Introduction to the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team

The Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team utilizes OpenStreetMap for humanitarian response and economic development. Right now there is a need to build trainer capacity within HOT, one of the ways we aim to accomplish this is through workshops which show our process. When we work in a country on the ground we educate those living and working in a country how to contribute data to OpenStreetMap as well as utilize the information. This is a program that begins with basic data collection, then editing in OpenStreetMap and finally extracting the data utilizing PostGIS and Quantum GIS to create mapping products. This workshop will go through the “HOT process,” so interested individuals can learn what we do and potentially become volunteers. The actual content of the workshop will start with data collection utilizing Walking Papers and GPS units. Then participants will learn how to use JOSM to add the data they have collected into OpenStreetMap. Finally we will review ways to pull data from OpenStreetMap to use in data analysis or creation of printed map products. This workshop is beneficial to both those unfamiliar with OpenStreetMap editing and those who are well versed in it. For beginners you will learn the basics of how OpenStreetMap works applied to humanitarian response. For those current OpenStreetMap contributors you will learn the specifics of the HOT data model and the collection materials we have developed specifically for the environments we work in.