GIS and Remote Sensing for Urban Informality, Slums, and Social Equity Mapping Training Course

Introduction

Understand the complexities of urban growth through spatial lenses in the GIS and Remote Sensing for Urban Informality, Slums, and Social Equity Mapping Training Course. As cities across the globe experience rapid expansion, urban informality and inequality persist as key development challenges. This course equips participants with cutting-edge spatial analysis tools to map and analyze informal settlements, urban poverty, access to services, and social exclusion.

Participants will gain the expertise to generate data-driven insights for inclusive urban planning, integrate satellite and drone imagery to detect slums, and build participatory spatial platforms that inform equitable development. This transformative course supports urban resilience, SDG monitoring, and community-centered spatial justice.

Target Audience

• Urban Planners and Municipal Development Officers
• GIS and Remote Sensing Specialists
• Social Policy Analysts and Researchers
• Civil Society and Human Rights Organizations
• NGOs working in Slum Upgrading and Urban Equity
• Academics and Students in Urban Development Studies
• Data Scientists and Civic Tech Innovators

Duration

5 Days

Course Objectives

1. Explore spatial dimensions of urban informality and inequality
2. Detect and map informal settlements using remote sensing imagery
3. Analyze urban access to services, infrastructure, and housing quality
4. Build participatory mapping frameworks for marginalized communities
5. Apply social equity indicators in spatial analysis and policy formulation
6. Use drone and satellite data to monitor slum evolution and density
7. Integrate community-generated data with official geospatial platforms
8. Create spatial narratives for inclusive and equitable urban governance

Course Content

Module 1: Concepts of Urban Informality and Spatial Inequality

• Definitions and typologies of informal settlements
• Causes and consequences of urban informality
• The role of spatial data in equity and rights-based urban planning
• Global frameworks: New Urban Agenda, SDG 11, and Leave No One Behind
• Ethics and inclusion in spatial data collection

Module 2: Remote Sensing of Informal Settlements and Slum Detection

• High-resolution imagery for urban feature extraction
• Texture and morphology analysis of slums vs. formal areas
• Using Sentinel, WorldView, and drone imagery for mapping
• Automated classification and machine learning models
• Time-series analysis to monitor informal settlement expansion

Module 3: GIS for Urban Social Equity and Infrastructure Access

• Mapping accessibility to water, sanitation, education, and health
• Spatial inequality indices and deprivation mapping
• Hotspot analysis of urban poverty
• Equity gap visualization across administrative units
• Service coverage modeling and prioritization tools

Module 4: Participatory Mapping and Community-Led GIS

• Techniques for community engagement and spatial storytelling
• Tools for mobile data collection and field validation
• Participatory mapping platforms (OpenStreetMap, Mapillary)
• Case studies in citizen-generated geospatial data
• Integrating participatory maps with planning systems

Module 5: Drone Applications in Urban Informality Monitoring

• Low-cost UAV deployment in dense settlements
• Regulations, safety, and flight planning in urban contexts
• Image mosaicking and 3D modeling from drone data
• Building height and density mapping for slum typology
• Using drones for pre- and post-intervention impact assessments

Module 6: Urban Data Integration and Geo-Policy Analysis

• Merging census, household surveys, and satellite data
• Spatial indicators for housing quality and tenure security
• GIS for resettlement planning and slum upgrading
• Vulnerability and exposure analysis for informal communities
• Scenario modeling and policy simulations

Module 7: Platforms for Urban Equity Visualization and Dashboards

• Building story maps and urban equity dashboards
• Tools for web GIS and interactive mapping
• Data disaggregation for gender, age, and disability inclusion
• Integrating maps into urban development policy and advocacy
• Sharing spatial justice data across stakeholders

Module 8: Capstone Project and Spatial Inclusion Lab

• Identify an informal settlement or social equity challenge
• Develop a mapping strategy using appropriate geospatial tools
• Generate visualizations and spatial outputs
• Present equity-oriented recommendations
• Peer review and action planning for real-world application

General remarks

• Customizable courses are available to address the specific needs of your organization.
• The participant must be conversant in English
• Participants who successfully complete this course will receive a certificate of completion from Lenol Development Center.
• The course fee for onsite training includes facilitation training materials, tea break and lunch.
• Accommodation and airport pick up are made upon request
• For any inquiries reach us through info@lenoldevelopmentcenter.com or +254 710 314 746
• Payment should be made to our bank