CartoShop: Inviting Interdisciplinary Research through GIS Mapping Workshops

Abstract

The Indiana University Libraries' Scholars’ Commons, a space dedicated to facilitating interdisciplinary research at any stage, offers a variety of workshop series designed to support graduate student research. Workshops are presented by librarians and library partners to foster creativity, teach new tools, and support students throughout their tenure at Indiana University. Workshop series include “Supercharge Your Dissertation”, “What to Expect When You’re Expecting Your MLS”, “Maker Mondays”, and “CartoShop”. This chapter offers a case study for supporting interdisciplinary graduate student research with geospatial tools and methods. Through the CartoShop series, participants learn to use mapping tools such as: ESRI StoryMaps, CARTO, ArcGIS, QGIS, and OpenStreetMap. IU Libraries’ partners also lead workshops on 3D mapping and local geospatial data storage and discovery. These workshops are meant to introduce researchers to mapping tools more broadly and to demonstrate how these tools can be used for specific projects and initiatives. Locating these workshops in the Scholars’ Commons encourages graduate students from all disciplines to participate and enables students without departmental geospatial resources to engage in geospatial research and projects. CartoShop workshops are a low barrier entry point to learning about Geographic Information Science (GIS), and frequently result in continued one-on-one consultations with the GIS Librarian. These workshops and consultations present opportunities for the librarian to make further connections for students with additional library services and research tools. While the CartoShop workshops teach graduate students specific tools and skills, they are also a valuable outreach tool for engaging with graduate students from a wide variety of disciplines.