Maptime #4: Geopolitics & Borders (and D3.js)

Maptime #4: Geopolitics & Borders (and D3.js)!

Maps are by no means objective: mapmakers leave things out, remove details, and exaggerate certain other map features. Maybe this does not matter too much when Google Maps decides to not display your favorite restaurant on the map (or does it?), but it can change the lives of people when it comes to the exact location of a county's border. Maptime #4 is about borders: what are they, how do they look, what problems do they cause, and finally, how to make a geopolitical map.

Maptime #4 will start with a talk from Prof. dr. Henk van Houtum. Henk van Houtum is Research Professor Geopolitics of Borders, University of Bergamo & Associate Professor Geopolitics and Political Geography of the Radboud University Nijmegen and Head of the Nijmegen Centre for Border Research (NCBR).

In this talk, Henk van Houtum will focus on the art of what he has coined 'Cartopolitics (https://compasstocartopolitics.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/houtum-remapping-borders.pdf)': Whilst maps are often represented with static and fixed lines, borders are much more controversial than a neatly fixed borderline on a map. Not only global movements of people, information and good happen cross-borders, but also borders provide the basis for ideological or identity divisions. Over the years politico-territorial projects (e.g., empires, the (colonial) nation state or separatist movements) have employed maps to create geographical imaginations that promote epistemic violence and conflicts. As a new academic terrain, cartopolitics builds from critical geopolitics, border studies and critical and radical cartography. Van Houtum will make a plea to free the map from political statecraft and political cleansing in favor of artistic, creative and democratic mapmaking. There is a need for what he calls 'c/artography', a reintroduction of art in cartography. To this end, he will argue to make a radically new collection of maps, no longer termed after the God Atlas, but after the God Hermes.

For more information, see:

• henkvanhoutum.nl (http://henkvanhoutum.nl/)

• Compass to Cartopolitics (https://compasstocartopolitics.wordpress.com/)

• Van Atlas naar Hermes (https://compasstocartopolitics.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/vhoutum_geografie2013-6.pdf)

Afterwards, photographer Hans van der Meer will tell about his project Document Nederland 2014: The Netherlands - Belgium. Document Nederland is a yearly exhibition, commissioned by The Rijksmuseum.

From rijksmuseum.nl:

Two hundred years ago, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed when Belgium and the Netherlands became one state under King William I. For Document Nederland, Hans van der Meer created a photographic record of striking differences in the border area between the Netherlands and Belgium, two countries that have developed in completely different directions since their separation in 1830. An exhibition about Dutch planning, individual Belgian housing and the relationship between citizens and government in their battle to shape their communities.

More information:

• hansvandermeer.nl (http://www.hansvandermeer.nl/)

• Document Nederland 2014 (https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/document-nederland-2014)

And finally, we'll work on an animated border map, using D3.js (https://github.com/mbostock/d3/wiki/Gallery). D3.js is an amazing JavaScript data visaulization library, which can also display and manipulate cartographic data. To see how powerful D3 can be, please have a look at the gallery on D3's homepage. All this power comes at a price, of course: it takes a little while to fully understand how D3 works, especially if you've never used JavaScript (or another programming language) before. For Maptime #4, I'll work on an step-by-step tutorial, to make sure everyone will be able to create a functional animating map, the tutorial will cover how to get the source data, how to export the data we need, how to create a simple HTML web page and use D3 and CSS to visualize and animate the map.

Maptime is, rather literally, time for mapmaking. Our mission is to open the doors of cartographic possibility to anyone interested by creating a time and space for collaborative learning, exploration, and map creation using mapping tools and technologies.

Maptime is hands-on, so don't forget to bring your laptop! All skill levels are welcome.