Barbican Citizen Science Documentary
On 6th March 2015 Hannah posted in Featured, News
Air pollution levels in UK cities are much worse than many of us realise. London, unsurprisingly, is no exception. Mapping for Change have been working with residents in the Barbican Estate, City of London, to measure air quality levels since October 2013. To celebrate our achievements, we have produced a short documentary about the project processes, and our shocking findings.
Space to Grow Old In: Mobility in Kilburn
On 4th March 2015 Hannah posted in Events, Featured, News
Yesterday morning, Mapping for Change ventured out of the office to attend one of the lively Kilburn Older Voices Exchange events; Older people and the street environment. Keen to discuss issues with accessibility, and factors which influence people’s decisions to get out and about in their local community, we met at a snowy West Hampstead station and headed towards the Kingsgate Resource Centre.
Transport Stories: Taking Steps Towards Accessibility!
On 25th February 2015 Hannah posted in Featured, News
Bored of being unable to board? Mapping for Change have been busy creating a Transport Stories Community Map, which will enable you to report the accessibility problems you face when using public transport in and around London.
The Busy Roads of Southend
On 18th February 2015 Hannah posted in Featured, News
As we get older, there are various personal, social and environmental factors which may limit the amount we go out and about in our local area. One of these relates to the physical layout of our neighbourhood, particularly how walkable it is, at a time when we start to become less mobile. This week, Mapping for Change have been in Southend-on-Sea, to begin our investigation of how the local community responds to the area’s busy main roads. Extreme self-control also saw us resist the temptation to eat fish and chips! We hope you’re as proud of us as we were.
Lessons in Accessibility: UCL Try It!
On 13th February 2015 Hannah posted in Events, Featured, News
It may sound obvious to state that universities should be accessible. Of course, all education should take place in sites where everyone feels encouraged and able to participate, regardless of age, gender or background. However, there’s a more fundamental aspect to the term accessibility, but it’s one that is not always considered. This is the accessibility of a university’s built environment, and that is what UCL Try It! aimed to explore here in London.
Try It! The UCL Access Challenge
On 30th January 2015 Hannah posted in Events, Featured, News
On February 12th, Mapping for Change will be participating in a series of activities designed to raise awareness about access issues on the UCL campus.
Accessibility Questionnaire
On 23rd January 2015 Hannah posted in Events, Featured, News
Are you a wheelchair user, or someone who uses another type of mobility aid to get around? Will you help us out by sharing your expertise and experiences?
Here at Mapping for Change, we’ve been busy working on one of our current projects, My Accessible EU. This project aims to develop digital tools, such as mobile phone applications, that will enable people to collect and share information about accessibility in European cities. Part of this will involve the creation of applications to help plan journeys and navigate when on route. To ensure these tools are as beneficial as possible, we need insights and feedback from people like you!
Communities Embark on Air Quality Mapping
On Hannah posted in Events, Featured, News
After receiving £1000 funding in November, Mapping for Change called for up to four communities to conduct air quality monitoring work in their local area. Each community would undertake a month-long monitoring process during February 2015, placing plastic diffusion tubes in strategic areas to measure nitrogen dioxide levels.
Participatory Mapping at School of Trainers
On 20th January 2015 Louise posted in Featured, News, Training
Last weekend MfC were in Poland training participants from Meritum School of Trainers in the use of participatory mapping techniques. Armed with the new skills trainees hit the streets of Ligota to explore what local residents felt about their community. Using a mixture of paper-based maps, photographs, and video interviews to capture local perceptions, participants went on to collate their findings on the new Community Maps platform.
DisabledGo Study – Evidence of Inaccessible British High Streets
On 8th December 2014 Louise posted in Featured
A new DisabledGo study published on December 7th 2014 highlights the inaccessibility of the British High Street to disabled people – the research underlines the importance of the MyAccessibleEU project that Mapping for Change are currently working on with our EU partners to improve the availability of on-line accessibility information. The DisabledGo research, which spanned across 30,000 shops and restaurants nationwide, found that less than a third of departments have accessible changing rooms, two thirds of retail staff have no training in how to help disabled customers and 40% of restaurants have no accessible toilet. The news comes as Britain’s 12 million disabled people begin their Christmas shopping and head out to celebrate the festive season with their work colleagues and friends. Find details of the DisableGo research in their following press release: