AbstractGeographic Information Systems: Instruments for Control or Public Empowerment?Track: State and Local Government Author A GIS is only as good as the database it represents. A GIS often excludes important subjective aspects that are crucial for understanding the experience of individuals and communities. There is a creative tension in the literature between traditional GIS processes and more "critical" methods that have come to be known collectively as PPGIS (Public Participation GIS) or PGIS (Participatory GIS). PGIS approaches provide unique approaches for engaging the public in decision making by: incorporating local knowledge; integrating and contextualizing complex spatial information; allowing participants to dynamically interact with input, analyze alternatives; and empowering individuals and groups. In this presentation, traditional, deductive GIS mapping strategies useful for quantitative analysis of data are compared to inductive PGIS methods that provide for subjective perceptions and qualitative understandings of individuals and communities. Daniel Collins Arizona State University School of Art PO Box 871505 Tempe, Arizona 85287-1505 United States Phone: 480-206-2037 Fax: 480-965-8338 E-mail: dan.collins@asu.edu |