This might be the first time I did a double post with Open-Source Solutions for Geospatial Analysis. Slightly different focus for slightly different interests.
I am working remotely this week with a focus on writing about geospatial and storytelling. The first 4 chapters are in the hopper so to speak and I think I have broken through the chapter 5 inertia. Inertia mainly because after an additional year of travel and conversation across the globe — my perspective on many things has evolved.
Understanding narrative and story is important on so many levels. First, it is how we connect. Think about those ice-breaker questions you are often asked in interviews or during conference calls. What you choose to reveal will illuminate an angle of your persona not typically on display.
Recently I was sharing my routine when visiting new cities across the globe. As soon as my scheduled talk is ready to go — I lace up my sneakers and pick a running routine from Strava. It seems like the best way to get to know a city from my perspective.
Well, my colleague and lunch companion shared his less conventional approach. Observe people passing in a popular area and discreetly follow them for a few hours. Where do they go, whom do they see, are they heading out for lunch or to a job — who knows? He does lol.
Think of something in recent memory that has stayed top of mind. Are there details that make the memory persist? Lingering questions? Assumptions you have to make for the retelling? Or is it in the knowing? A familiarity perhaps…
This is my favorite piece of storytelling from cinema:
Here are the titles of the two books I quickly referenced in the short video;
Expecting to be inducted into the army to fight in World War II, Joseph has given up his job and carefully prepared for his departure to the battlefront. When a series of mix-ups delays his induction, he finds himself facing a year of idleness. Saul Bellow's first novel documents Joseph's psychological reaction to his inactivity while war rages around him and his uneasy insights into the nature of freedom and choice.
The book is divided into four chapters, and each chapter serves a different purpose. Deals with a different pain. Heals a different heartache. milk and honey takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look.
*Amazon associates receive a few pennies for purchases through these links — feel free to find the titles in your favorite book store or library
Udemy course…
Storytelling with geospatial data
quantitative insights from economics, ecology, geopolitics, infrastructure, and sustainability
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