The Moabi is a powerful online tool for tracking information spatially. It is a collaborative mapping system that builds a community of users to share, edit, and discuss issues that could affect the sustainability of critical ecosystems. By linking grassroots civil society working in the field to international organizations based in London, Washington DC, and Beijing, our vision is to build a global community promoting transparency and sustainable resource use in critical ecosystems.
Moabi DRC is the first application of the Moabi tool. It aims to increase civil society participation in REDD+. It helps track the future of forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), providing critical data for predicting deforestation. Moabi allows users to update and share spatial information on new projects proposed by companies, banks, governments, and other agencies. The result is a constantly updated map of projects ranging from new roads and hydroelectric dams to logging and mining concessions.
Moabi DRC uses crowdsourcing to find and update information related to the many projects proposed in DRC. A consortium of non-profit organizations, government agencies, and academic institutes have agreed to share data on development projects that may affect DRC’s forests. We encourage users to check and improve this information, correct mistakes, discuss project details, and share any insights you may have about them. This will allow us to build an evolving, and dynamic map of the many different proposed land and water uses that may affect DRC forests.
From grassroots civil society to international organizations, Moabi aims to build a community working together to improve transparency in development and contribute to the sustainable use of resources in critical ecosystems. It is designed to be very simple and does not require any knowledge of GIS or other mapping software. As we are currently in a testing phase, access is restricted. If you would like to participate please register here.