Final year Geography majors in the Faculty of Science and Technology, Caitlin Milne and Rodane Samuels participated in the YouthMappers Leadership Fellowship Summit held in Montego Bay, Jamaica from January 3 -13, 2023. The central themes were: M- Mapping for Climate Resilience, A- Activating Youth Leadership and P- Promoting Equity and Inclusion. The 2023 cohort of leaders was the largest fellowship with 52 tertiary students from 25 countries. “Youth Mappers is an exciting initiative to engage students in GIS Science and its role in building resilient communities,” said Dr. Donovan Campbell (Senior Lecturer, Department of Geography and Geology).

The summit had participants assigned to the aforementioned thematic areas which facilitated knowledge exchange through panel discussions and presentations. YouthMappers were also exposed to GIS technology and software such as ArcGIS, QGIS as well as programming languages used in mapping. This was complemented with designing and deploying of surveys and the use of drones which further facilitated capacity training in open mapping techniques to enrich their skillset. One of the key highlights of the summit was introducing participants to the use of OpenStreetMap (OSM) which is one of the most frequently utilized mapping applications employed by YouthMappers internationally. “By catalyzing interest among youths with the use of open geospatial data, the YouthMappers initiative can accelerate the growth of the geospatial industry” added Dr. Campbell. Similarly, Patricia Solis (Director, YouthMappers Programme) shared that Jamaica was chosen for hosting such a timely summit because Jamaica has strong geospatial capacities and capabilities and serves as a prefect hub for creating peer networks that is at the heart of YouthMappers.”

The summit further provided opportunities for service through community engagement which took the form of a tree planting exercise at the Grange Hill High School, Westmoreland and its surrounding areas. Grange Hill High was able to benefit from this opportunity through the school’s partnership with the Building Out Our STEM Teacher (BOOST) programme operated through the Faculties of Science and Technology and Humanities and Education, The UWI Mona. Approximately one hundred trees donated by the Forestry Department were planted during the exercise. The tree planting exercise was coordinated with the assistance of Mr. Nigel Jackson (Forester).

This consortium of youths from various countries served as a platform for voicing common and unique challenges and successes affecting each chapter and further provided an opportunity for YouthMappers to explore resources made available by USAID to tackle these challenges and find solutions to existing problems.  In sharing his experience, Rodane said, “It was an amazing experience, having to interact with so many like minded individuals from across the world who are passionate about using the knowledge of Geography and mapping to foster future leaders and prepare them to make a difference.”  This well sought after summit also provided professional development activities, access to mentoring by international experts, and opportunity for online engagement with other YouthMappers. Caitlin Milne the other representative voiced “It was an honour to represent the University, Department, my country, and the Caribbean. The Summit was an invaluable experience. I was exposed to new software, concepts, cultures, and communities that have broadened my perspectives, brought about many new connections and friendships, and improved my mapping skills as a geographer. The connections made are the kind that can last a lifetime. I look forward to the journey that myself and my colleagues will be embarking on with the help of our lecturers.

Caitlin and Rodane have committed to reviving the dormant UWI Mona Campus YouthMappers Chapter and implement activities based upon the knowledge, skills, or capacity they acquired.

Congratulations to Caitlin and Rodane who were excellent ambassadors for the Department of Geography and Geology and by extension The UWI. The Faculty extends gratitude to the organizers of the YouthMappers Leadership Fellowship Summit and laud the opportunities and experiences that were afforded to both participants.

YouthMappers is an international university consortium on Mapping for Resilience that organize a global community of learners, researchers, educators, and scholars to create and use open geographic data that directly address locally defined development challenges worldwide.  Youthmappers has a network of more than 5,000 university student mappers organized in 345 campus chapters across 72 countries.

Photo caption: Final year Geography majors in the Faculty of Science and Technology, Caitlin Milne and Rodane Samuels.

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