A Feminist GIS Approach for Identifying, Mapping and Evaluating Gender Inclusive Features in Urban Public Spaces

Falahatkar, Hawjin

A Feminist GIS Approach for Identifying, Mapping and Evaluating Gender Inclusive Features in Urban Public Spaces

dc.contributor.advisor	Fast, Victoria
dc.contributor.author	Falahatkar, Hawjin
dc.contributor.committeemember	Jacobson, Daniel
dc.contributor.committeemember	Neuhaus, Fabian
dc.date	2024-05
dc.date.accessioned	2024-05-01T17:39:26Z
dc.date.available	2024-05-01T17:39:26Z
dc.date.issued	2024-04-30
dc.description.abstract	This thesis thoroughly explores gender and movement disability inclusion in urban public open spaces, scrutinizing both physical design and digital mapping aspects. It illuminates the unique spatial behavior patterns observed among women and individuals with reduced mobility in urban settings, emphasizing the disparity between these behaviors and their representation in physical design and mapping systems. The study identifies the central concern of current urban designs’ inadequacy in providing safe and equitable access for these groups. Moreover, it recognizes the gender digital divide in mapping systems, where women are frequently underrepresented in spatial datasets, complicating accurate mapping of gender-place relations. To tackle these challenges, the research develops a feminist GIS framework focused on understanding, mapping, and evaluating urban public spaces from a gender and disability perspective. This framework includes defining a data topology containing various gender-inclusive features, collecting multiple data sets to represent these features, establishing a data source hierarchy, and utilizing Esri technology for data collection, mapping, analysis, and visualization. The study produces an interactive map and dashboard, the Inclusive UCalgary Campus Dashboard, to visualize gender-inclusive features and attributes publicly for UCalgary users. Furthermore, it establishes multiple assessment criteria to evaluate the condition of gender-inclusive features within UCalgary’s campus, gauging how UCalgary accommodates the spatial needs of women and those with reduced mobilities. The findings reveal diverse and often fine-scale map features representing women and individuals with reduced mobilities are absent from available datasets resulting in inadequate representation of this group on maps. Through a data source hierarchy, GIS functionalities, and online interactive mapping methods, it is possible to collect, store, manipulate, and map features that are crucial for this group’s space navigation and utilization. Furthermore, the assessment of UCalgary’s campus open space reveals significant challenges in gender and disability inclusion, particularly regarding the uneven distribution of gender-inclusive features and functions across campus areas which adversely affects safety, accessibility, and spatial quality, especially within campus peripheral zones. In conclusion, the study advocates for a purpose-led GIS by redefining the mapping process that prioritizes equity over efficiency. It highlights the feminist GIS framework’s potential to enhance accessibility, safety, and diversity in urban environments for less-represented groups, thereby promoting a sense of belonging and quality of life for all community members.
dc.identifier.citation	Falahatkar, H. (2024). A feminist GIS approach for identifying, mapping and evaluating gender inclusive features in urban public spaces (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/1880/118653
dc.identifier.uri	https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/43495
dc.language.iso	en	en
dc.publisher.faculty	Arts	en
dc.rights	Unless otherwise indicated, this material is protected by copyright and has been made available with authorization from the copyright owner. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.	en
dc.subject	Feminist GIS
dc.subject	Purpose-led GIS
dc.subject	Women
dc.subject	Disability
dc.subject	Gender-inclusive urban spaces
dc.subject	Gender-inclusive features
dc.subject	Inclusive mapping
dc.subject	University campus open spaces
dc.subject	Safety
dc.subject	Accessibility
dc.subject.classification	Urban and Regional Planning
dc.subject.classification	Education--Social Sciences
dc.subject.classification	Geography
dc.subject.classification	Gender Studies
dc.subject.classification	Women's Studies
dc.subject.classification	Computer Science
dc.subject.classification	Physical Geography
dc.title	A Feminist GIS Approach for Identifying, Mapping and Evaluating Gender Inclusive Features in Urban Public Spaces
dc.type	master thesis
thesis.degree.discipline	Geography
thesis.degree.grantor	The University of Calgary
thesis.degree.name	Master of Science (MSc)
ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent	I do not require a thesis withhold – my thesis will have open access and can be viewed and downloaded publicly as soon as possible.