It’s nearly half a decade since YouthMappers brought a light of hope to the youth all over the world. On YouthMappers’s 5th work anniversary, we wanted to extend our heartiest anniversary wishes on behalf of the YouthMappers Dhaka University chapter by reminiscing some of the amazing memories that we will cherish for the rest of my life.
It all started in July 2018 through our academic senior, Maliha Mohiuddin. At that time, we had a very vague idea about being a mapper. So, when we got to know about her affiliation with this platform called “YouthMappers” and her endeavor of arranging a workshop on mapping, it seemed like a wondrous opportunity. It was an interactive training which followed technical sessions and fieldworks using different softwares related to mapping. From that day on, there was no looking back.
Hereafter, we were able to arrange our most appreciated event the ‘‘Let Girls Map’’ campaign, based on the theme of supporting the marching of women for enhancing the world map where women mappers from the University of Dhaka took part. The event was held on the occasion of International Women’s Day, March 8, 2019, through which our group has contributed to making the effort of Womens’ journey in the world of mapping. The team covered an area of 240 hectares (600 acres) in the Dhaka University campus using Mapillary application. But the actual success of the program was the enormous response and interest of young female students with the aspiration of contributing to the development of society as a mapper.
March 8, 2019
Witnessing the huge response and appreciation, as a follow up of the ‘‘Let Girls Map’’ program, our team planned the next session, which was executed on August 01 to 02, 2019. It was a two-day theoretical and practical training session arranged in Daffodil International University, Dhaka, where students learned how to edit maps in OpenStreetMap using iD Editor and JOSM and how to collect data by using Kobo Toolbox, Field Papers, and Mapillary application with lots of innovative technical dimensions, which were unknown to them. This program was led by Maliha Binte Mohiuddin and separate sessions were taken by me and one of our members Sabiha Sultana Muna. Thereafter, I was given the position of the President of YouthMappers Dhaka University Chapter.
August 2019
Each of the training programs surely enhanced our knowledge about mapping, its applications and its importance in disaster management projects. Furthermore, working in groups inspired us to pursue future activities that involve group tasks. Moreover, the fact that we focused on the participation of female students, as women are behind worldwide and trying to develop their skills, was quite a certain thing as this platform can be used to motivate them through training sessions on mapping. Because of the unfortunate COVID-19 crisis, we arranged an introductory session on YouthMappers and the "Let Girls Map” campaign in 2020 via the Zoom application to welcome 20 young female members to the YouthMappers Dhaka University Chapter on October 5, 2020, on the week of International Girl Child Day 2020.
Following the introductory session on YouthMappers and the "Let Girls Map” campaign 2020, YouthMappers Dhaka University chapter got featured in a national daily newspaper on the eve of International Girl Child Day 2020. This really gave us the inspiration to do more as a team and work on humanitarian services in emergencies and build resilient communities.
Mapping is like a golden door of opportunities for us and YouthMappers Dhaka University Chapter has become one of our favorite places as it has made us strong as a group which contains strong female mappers. This chapter is one of the parts of YouthMappers big family tree and its stalks are spreading day by day. On behalf of the Dhaka University chapter, I want to thank YouthMappers with my whole heart for the amazing opportunities and we wish, by being a part of YouthMappers, we will overcome our challenges and live in a better world.
By: Nawshin Afrose
President
YouthMappers Dhaka University Chapter
Bangladesh