Author: Andrea Binn

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Shape2Gether: Final conference and project wrap-up

After three years of collaboration, the Erasmus+ project Shape2Gether is coming to an end. Together with six European universities and the industry partner Seppo, the Research Unit Cartography explored new approaches to teaching and learning, focusing on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and climate change in Europe. Shape2gether brought together expertise in sustainability and climate education, innovative technologies, game-based learning, and geosciences, with a strong emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration. A key aspect of the project was the active involvement of students, who were not only participants but co-creators throughout the process.

Students took part in three international summer schools in Trondheim/Tautra (Norway), Malta, and Bochum (Germany). Each summer school addressed different aspects of the project: in Norway, the focus was on immersive technologies such as VR/AR and on-site exploration to better understand climate processes; in Malta, students engaged with local sustainability challenges and Education for Sustainable Development in a regional context; and in Bochum, the emphasis was on developing serious games and interactive formats related to structural change and sustainability.

Based on these co-creative experiences and the continued collaboration of the project team, Shape2gether evaluated innovative teaching approaches and is developing learning materials aimed at empowering students as “Agents of Change” in the context of climate change and sustainable development.

All project results, including developed learning formats, digital applications, and game-based approaches, will be presented at the Shape2gether Final Conference, taking place on May 21, 2026, in Olomouc. The event is free of charge. For further information and registration, please visit our project site.


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Where Cartography meets industry

We are happy to announce the online event “Where Cartography Meets Industry – Trust in Mapping,” bringing together leading organizations, including the International Map Industry Association (IMIA), the International Cartographic Association (ICA) with Prof. Georg Gartner, the British Cartographic Society (BCS), and the Cartography and Geographic Information Society (CaGIS).

Join insightful discussions on advancing geo-ethics and exploring strategies to build trust in various aspects of cartography and mapping businesses. The online event is scheduled for April 24, 2024, from 5 to 6:30 PM (CET); admission is free of charge. For further information, visit:https://imiamaps.org/events/wcmi-2024/.

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Shape2Gether workshop in Vienna

We recently concluded a workshop at TU Wien as part of the Shape2Gether project with all eight project partners. Shape2Gether aims to advance education by integrating geosciences, technology, and serious gaming to address climate change and its effects on Europe. During the workshop, we focused on laying the groundwork for three upcoming summer schools in Norway, Malta, and Germany, preparing to welcome students. Each university partner will send four students to accompany us to each summer school.

We’re looking forward to the first summer school scheduled for May 2024 in Tautra and Trondheim, Norway. The summer school will provide students with an immersive educational experience, including hands-on activities like VR, on-site exploration, and group work as an interdisciplinary, international team.

For more information and updates on the project, visit our project webpage.

Shape2Gether project leader Vít Pászto
© Jiří Pánek
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In maps we trust!

We are pleased to share that the latest issue of the ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information features an article by Prof. Georg Gartner and his co-authors, Olesia Ignateva, Bibigul Zhunis and Johanna Pühringer, as the cover story.

“Conceptualizing and Validating the Trustworthiness of Maps through an Empirical Study on the Influence of Cultural Background on Map Design Perception” explores how cartographic modelling fundamentally shapes map comprehension and trustworthiness analysis. It also outlines key aspects of map trustworthiness and proposes an epistemological approach to research, demonstrated through an empirical study.

To read the paper in full, visit https://www.mdpi.com/2220-9964/13/2/39.

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EuroCarto 2024

We are very pleased to announce that the European Cartographic Conference EuroCarto 2024, will be held from September 09-11, 2024, at TU Wien in Vienna, Austria. The conference is co-organized by us, the Research Unit Cartography at TU Wien, the International Cartographic Association (ICA) and the German (DGfK), Austrian (ÖKK), Swiss (SGK), British (BCS) and Czech (ČKS) Cartographic Societies.

We aim to bring together Cartographers and those working in related disciplines to offer a platform for discussion, exchange and stimulation of research and joined projects. If you are interested in participating or contributing to EuroCarto 2024, visit our conference website for general information.

We look forward to welcoming you to the beautiful Vienna and celebrating Cartography!

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Shape2Gether Project Kick-off Meeting

From October 25 to 27, 2023, the three-year EU-funded Erasmus+ project Shape2Gether kicked off in Olomouc, Czech Republic. Managed by Palacký University Olomouc, this project unites institutions and experts across Europe, including the Research Unit Cartography at TU Wien, Ruhr University Bochum (Germany), University of Malta (Malta), Turku University (Finland), Utrecht University (Netherlands) and Lentävä Liitutaulu OY (Seppo gamification platform) (Finland). 

The core objective of this project is to explore and implement educational methods for sustainable development, with a particular focus on addressing the challenges presented by climate change and its effects on Europe. It does so by uniting three distinct areas of expertise: geosciences, new technologies, and serious game design. The ultimate aim is to establish a forward-thinking international master’s program in the following years.

We are very happy to be a part of this innovative project!

Shape2Gether project team at the kick-off meeting in Olomouc
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Doctoral defense of Wangshu Wang

Wangshu Wang has successfully defended her dissertation “Please Follow the Signs: Considering Existing Navigational Aids in Indoor Navigation Services “.

Prof. Georg Gartner from our Research Unit Cartography was her supervisor, while Prof. Liqiu Meng from the Technical University of Munich and Prof. Haosheng Huang from Ghent University were the reviewers.

Congratulations, Dr. Wang, and all the best for your future!

Prof. Georg Gartner, Dr. Wang and Prof. Huang
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DigiGeo Final Conference in Olomouc

We are pleased to invite you to the concluding conference of our Erasmus+ project, DigiGeo, which will take place on May 24th 2023, in Olomouc. We aim to bring together students and scholars who share an interest in the field of Geosciences within higher education. Specifically, we`d like to explore the impact of the virtual/online/digital transformation era we experienced due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

For more details, visit DigiGeo Conference.

© Vít Pászto | Palacký University Olomouc
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Henry Johns Award for Florian Ledermann

Congratulations to Florian Ledermann for winning the Henry Johns Award of the British Cartographic Society, awarded yearly for the best paper published in The Cartographic Journal. Florian’s paper “The Effect of Display Pixel Density on the Minimum Legible Size of Fundamental Cartographic Symbols” was chosen as the best paper of the year 2022.

“Part of my family has roots in the UK, so receiving this award from the British Cartographic Society means a lot to me, also on a personal level.” Florian will invest the prize money of 100£ to expand his personal collection of cartographic books and atlases.

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Second Summer School of the Erasmus+ project DigiGeo

The COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing demand for online education have highlighted the importance of implementing digital approaches in education. In response, the EU-funded ERASMUS+ project DigiGeo has emerged, bringing together the Research Unit Cartography and four international partner universities from Czechia, Norway, Finland and Germany. Together, we are exploring new ways to transfer contact, technology- and field-based geoscience education, which typically requires in-person attendance from both teachers and students, into digital environments.

One aspect of the DigiGeo project is to involve students with their perspectives and ideas. Last week, the second summer school within the project took place at Palacký University in Olomouc, attended by 24 students and 14 lecturers from the respective partner universities. Building on theoretical knowledge and methods presented in earlier online lectures and small workshops, the students worked collaboratively, with the support of all lecturers, to develop new, fully digital thematic lessons for online geoscience training.

We thank all students for their active participation and valuable contributions to this summer school!
For more insights on the project, visit the DigiGeo website.

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