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The Power of Spatial Data

  • As Dennis pointed out, spatial data provides us with a powerful tool to use with students and in our classrooms

Land Use Conservation

Human Impacts on Environment

Examine Issues At Multiple Spatial Scales

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The Power of Spatial Data

  • Of particular interest to me is teaching my students practical skills including how to make maps and how to work with big data sets

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Community Science & Invasive Species

  • The focus of my EDDIE module is determining whether we can use iNaturalist data to assess the spread of invasive species

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Integration Into the Classroom

  • I initially taught this activity in an Intro to GIS course, but there are many other options

Introduction to Environmental Science (Majors & Non-Majors)

Intro or Upper-Level Ecology Courses

Conservation Biology or Biodiversity Focused Courses

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Structure of Module

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Skill & Application Focused Activity

QGIS

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Focus For Faculty

  • When I talk about this module or spatial data with other faculty, I generally hear two main concerns:

They are not familiar with how to use QGIS

They are concerned about their students and big data

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Tips For Success & Things to Remember

  • You can steal, alter, and manipulate this module to do whatever you want and for whatever purpose you want

  • A key thing to remember is that helping your students gain the ability to make maps is incredibly powerful

  • Empowering students to use big data to answer applied environmental questions is an important skill for them