You're a non-technical city council member. How can you simplify GIS data visualization?

If you're a non-technical city council member, you might be in the right position to make sure that your city hires a geo-specialist that knows about communication too! Team up with this person, and you can achieve great results in visualizing your cities data, plans, and what have you!

Use Examples and Comparisons Before-and-After: Show examples of data before and after a project or initiative to illustrate impact. Benchmarking: Compare current data with benchmarks or previous data to highlight trends or improvements.

Start by understanding fundamental GIS concepts. Familiarize yourself with basic terms like layers, features, and attributes. This foundational knowledge will help you navigate GIS data more effectively and communicate your needs to technical staff.

simplifying GIS data visualization is key to making informed decisions. Focus on using story maps and interactive dashboards that translate complex data into clear, visual narratives. Opt for color-coded maps to highlight key areas, and use simple legends and labels to make the data intuitive. Collaborating with GIS professionals to tailor these visuals to your specific needs ensures that the information is accessible and actionable, enabling you to make data-driven decisions with confidence.

If you are city council with no much GIS knowledge, you need to understand a map first. Probably everyone will be knowing how to commute through Google/Here maps. Firstly need to understand the different legends used in the map. Try identifying different Point, Line and Polygons used in maps. For example A park is usually colored as green polygons where as roads are linear features. Then need to find scale and directions. Try clicking on a point features like a bus station which is a spatial entity, you will find Station name and Bus numbers and their routes, these are called attributes which are the featured of a spatial data.

To simplify GIS data visualization as a non-technical city council member, prioritize creating visual tools that are easy to interpret, even without technical knowledge. This can involve using intuitive maps with clear labels, color-coding to distinguish different data sets, and interactive features like clickable regions that provide detailed information. Work closely with GIS professionals to ensure that complex data is presented in a straightforward manner, focusing on what’s most relevant for decision-making.

Apply filters to GIS data to focus on specific information relevant to your decision-making. Filtering can reduce clutter and make the visualization clearer. For example, filter by date, type of infrastructure, or geographic area to simplify the data displayed.

Councils collect a lot of spatial and non-spatial datasets that need to be filtered so that you hone in on the most critical aspects of your GIS workflow

Use Clear and Intuitive Maps Basic Maps: Opt for simple, easy-to-read maps with minimal technical jargon. Use familiar symbols and colors to represent different data points. Legend and Labels: Include a clear legend and straightforward labels to explain what different colors, shapes, and symbols mean.

The goal of maps are to easily visualize and pin point the pattern among datasets. Simplifying maps by only showing what is needed at a particular point in time is needed to make this task seemless

Use simplified maps that highlight only the most important information. Remove unnecessary details and focus on key features. Utilize clear symbols, labels, and color codes to enhance readability. Simple, uncluttered maps are easier to understand and interpret.

Story maps can be particularly effective, as they blend maps with narrative text and multimedia to contextualize the data. Provide predefined views and filters to help users focus on specific data layers or areas without needing technical knowledge.

Incorporate Visual Aids Charts and Graphs: Use charts and graphs to complement maps and make data trends and comparisons more understandable. Infographics: Combine visuals and text in infographics to convey complex information in a simplified manner.

Create visual stories or dashboards that combine maps with charts, graphs, and narrative text. This approach can help convey complex data in an engaging and understandable way. Use visual storytelling to illustrate trends, comparisons, and impacts.

Work closely with GIS specialists and other council members. Collaboration can help bridge the gap between technical and non-technical perspectives. Regular meetings and discussions can ensure that the visualizations meet your needs and are easy to comprehend.

Feedback can be an iterative process so it is good to also know when the product is ready to be distributed. It is also important to have the point person that will play a representative role

Ideally you should plan for a couple rounds of feedback because your revisions may need some review as well. A variety of participants in review is valuable. A professional GIS Analyst might interpret the map differently than a member of the public with no cartography training. The goal should be that your maps are equally understandable by all. One thing I like to include in review processes is a "Fresh Eyes" review. This is when you get input from someone who wasn't involved in producing the work and is seeing it for the first time. If that person can quickly deduce the purpose and message without hints, then you might be in good shape!