Nama Budhathoki maps out the future
“We need to grow the culture of working together to fix the problems facing Nepal.” That’s the word from Nama Budhathoki, PHD ’10 FAA, who has made it his mission to create an open source map of Kathmandu using satellite imagery, as thousands of Nepalis are still in need of medical treatment and basic supplies following the deadly 2010 earthquake.
“We need to grow the culture of working together to fix the problems facing Nepal.” That’s the word from Nama Budhathoki, PHD ’10 FAA, who has made it his mission to create an open source map of Kathmandu using satellite imagery, as thousands of Nepalis are still in need of medical treatment and basic supplies following the deadly 2010 earthquake.
A University of Illinois alumnus, Nama Budhathoki, is using open source mapping to help put relief workers in the areas they are needed most. Budhathoki – who studied the use of open mapping for his doctoral studies and received a Ph.D from the U. of I. in urban and regional planning in 2011 – is executive director of Kathmandu Living Labs. While studying at the U. of I., he saw how much open source mapping was used following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.
