After years of collecting and analyzing traditional and gridded population household survey data, I am convinced that LMIC surveys which include complex, dynamic cities require maps of deprived urban areas in their sample designs to produce unbiased estimates of population indicators. Not only are slums, informal settlements, and other deprived areas a large and rapidly growing segment of LMIC populations, they are regularlly omitted or under-represented in the censuses which serve as survey sample frames and the foundation of most gridded population data.
I helped to establish and grow the Integrated Deprived Area Mapping System (IDEAMAPS) Network, a diverse, global community of practitioners and decision-makers who need deprived area maps in LMIC cities for planning, development, and human rights. As the IDEAMAPS Network coordinator, I help to build bridges of discourse and collaboration among diverse disciplines and stakeholders including data scientists, urban planners, and “slum” community advocates and data collectors.
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