Platial GIS
Exploring how geospatial systems can move beyond space to incorporate the lived experience of place.
Exploring how geospatial systems can move beyond space to incorporate the lived experience of place.
Platial GIS extends traditional geographic information systems by integrating subjective, cultural, and experiential dimensions of place. Rather than treating the world purely as coordinates and geometry, platial approaches foreground meaning, identity, and lived experience. For walking research, this opens the possibility of representing not only where routes exist, but also how they are perceived and valued by walkers.
Platial GIS creates opportunities to design systems that reflect the diversity of human experience. For instance, routes can be enriched with qualities such as safety, tranquillity, or cultural resonance. Participatory mapping allows communities to embed their own narratives and priorities into data structures, while integration with open data and sensor streams supports dynamic and adaptive representations of place. In research, platial GIS provides a framework for linking qualitative accounts with quantitative models, bridging the gap between humanistic and computational perspectives.
By combining spatial precision with platial richness, walking systems can move beyond efficiency to support engagement, inclusion, and well-being. This represents an important methodological and technological frontier in the design of future walking infrastructures and applications.