#Jon Thirkield
##Stems and Branches: Gender Gaps and Divisions of Labor in Africa
####No matter how wide the gender gap may be, we should never forget the dependency between men and women--as mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers--that lies at the root of a country's culture. This interactive visualization allows us to view the fragile balances between a country's economic well-being and roles of men and women in its labor force. ###Research Question How can data on gender gaps in the labor force be viewed against broader economic indicators for a country and a region?
###Description While gender gaps are deeply embedded in each country's and each region's cultural life, they are also affected by a variety of economic, political and social forces. This interactive visualization is a tool for investigation different types of gender-based data across country and region, and comparing those gaps to broader socio-economic indicators.
###Methodology This chart employs both wage and business/labor data sets for men and women, and charts them against broader indicators for a country such as HDI rank and poverty head count ratio. The design works to highlight the divide between men and women, while never loosing sight of their inherent connection and dependance on each other.
##Schoolhouse Africa: A Learning Map
#####Can you find Chad on blank map? Lestho? Eritrea? This application looks at education in Africa through many lenses: from the data to the actual schoolhouses. ###Research Question How can we understand education on as many levels as a map and provide? How can education data actually create the experience of education?
###Description This project seeks to harness the power of interactive mapping by creating various lenses and scales through which we can learn about education via Africa's rich and diverse geography. The project is a learning app, a game and a data aggregator in one. It allows users to explore the continent, learn its geography and explore various levels and types of data.
###Methodology The process of building this map was a learning process in itself. The ability to view blank satelitte map and draw the political boundaries can become a type game that brings us deep into educational life in Africa. The goal of the map is to open up our knowledge of education life in Africa, from the broad picture of country-wide data, to the more specific an qualitative realities of schoolhouse life. My goal with this project is to crowdsource pictures of schoolhouses all over Africa to get us as close as possible to the tactile reality of school life across the African continent.