers. We propose future research along distinct investigative tracks to build a research-based understanding of the educational interactions among GIS, computer science, programming, and geography.
New sources of geolocated information, associated with big data and social networks, show great promise for geographical research, especially in the field of tourism geography. Photo-sharing services ...comprise one of these sources. The aim of this article is to demonstrate the potential of photo-sharing services for identifying and analyzing the main tourist attractions in eight major European cities: Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, London, Madrid, Paris, Rome and Rotterdam. Geotagged photographs on Panoramio were differentiated according to whether they had been taken by tourists or local residents, and their spatial distribution patterns were analyzed using spatial statistical techniques in a GIS. The results indicated the concentration and dispersion of photographs in each city and their main hot spots, and revealed marked differences between tourists' and residents' photographs, since the former showed higher spatial concentrations. In addition, differences were observed between cities; Barcelona and Rome presented a strong spatial concentration compared with London or Paris, which showed much greater dispersion.
•Big data and social networks provide great opportunities for geographical research.•We examine the potential of photo-sharing services for urban tourism studies.•We differentiate geotagged photos taken by tourists or locals.•We analyze eight major European cities using spatial statistical techniques and GIS.•Distribution patterns affect tourism management and potential visitors.
Natural hazard processes, as an inherent component of mountain environments, react sensitively to global warming. The main drivers of these changes are alterations in the amount, intensity or type of ...precipitation, glacier melting, or thawing of permafrost ice. The hazard responses can involve a change in hazard intensity or frequency (increasing or decreasing), a shift in their location or, a shift from one type of hazard to another. As climate change impacts vary in space and time, this variability must be considered when planning measures to protect populations and infrastructure from hazardous processes. To support this, we developed a method for assessing the climate sensitivity of small individual rock releases and larger rockfall processes. The method is based on a fuzzy logic approach and uses highly resolved climate scenario data, allowing application on a regional or even larger scale.
The application in a study area of 700 km2 in the central Valais (Switzerland) shows that the impacts of climate change on natural hazard processes can vary quite substantially across small spatial scales. Generally, an increase in rockfall frequency and magnitude is simulated under future warming scenarios, especially at higher altitudes. However, at lower elevations and on south-exposed slopes, a decrease in freeze-thaw cycles leads to a decrease in material availability. This knowledge is essential in discussions of how climate change should be considered in hazard and disaster management.
•Climate change impact on natural hazards varies essentially at small spatial scales.•Increase in rockfall frequency and magnitude under future warming scenarios•Decrease in rockfall frequency at lower altitudes due to less freeze-thaw cycles•Depicting high variation in altitude by using high resolution climate scenarios•Fuzzy logic is well suited to depict complex system behavior.
Spatial heterogeneity represents a general characteristic of the inequitable distributions of spatial issues. The spatial stratified heterogeneity analysis investigates the heterogeneity among ...various strata of explanatory variables by comparing the spatial variance within strata and that between strata. The geographical detector model is a widely used technique for spatial stratified heterogeneity analysis. In the model, the spatial data discretization and spatial scale effects are fundamental issues, but they are generally determined by experience and lack accurate quantitative assessment in previous studies. To address this issue, an optimal parameters-based geographical detector (OPGD) model is developed for more accurate spatial analysis. The optimal parameters are explored as the best combination of spatial data discretization method, break number of spatial strata, and spatial scale parameter. In the study, the OPGD model is applied in three example cases with different types of spatial data, including spatial raster data, spatial point or areal statistical data, and spatial line segment data, and an R "GD" package is developed for computation. Results show that the parameter optimization process can further extract geographical characteristics and information contained in spatial explanatory variables in the geographical detector model. The improved model can be flexibly applied in both global and regional spatial analysis for various types of spatial data. Thus, the OPGD model can improve the overall capacity of spatial stratified heterogeneity analysis. The OPGD model and its diverse solutions can contribute to more accurate, flexible, and efficient spatial heterogeneity analysis, such as spatial patterns investigation and spatial factor explorations.
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