In 2022, I was given the opportunity to expand my skills in leadership and mapping through the She Leads and She Inspires program organized by the Open Mapping Hub - Asia Pacific. More importantly, the project proposal I co-wrote with another champion from Nepal on the cultural application of mapping was selected and granted support by the hub. Outlined below are my experience working on this project.

The Project

The problem lies in the lack of accessible information regarding the rich stories and histories, the glory they once carried, and how all these affected the current scenario of an ancient town in Kathmandu, Nepal, called Handigaun, and the developing smart city of Brgy. Poblacion of Tagum City, Philippines. After experiencing natural and man-made disasters like fires and earthquakes that destroyed most of the communities’ built identity, concrete structures and the widening of roads also puts the authenticity of the communities into question. Since OSM is a major resource used by planners, architects, potential tourists, and conservationists, incorporating and mapping critical information as well as ensuring that these can be conveyed in an effective and efficient manner will pose great potential in aiding social development through historical and cultural understanding and reinforcing community resilience by safeguarding its identity for generations to come.

Brgy. Magugpo Poblacion is located within the city’s center and witness to the unfolding history of Tagum City. With historical landmarks on the verge of being erased from the city’s identity due to the onslaught of modernization, there has been a need to rekindle the population’s understanding and interest towards the city’s history. By putting emphasis on the importance of spaces and identified points of interests, this project aims to encourage the development of the city’s identity by conducting cultural mapping activities.

The Journey

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First confession: I was supposed to write this weeks ago.

I had the perfect writing set-up on my rented Airbnb apartment: a cozy roof deck where I could be alone with my thoughts for hours and with an astonishing view of the world’s most perfect cone-shaped volcano: Mt. Mayon. And then, as with all other things, life happened and I am just publishing this one now. Even so, I believe that my attendance during the State of the Map Asia x Pista ng Mapa 2022 held last November 21-25, 2022 at Bicol University East Campus (fondly called by the locals as Buceng) in the lovely city of Legazpi, Albay still bears lessons and experiences worth sharing up until now.

Second confession: My knees were shaking the whole time I delivered my lightning talk.

My presentation on Mapping for Cultural Sustainability, a project I am pursuing with another She Leads and She Inspires (SLSI)^ champion from Nepal, was selected as one of the lightning talks for Day 1 of Pista ng Mapa. No matter how much I looked forward to all the things the conference was about to offer, the first day was nerve-wracking for a person like me who wasn’t that used to speaking in public, more so in front of 300 people who all have left their marks in the mapping community. There I was, a lone participant from Davao City (at least, that’s what I first thought) and a neophyte in the OSM community about to deliver her first public speech in years. Nevertheless, the purpose of my attendance pushed me to brave the stage and share my SLSI experience and the community project, a product of our six months of SLSI training, that I am working on.

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