What follows is a sampler of mapping content developed between May of 2015 and August, 2016. The 2014 Census ACS estimates were published in early 2015 and an updated version of the maps that use that information is planned.

Estimated Population growth in Texas, 2010-14

http://tlc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=54cd84881e5c420091fc7068bc2632d3

An updated version of this map will be important for redistricting in 2021.  The two color themes reflect counties above and below the rate for the whole state, and dramatic changes in population distribution will bring into play reapportionment issues within the state (this will especially affect state representative districts post-2021).

2014 American Communities Survey, selected variables regarding employment and poverty, health insured rates.

http://caminante.neocities.org/sleepless.html

The two ACS maps are hosted on services licensed to the Texas Legislative Council and are public.  However, they can be redacted at any time by that organization.  The application is after a template made available by Kristian Ekenes at ESRI (the demo version showed education rates by census tract in the Seattle area).  The blue lines are congressional districts.

Farmers market locations

http://www.arcgis.com/apps/Viewer/index.html?appid=f8c71a07b4984c13b04cee29c0a16c66

This application, hosted on caminante’s ESRI account, presents a curated layer showing Farmers’ markets,  a 2016 map showing access to grocery stores (from which one infers the existence of a “food desert,” and a background showing the ESRI community tapestry, which characterizes socioeconomic profiles of census tracts.  Because of the density of the data, some of the layers are scale-dependent and only become active when you zoom in to a larger scale.  At the scale of the entire US, for example, it makes more sense to present a heat map showing general locations than to attempt to show all the farmers’ markets in the country at once.  As you zoom in individual locations will show up.

The Uprooted—An ESRI Story Map

https://storymaps.esri.com/stories/2016/the-uprooted/

This cascading document presents the story of the uprooted, global refugees and internal migration.  It also presents a timeline to March, 2016 of refugee migration, and also tells the story of the miracle of human resilience, in the example of the Zataari refugee camp, which has turned into a prospering city.

This formatted–a cascading story–has potential as a particularly useful journalistic tool.

All of the documents can be viewed on a tablet such as an iPad.  However, the cascading document is best viewed on a PC.  Use the mouse wheel to scroll through the application.