Final Project Guidelines

Overview

Completion of an individual final project using spatial data and spatial methods is a course requirement.

Working together in groups to support one another is perfectly acceptable, and usually a very good idea. Bouncing ideas off of others almost always improves your work and learning. But each student should produce:

  • an individual proposal
  • an individual project
  • an individual final submission

The goal of the final project is not to save the world in one quarter. The goal is to do something spatial, thoughtful, manageable, and genuinely interesting to you using the ideas and methods from the course.

The Most Important Advice: Control the Scope and Have Fun

Please do not design a project so large that it collapses under its own ambition.

This project can be:

  • the beginning of something more complex
  • one small piece of a larger research project
  • a useful map or analysis for another class
  • a public-facing information product
  • a creative or artistic spatial experiment
  • a careful little dataset you make yourself

It does not need to be grandiose.

Past projects have included things like:

  • mapping edible plants on campus and pairing them with recipes
  • geocoding the lyrics to Beirut and building a browsable globe with audio clips
  • mapping elephant roaming territories from trajectory data
  • creating a printed 3D terrain model of favorite climbing routes

It is all fair game as long as:

  • it is spatial
  • it is manageable
  • you are learning something
  • you are having fun

Start Small

For the proposal stage, I strongly recommend beginning with a maximum of 2 existing datasets.

You do not have to begin with any existing datasets at all. You may be:

  • creating your own data
  • digitizing features from imagery or maps
  • collecting field observations
  • building a small derived dataset from a larger source

But if you do start with existing data, keep the starting point small and understandable.

Project Components Across the Quarter

The final project unfolds in two main stages:

  1. a project proposal due in Week 04
  2. a final StoryMap project submission due at the end of the quarter

Stage 1: Project Proposal

Your proposal should be no more than 1 page or about 500 words.

It should include:

  • a brief explanation of the goal of the project
  • your central spatial question
  • a short overview of relevant or inspiring prior work
  • a very short bibliography
  • a simple proposed workflow or model
  • a description of the data you will need and likely sources

You must also submit:

Proposal File Naming

Use the naming convention introduced earlier in the course:

  • sunetid_final_project_proposal.pdf
  • sunetid_final_project_proposal.docx
  • sunetid_final_project_proposal_aoi.geojson

Replace sunetid with your actual Stanford SUNet ID.

This same naming pattern should continue to be used for similar file submissions in this course.

Stage 2: Final Project Submission

The final presentation of your project should be done using ArcGIS Online StoryMaps.

StoryMaps are an excellent way to create a coherent narrative using:

  • maps
  • text
  • images
  • video
  • multimedia
  • links to data products

All final project submissions should use ArcGIS StoryMaps as the final presentation format.

What You Must Submit for the Final Project

Submit the following:

  1. the direct Share URL for your final ArcGIS StoryMap

You must also make sure that:

  • your StoryMap is properly shared with the Earthsys144 Final Project group
  • any maps and layers used inside the StoryMap are shared appropriately as well

If the StoryMap opens but the internal layers are not shared, the project is still not fully viewable.

StoryMap Presentation Expectations

Your StoryMap should incorporate the following, though artistic license does not require this exact order:

  • a title and header image area, with your name and identifying information
  • a text abstract of your spatial question and area of interest
  • images, media, and an overview map where appropriate
  • an explanation of your methods and workflows
  • final results, with the map or mapped product as the centerpiece of most projects
  • a bibliography and data sources section, ideally in bullet form for readability
  • credits for images, video, and other borrowed media

What the Main Sections Should Do

Spatial Question or Idea

This should clearly explain the "where" of your project and why it matters to you.

Examples might sound like:

  • I am exploring the relationship between proximity to X and the tendency for Y to increase in populations of Z.
  • I am using high-resolution imagery and historic maps to look for buried features in an area I care about.
  • I am creating a small spatial dataset to support a public-facing map or another research project.

The important thing is that the project has a clear spatial focus.

Methods and Workflows

This section should explain what you actually did.

Describe:

  • important choices about data sources
  • why you chose one method over another
  • any cleanup or data carpentry
  • geocoding, digitizing, clipping, joining, masking, classifying, buffering, interpolation, or other methods you used

A step-by-step workflow in text, graphic, or diagram form is a good idea.

Results / Final Product

This is where the final map, mapped product, or spatial output should really shine.

Depending on your project, that may be:

  • a static cartographic map
  • an interactive web map
  • a small analytical model
  • a visual comparison
  • a dataset you created
  • a creative spatial artifact

If you created non-sensitive datasets as part of the project, share them if you can. Github or the Stanford Digital Repository are both reasonable possibilities depending on the project.

Citation and Credits

You should cite:

  • the data
  • the imagery
  • the software
  • the platforms
  • any reproduced figures, maps, tables, or media

At minimum, your final project should include:

  • a bibliography of written sources
  • a separate list of data sources
  • software and platform acknowledgments
  • image or media credits where needed

If you are unsure how to cite spatial data or software, use the course guide here:

StoryMaps Support

For help with the platform itself, use the course support page here:

Details Count

Details will absolutely be noticed.

This includes:

  • spelling
  • formatting
  • image quality
  • readable layout
  • credits
  • consistent citation
  • thoughtful design
  • clear sharing permissions

Little touches matter. Lack of attention also shows.

How the Final Project Will Be Evaluated

The final StoryMap is graded as both an analytic product and a communication product.

The rubric emphasizes:

  • the clarity of the spatial question
  • the quality and transparency of the methods
  • the strength of the final result
  • responsible citation of data and sources
  • overall StoryMap presentation and polish

Final Project Checklist

Before submitting, make sure you have:

  • completed an individual project
  • kept the scope manageable
  • used ArcGIS StoryMaps for the final submission
  • included your spatial question and AOI
  • explained your methods and workflow
  • presented a clear final map or mapped result
  • included bibliography, data sources, and credits
  • cited data, imagery, software, and platforms where appropriate
  • properly shared the StoryMap
  • properly shared the maps and layers inside it
  • submitted the direct Share URL in Canvas

Final Note

The application of these tools will be highly individual, and that is exactly the point. I want your interests, creativity, and sense of what is useful for your own work to drive the final project.

Esoteric ideas are welcome.

Everything is somewhere, and that somewhere matters.

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