Operationalizing participation: experiences and perspectives of participatory GIS program coordinators

Katherine Iles () and Sya Buryn Kedzior ()
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Katherine Iles: Towson University
Sya Buryn Kedzior: Towson University

Journal of Geographical Systems, 2023, vol. 25, issue 4, No 5, 539-565

Abstract: Abstract Participatory approaches to geographic information systems (GIS) aim to improve program success rates and facilitate community control over data in environmental management and community development programs. But some argue that GIS is ill-suited for participatory applications because of its technical nature and reliance on experts to process publicly sourced data (Chambers in Electron J Inf Syst Dev Ctries 25:1–11, 2006; Dunn in Prog Hum Geogr 31(5):616–637, 2007; Radil and Anderson in Prog Hum Geogr 43(2):195–213, 2018). Yet, little attention has been paid to the outsized role of PGIS program coordinators in shaping relationships between experts and participants and determining how GIS technologies are employed. This study investigates the experiences of PGIS program coordinators and examines how they understand the processes and dynamics associated with participatory approaches, and how those understandings influence the ways in which participation is operationalized across different programs. This investigation highlights key challenges experienced by program coordinators and points to opportunities for intervention into the ways in which programs are designed and administered.

Keywords: Participation; GIS; Community planning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D73 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s10109-023-00416-x

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