My name is Tirik Ford and I am a
senior Geography major conducting research in the fields of climate change,
hydrology, and cartography. This is my third semester with OSCAR and for the
previous two semesters I conducted research, as a research assistant, under Celso
Ferreira in the George Mason Flood Hazards Research Lab (FHRL). My research has
always centered around climate change and sea level rise; and this semester I
brought this critical research analysis closer to home at GMU’s Fairfax Campus.
As a Geography major I always
strive to present data visually through maps or different types of
infographics. Once I discovered the ESRI “StoryMap” platform, I realized that
this kind of interdisciplinary analysis has not been performed on our Fairfax
Campus. Watershed analysis has been performed on our campus, but a Watershed
map with live action videos, pictures, and groundtruth had never been
performed. This sparked my interest and subsequently led to me creating a Story
map for the entire campus community.
A StoryMap is a GIS (Geographic
Information Science) software that brings mapping and multimedia under one
program. Throughout my research I conducted geographic surveys, while also
taking photos and videos of the surrounding areas I was gathering data. This
allows for a more realization for the people viewing my research.
While taking surveys and videos
of the GMU watershed, I realized that the research I’m conducting could be used
for many platforms including research, news, and other public awareness projects.
This led me to believe that creating this StoryMap will better inform the
surrounding public of our watershed and other hydrological influences that our
campus houses. With my longterm goal being mitigating the effects of climate
change, an informed public is key to achieving this goal!
