Participatory Geographic Information Systems (PGIS)

Participatory Geographic Information Systems (PGIS) combines traditional GIS technology with the knowledge and active involvement of local communities, enabling forest restoration efforts to be more effective, equitable, and sustainable. It integrates scientific data with local, indigenous knowledge to create a more comprehensive understanding of the landscape.

PGIS allows local communities to actively participate in the planning process by mapping areas they identify as important for restoration. This includes identifying culturally significant sites, traditional resource areas, or specific locations that have experienced degradation. This process ensures that restoration plans align with the needs and values of the people who live in and rely on the forest.

There can be several applications of PGIS in forest restoration:

Collaborative planning and site selection

PGIS allows local communities to actively participate in the planning process by mapping areas they identify as important for restoration. This includes identifying culturally significant sites, traditional resource areas, or specific locations that have experienced degradation. This process ensures that restoration plans align with the needs and values of the people who live in and rely on the forest.

Monitoring and evaluation

Community members can use PGIS tools to monitor the progress of restoration projects. They can collect data on things like the survival rate of planted trees, the health of vegetation, or the presence of invasive species. This real-time, on-the-ground information is crucial for project managers to make timely adjustments and ensures that the restoration efforts are successful. PGIS empowers communities to become stewards of their own environment.

Knowledge integration

PGIS acts as a bridge between scientific data and local ecological knowledge. Scientists can use remote sensing data, such as satellite imagery and drone footage, to assess large-scale deforestation and land use change. Local communities can then add layers of information to these maps based on their own knowledge, such as the best locations for specific native tree species, historical fire patterns, or traditional water sources. This integration creates a richer, more accurate picture of the ecosystem.

Conflict resolution and empowerment

By involving all stakeholders in the mapping process, PGIS helps to identify and mitigate potential conflicts over land use and resources. When communities have a say in where and how restoration takes place, it leads to a greater sense of ownership and accountability. This bottom-up approach to decision-making fosters community empowerment, leading to more durable and successful restoration outcomes.

Recent IT advancements have greatly expanded the potential for Participatory GIS (PGIS). The emergence of open-access Earth observation data and software, such as resources from Google Earth and the Global Land Cover Facility, combined with cloud-based computing, has revolutionized land and forest mapping. This development has simplified the once-laborious process of satellite data pre-processing and enables the simultaneous use of multiple data sources, significantly improving global monitoring of environmental and land resources.

Simultaneously, solutions for collecting Volunteered Geographical Information (VGI) have become widely accessible. Crowdsourcing data—often utilizing platforms like Google Earth—is now a common, low-resource method for validating global and regional maps of land cover, land conversion, cropland, and forest cover. This demonstrates the immense value of VGI in generating crucial geographical validation data, especially in previously data-poor regions.