Data Visualization: Developing a Map-Based Activity Tracker

Our goal for this Taproot project is to create a lightweight, low-cost (ideally free) map-based solution that allows us to visually represent campaign activities taking place across the world —particularly around the 26th June, which is the yearly Global Day of Action— using data we already collect in an Excel spreadsheet.

We coordinate a global campaign with over 300 local partners. Each year, these partners organise hundreds of actions across dozens of countries. At present, activities must be uploaded manually into a paid mapping service, which is no longer financially sustainable and is extremely time-consuming for a small team.

With the support of a skilled volunteer, we would like to:
- Identify and implement a map solution that can be updated from an offline Excel or Google Sheet
- Automatically display activities by city and country, without requiring specific addresses
- Allow users to click on a city to see multiple activities, including basic descriptions and whether events are public or private
- Embed this map cleanly into our existing WordPress website
- Ensure the solution is easy to maintain by non-technical staff

If possible within scope, we would also welcome light advice on improving how related content (such as campaign photos or featured activities) can be better surfaced on the site — though the map itself is the core priority.

Volunteers would be working with a clear dataset (approximately 300 activities) and a well-defined use case, with an expected time commitment of 2–5 hours per week over a limited number of weeks.

Through working with our organization on this project, the volunteer will support our mission by helping us make visible the scale, diversity, and impact of grassroots organising worldwide.

Our campaign’s strength lies in its reach and in the work of local organisations — most of them based in the Global South — who organise under challenging political and social conditions. At present, we are no longer able to adequately demonstrate this growth or platform these efforts in a meaningful way.

A functional, accessible map will:
+ Publicly acknowledge and amplify grassroots organising
+ Help partners feel connected to a global movement
+ Clearly communicate campaign reach and legitimacy to decision-makers, donors, and allies
+ Reduce the administrative burden on a very small team, allowing us to focus on advocacy rather than manual data entry

This project directly strengthens our ability to tell a collective story of global mobilisation in pursuit of human rights, social justice, and alternatives to the 'war on drugs'.

My team and I have prepared for this project by:

- Securing internal buy-in to implement the solution directly once developed
- Identifying a single point of contact (Juan Fernández Ochoa, Campaigns & Communications Manager) to coordinate the project
- Preparing and maintaining a clean spreadsheet containing all relevant activity data
- Involving our webmaster, who maintains the WordPress site, and who will support implementation and long-term upkeep
- As a small, highly motivated team, we are committed to making good use of the volunteer’s time and ensuring that the outcomes of this project are actively used and maintained after the engagement ends.