2017 ICT4D Conference

A geographic perspective helps us to make informed, respectful, and sustainable planning decisions in a way that blends values and scientific information. GoodLands’ Catholic Geographic System provides the means for understanding Catholic communities’ location, a mechanism for managing this information, and a hub to leverage this information for the benefit of many. Our development of a location platform and application of a geodesign framework allows us to accomplish these goals as we work with Catholic communities to initiate positive change and local partnerships.

We partnered with Esri, the leaders in Geospatial technologies, to develop the first phase of our Catholic Community Enterprise GIS System, which enables data sharing among users if desired in a manner that is respectful of privacy and security needs. Catholic NGOs, religious orders, and dioceses will have access to the relevant catholic data resources they need to effectively plan. Through that process we developed the largest geodatabase of global catholic information. We are currently providing GIS and planning support for telecommunications strategies to share Pope Francis’ message of tenderness to Africa.