Lab 3: Mapping Progress in Havana and Vernon

Natalie Clemens & Brienne Hayes

We will be choosing between two “platforms” for use in our final project presentations. ESRI StoryMaps and podcasting technology.  Below is a small sample of projects that focus on place/a geographic location – similar to our project on SDSU’s history.

Answer the following with your partner(s):

1. What are the list of common elements in these digital history projects using ESRI StoryMaps?

• Images
• Written narrative connecting the visual elements
• Information is arranged linearly
• Interactive maps displaying multiple dimensions of data
• Empirical Data
• Explicit connections between the history and contemporary issues

2. What might that list of elements include?

• Current images of the location
• Maps displaying relevant geographic information
• A cohesive narrative that frames the research question and walks you through the evidence
• The Havana Storymap is essentially an article that uses informational overlays on the same map to communicate the effects of restoration projects in the old city.
• The delivery of the story flows well and doesn’t make assumptions about the reader’s knowledge of the economic/architectural heritage preservation situation in Havana, Cuba.

3. What’s missing?

• Audio/video
• Primary documents (the preservation plan is referred to but not shown)
• Drill down–ability to dig deeper about general claims made in maps
• Hyperlinks exhibiting the information displayed
• The Vernon website offers a summary of research efforts using a variety of media, but does not put forward an argument about that research.
• While the Havana website concentrates on a much larger area than the Vernon website, the Havana website provides more depth for its place.