Humanitarian aid efforts empower communities and put future leaders on the map

As extreme weather events become more frequent, students from across Arizona State University gather to provide humanitarian aid. These efforts do not involve international travel — it is likely that these students will never meet the people whose lives were impacted by their work.

YouthMappers ASU is part of a global network of 377 university chapters in 72 countries. Their mission is to increase visibility through geospatial technology. Patricia Solís, co-founder and director of YouthMappers, said increased visibility via mapping allows for better data collection and opportunity for humanitarian aid.

“If you can’t see the problem, you can’t address the problem,” said Solís, a Senior Global Futures Scientist who also serves as the executive director of Knowledge Exchange for Resilience at ASU.

In the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, YouthMappers ASU members gathered in a conference room at the Walton Center for Planetary Health. They used the OpenStreetMap platform, which combines satellite imagery and computing technologies, to provide free and updated maps. These updated maps are then used by non-government and aid organizations, who can create tasks related to their data needs.

One way mapping serves communities is by providing updated imagery of an area before and after a natural disaster. By comparing older to newer images of the Earth’s surface, there is an opportunity to direct more support toward the areas hit the hardest.

“This is very connecting work,” Solís said. “Mapping provides a window into what is happening in the world, but it is also a platform of solidarity for each other. Everyone here cares about the future of the planet as a whole. YouthMappers channels young people’s energy and perspective towards our shared goals.”

YouthMappers ASU not only provides mapping aid to other countries, but it also receives support from other chapters. Solís said Arizona has received mapping assistance aimed at better understanding the impact of extreme heat, particularly for those living in manufactured homes. Because some of these locations are more remote, more thorough mapping is needed to fully develop heat mitigation strategies.

“We don’t actually have a good database on that for our own work, so we have also put out a call for help with this particular effort,” Solís said. “We had help from YouthMappers in Uganda, Kenya, Bangladesh and more — there are hundreds of YouthMappers helping with our own disasters here in Arizona.”

Natalia Arruda, a graduate student in urban planning in ASU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and president of ASU’s chapter of Youthmappers, said the impact of their work has often compelled her and other members to stay at their sessions — sometimes referred to as “mappy hour” — later than scheduled to continue mapping.

“To use heat in Arizona as an example, the data that is collected can be used to guide the location of more cooling centers,” said Arruda. “But on a larger scale, students are the ones doing this work. A lot of us who are involved with YouthMappers are concurrently doing our own research. If mappers are linking humanitarian and collaborative mapping with their own research, they are often identifying blind spots in their desired fields before they even graduate from school.”

Solís said that as climate change further accelerates extreme weather events, mapping will continue to be an increasingly important tool to mitigate the consequences.

“There are a billion people on the planet that are not represented on a map, and they are often the ones most vulnerable to climate change and other kinds of disasters that are happening, both elsewhere and here in Arizona.”

Solís said that as the planet’s systems continue to adjust based on human action, YouthMappers not only assists in humanitarian aid but also in elevating future leaders. By providing young minds with the resources to do work with real impact, they are empowered to continue that work in their lives beyond school. Solís pointed to the work of her current students and YouthMappers alumni, such as Arruda, Abdulrahman Alsanad, Maryam Shafiee Shakib and Katsiaryna Varfalameyeva.

“We need to be able to involve the innovators: students and young people. We need their minds and their voices,” she said. “Our future leaders are already leading, right here and right now. ”