Nisreen Mahmoud, 2025 HOT Voting Member Nominee

Hello fellow mappers, My name is Nisreen Mahmoud, and I am a GIS and remote sensing expert. I am originally from Sudan, and I currently reside in Egypt. I currently serve as the Supervisor of Surveying, GIS, and Remote Sensing Group in the Khartoum Reconstruction Initiative (KRI). In addition to my supervisory role, I also lead OSM Sudan. Previously, I served as the East African zone coordinator for African Women in GIS (AWiGIS) in 2023. Today, I’m also a proud mentee in the Women+ in Geospatial Mentorship Programme, where I continue growing my leadership and technical outreach abilities. I am passionate about creating spaces where emerging mappers, especially women, African mappers, and those from conflict-affected areas, are able to feel seen, heard, and empowered to lead. I am honored to have been nominated as a 2025 Voting Member of the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT). As someone whose life and work are deeply rooted in both humanitarian response and geospatial science, this opportunity feels especially meaningful. I am pleased to introduce myself and articulate my aspirations to contribute to HOT’s mission.

What Does HOT Mean to Me? HOT represents the fusion of community, technology, and humanitarian action. It’s a space where open data becomes a lifeline—used to empower communities, support climate resilience, and respond to crises. For me, HOT is about building bridges between people and tools, between local knowledge and global support.

How I Got Involved in HOT and Mapping Last year I met Pete Masters in WUF12 in Cairo, Egypt and this was the first time to know about HOT ! I was introduced to the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) through my professional and volunteer activities in Sudan, and officially joined the HOT team as a Data Analyst Volunteer in December 2024 to lead a team of six volunteer Sudanese cartographers in Khartoum, El Fasher and Port Sudan projects using HOT’s Tasking Manager mapping platform.

Why I Want to Be a Voting Member I want to serve as a voting member to ensure that voices from conflict-affected and underserved regions—especially in Africa—are reflected in HOT’s strategy and governance. I believe strongly in data equity and localization, and I want to support HOT’s transition toward more inclusive and community-driven decision-making.

My Most Important Responsibility as a Voting Member To represent, amplify, and advocate. As a voting member, I see my role as a conduit between the local and the global—helping shape HOT’s priorities while remaining rooted in the realities of the communities we serve.

How I Plan to Contribute I would love to participate in the following working groups: • Community Engagement • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion • Environmental Mapping & Resilience I also hope to support HOT’s outreach in conflict-affected regions, contribute to capacity-building through open training resources, and help strengthen partnerships with local academic and humanitarian institutions.

HOT’s Greatest Challenge – and How I Hope to Help One of HOT’s greatest challenges is long-term engagement and support for local mapping communities—especially in regions affected by displacement, conflict, or lack of infrastructure. I hope to help by advocating for more sustained funding, mentorship programs, and accessible learning pathways that allow communities to move from data consumers to data producers—and leaders.

Mapping has not only shaped my career, it has shaped my purpose: combining spatial science, humanitarian principles, and the power of collective action. I am excited to continue contributing to HOT’s vibrant community as a voting member, helping move forward a more inclusive, equitable, and impactful future for humanitarian mapping.

Thank you for taking the time to read my introduction. I look forward to connecting with fellow nominees, current members, and the wider HOT community to learn from each other and build a more resilient, equitable open mapping future.

Warm regards, Nisreen Mahmoud GIS & Remote Sensing Expert LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nisreen-mahmoud-862342111 Email: nisreen.abubaker19@gmail.com