DK GIScience

Scientific profile:

Karl Atzmanstorfer holds a MSc in Applied Geoinformatics and a MSc in Geography, History and Political/Social Sciences from Salzburg University. Additionally he has successfully completed classes in law, regional management and spanish.

His scientific interests are centered on the use of GIS in Participatory Planing with a regional focus on Latin America. He worked on the application of GIS in Public Health Planning (internship at UNAN Leon, Nicaragua) and on the development of a GIS-model for environmental niche detection that was designed to support the diversification of tropical smallholder agriculture with high-value crops (Master Thesis at the International Center of Tropical Agriculture, CIAT, Colombia). Since 2009 he is coordinating the postgraduate distance learning program UNIGIS in Latin America (http://americalatina.unigis.net). Futhermore he is giving support to the participatory capacity building initiativeAmazonGISnet, an indigenous-lead initiative for the local and regional planning of the Ecuadorian Amazon Provinces, and other community based (GIS-)projects in Ecuador.

These initiatives clearly showed the urgent need for developing new tools and methods for participatory urban planning and the provision of public services. Based on these experiences, the proposed PHD analyzes the theoretic foundations as well as existing geospatial web-applications for partipatory spatial planning in order to provide a sound scientific background of this pressing issue for municipalities, planners and other decision makers.

Research Cluster: Time and Process / Spatialization, Media and Society

PhD Thesis Topic: Participatory Urban Planning with Geospatial Web Applications

Abstract: This PhD-thesis investigates whether or not the use of geospatial web-applications influences decision making processes in participatory urban planning and the provision of public services. It analyzes existing approaches that allow citizens, communities and municipalities to collect feedback, report and discuss ideas, solve problems and monitor small-scale urban planning processes using geospatial-web applications.

Based on a critical discussion on the realms of Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI), Public Participatory GIS (PPGIS), Usability and User Experience, geospatial web-technologies and empowerment, the main research questions are centered on the major discourse if such technology support can enhance two-way communication between citizens, public administration and other stakeholders of urban planning processes and may ultimately empower citizens and municipalities to better manage their communities.

Existing geospatial web-applications are analyzed according to a set of Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for participatory planning frameworks and long-term experiences on real-world applications are derived from interviewing expert scholars and platform operators. This conceptual work should provide better insights how geospatial web-applications and their fundamental frameworks should be designed in order to make urban planning processes more transparent and legitimated by the affected citizens.

Publications:

Eitzinger, A, J. Cock, K. Atzmanstorfer, C.R. Binder, P. Läderach, O. Bonilla-Findji, M. Bartling, C. Mwongera, L. Zurita-Arthos & A. Jarvis (2018). GeoFarmer: A monitoring and feedback system for agricultural development projects. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture (in review)

Atzmanstorfer, K., Marin, B., Mossos, N. & D. Rivera (2017). Disenio del Proceso de Evaluación de usabilidad para la aplicacion movil geociudadano. In F. Vargas Agudelo, D. Soto and J. Giraldo (Eds.), Investigacion e Inovacion en Ingenieria de Software (pp. 9-19). Universidad Tecnológico de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia.

Atzmanstorfer, K., Eitzinger A., Marin B.E, Parra Arteaga, A., Bryan Gonzalez Quintero, B. and R. Resl (2016). HCI-Evaluation of the GeoCitizen-reporting App for citizen participation in spatial planning and community management among members of marginalized communities in Cali, Colombia. GI_Forum 2016, Vol. 1, p. 117-132.

Bartling, M., Sotelo, S., Eitzinger, A. and K. Atzmanstorfer (2016). Press the Button: Online/Offline Mobile Applications in an Agricultural Context.  Paper presented at the GI-Forum 2016, University Salzburg. DOI: 10.1553/giscience2016_01_s106 GI

Atzmanstorfer, K., Resl, R., Eitzinger, A. & X. Izurieta (2014). The GeoCitizen-approach: Community-based Spatial Planning. An Ecuadorian Case Study. Cartography and Geographic Information Science CaGIS, 41, 3, pp. 248-259.

Pantoja, A., Eitzinger, A., Salazar, C., Tello J.J., Atzmanstorfer, K. & R. Resl (2014). Integración de Servicios de Mapas de Google Maps y ArcGIS Server en la Plataforma Web GeoCiudadano. Paper presented at the XVI Simposio Internacional SELPER 2014, Medellin, Colombia.

Atzmanstorfer, K. & T. Blaschke (2013). Geospatial web: A tool to support the empowerment of citizens through e-participation? In C. Nunes Silva (Ed.), Handbook of Research on E-Planning: ICTs for Urban Development and Monitoring (pp. 144 - 171). Hershey, PA: IGI-Global.

Atzmanstorfer K. & R. Resl (2010). Diseño de Curriculum de SIG para la Demanda Professional en Latinoamérica. Paper presented at the ESRI User Conference Latin America 2010, México D.F., México.

Atzmanstorfer K. & R. Resl (2009). UNIGIS in Latin America 1999-2009: Experiences of a Distance Education Program for GIS in Latin America. Paper presented at the International Cartographic Conference (ICC), 2009, Santiago de Chile, Chile.

Atzmanstorfer, K. (2007). GIS-based analysis of cowpea adaptation to Colombian hillside environment - exploring opportunities for high value crops. Master Thesis. Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät der Universität Salzburg.

Atzmanstorfer, K., T. Oberthur & P. Laderach et al. (2006). Probability Modelling to Reduce Decision Uncertainty in Environmental Niche Identification and Driving Factor Analysis: CaNaSTA Case Studies. In P. Zeil & S. Kienberger (Eds.), Geoinformation for Development. Conference Proceedings. University of Salzburg, Austria.

Research Areas:

PPGIS (Public Participatory GIS), Spatial Planning in Latin America, VGI (Volunteered Geographic Information), Geo-Web Tools, GIS in Higher Education