The Sourland Conservancy’s geographic information systems analyst, Kevin Burkman, will present Putting the Sourlands on the Map at the Sourland Conservancy’s Train Station Series seminar on Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. Participants will learn about the digital map-making process and how Burkman developed the Sourland Conservancy Online Atlas, the new interactive mapping application which is now live at sourland.org.
Since 2013, the Sourland Conservancy has commissioned numerous mapping projects related to open space analysis and hiking trails. In 2014, when Burkman was serving as a Sourland Conservancy trustee, he began a project to produce maps for all of the 25 hike sites in the Sourland region.
Earlier this year, the Conservancy released a bound booklet, the Sourland Region Hiking Atlas, that included those maps and information about the sites. These projects have become the basis for the Conservancy’s latest mapping project – the Sourland Conservancy Online Atlas, its first online interactive mapping application.
The Sourland Conservancy Online Atlas features numerous interactive map layers and detailed information related to the natural and human history of the Sourland region. These layers include hiking trails, historic and cultural Sites, open space analysis, changing landscape, natural resources, Sourland Spectacular, partner organizations and vendors, and PennEast pipeline.
A member of the board of Sourland Conservancy’s sister organization, the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum, Burkman unveiled The Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum’s Mapping Application for African American Places, Culture and History in May. That interactive mapping application was awarded 2nd place for Best Web Mapping Application in the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s 2018 Mapping Contest. The app is online at ssaamuseum.org.
