Community mapping process

When mapping resources, activities, challenges and demographics of a community, ensure full inclusion of all at-risk groups in the exercise, to ensure you capture a comprehensive picture of disaster risk the community faces.

To make the community-mapping process inclusive:

• Invite a wide range of people from different at-risk groups to the exercise, including women, men, girls and boys with and without disabilities, of different ages and from different groups within the community.

• To enable equal participation of persons with diverse types of disabilities, hold the exercise in an accessible venue, ensure the process is accessible for persons with visual disabilities, provide sign language interpretation for deaf persons where relevant and persons who are hard of hearing (which could be provided by family members) and make sure the process is easily understandable for persons with learning disabilities. 

• Representative organisations of persons with disabilities, older people and other marginalised groups, should be engaged in the process from the beginning.

• Use accessible means of communication during the meeting and in the preparation and follow-up to enable engagement of all community members.

• The map’s accessibility should be kept in mind from the beginning. Consider: Tactile, high-contrast colours, large print, showing points with signs and placement of map on appropriate high as per need.

• Where it is not possible to specify physical place for map, a large topographical map can be drawn on the ground, board or large piece of paper, however it is important to elaborate physical features to all community members, especially to those who have difficulties seeing, hearing etc.

• While highlighting physical features in the map, make those points, visible where physical accessibility for persons with disabilities, older people is an issue. 

  • High-risk areas such as riversides, deep wells, highly upward/downward elevated surfaces and dangerous places. 

  • Highlight places of interest for different at-risk groups: accessible resource centres, health facilities, accessible evacuation roots, accessible water points, distribution desk, etc. 

• The documentation and conclusion of the mapping process should highlight points of interest and concern of different at-risk groups.