About Aripo

About For Aripo By Aripo

Image taken from Open Street Map of Aripo Village

Blog Purpose:

This blog serves to document the activities and experiences of the Participatory Mapping Project of Aripo Village, Heights of Aripo through the eyes of Annabella Thorne, a CCRIF Intern at the Department of Geography, UWI St. Augustine. During my time at the Department, I will be blogging about the progress and activities of the project. 

Project History:

Sunset on the Cerro Del Aripo Mountain covered by clouds.
(A. Thorne, 2016)

The Department of Geography was approached by a member of the community to help Aripo in the development of the area with some technical expertise. The Department's role in this project is to provide technical assistance to help the community  understand what resources they have and to provide the  community with a tool to make more informed decisions for their socio-economic development. Once Aripo Village completes the Participatory Mapping process and the Department digitizes the  map for them, the community can look to approach NGOs, investors and the Government with a tool to contribute to their community development plan. 

The Participatory process allows the community members to be at the forefront of the mapping process. Additionally, Participatory Mapping brings people together, brings a grass-roots perspective and the local knowledge from the residents. The Department seeks to set the ball rolling for facilitating the conversations with in the community and encourage the community to have focused conversations which deal with issues affecting Aripo and solutions to move their community forward.  When completed, the community will receive the digitized map of their work and can use it for further plans and projects.
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