Throughout the course GEOB270 (Introduction to Geographic Information Systems), I had the opportunity to develop key GIS skills in ArcMap by completing five labs and a final project. Below, I outline a few of these skills.
In Lab One, I developed an Understanding of ArcMap’s on- and off-line basic functions in order to begin adding data, creating maps, and preparing to analyze both spatial and attribute information, vital steps for producing spatial knowledge from information.
In Lab Two, I handled the improper referencing of spatial data and adjusted the projected coordinate systems of a layer to create a digital map of Canada ready for data analysis.
In Lab Three, I worked with the select by location, clip and intersect tools to extract data on land uses vulnerable to tsunamis in Vancouver, producing a map useful when zoning for tsunami risk and planning for the city’s sustainable future.
In Lab Four, I normalized data in order to map housing affordability in Vancouver and Ottawa, allowing me to explore the impact of normalizing by income and understand the importance of considering the impact of many interconnected variable on urban accessibility.
In Lab Five, I applied my learning to solve a tangible problem, performing an environmental impact assessment of the Garibaldi at Squamish project to develop strategies for harm mitigation while preserving the economic opportunities the project offers.