If you're one of our regulars here at ResourceShelf, you know that we are map junkies. There is no such thing as Too Many Maps. So we are...happy, happy, joy, joy that the database at the UNEP/GRID-Arendal Maps and Graphics library currently contains more than 1,000 items.
The mission of GRID-Arendal is to provide environmental information, communications and capacity building services for information management and assessment. Established to strengthen the United Nations through its Environment Programme (UNEP), our focus is to make credible, science-based knowledge understandable to the public and to decision-making for sustainable development.
OK, so that is a mouthful...typical mission statement. Actually, there's a whole lot of stuff available on/from this website besides the maps and graphics library, including:
But we, of course, are drawn to the maps and graphics library time and again. You'll find some surprising things here. On a recent visit, the Random Graphic of the Day (lower right side of the page) was a color coded world map: Mobile phones per 1000 people. Provided by the World Bank, this map is part of a special collection/publication called Vital Waste Graphics. But...mobile phones? That seems strange...until you consider the worldwide problem of e-waste. Something else we like -- Random Graphic of the Day is available as an RSS feed.
We also liked the world Map of the Moment, at the upper left on the page -- Biodiversity loss: state and scenarios 2006 and 2050. As with the Random Graphic of the Day, extensive information about the map is available right below it, including information on how it can be used "in presentations, web pages, blogs and reports," and whom to credit.
Over on the lefthand side of the page, you can browse the library by region, by theme (biodiversity/conservation, disasters/natural hazards, freshwater, pollution, urban issues, climate change, environment and security, marine issues, poverty, waste), or by collection, e.g.
Most of the UNEP/GRID-Arendal maps and graphics have been published in a project, publication or web-site.
A simple keyword search box is here; searching for e-waste generated 164 different maps/graphics. Alas, searching for ewaste turned up nothing, so obviously this is not the most sophisticated search tool. Be resourceful and try different spellings, synonyms, etc.
Below the search box is a small collection of direct links to interactive maps, such as Globalis mentioned above. At the bottom of the lefthand navigation panel are some links to the most recent maps/graphics added to the library. These are cool; if you mouse over them, you get a preview of each item. And an RSS feed is available.
Don't use RSS? You can subscribe to Random Graphic of the Day or Latest Graphics by e-mail, from the News and Feeds page. If you scroll down to the bottom of this page, you'll find links to "Random Graphic Widgets" that you can display on your desktop, blog, MySpace page, etc.
A family of resources to help information workers be more effective, raise the value of information in their organisations and contribute to success. Read more »
Recently I have found myself cooing over visualisation maps (and heat maps) of health and well being resources. The content rich data is overlayed with mapping technologies, and some interesting themes and patterns are emerging.
A lot of the talk around social media in the last year has been around information overload. Social media has provided us with new and exciting ways to create content. But it has also meant learning new ways to manage and engage with social media tools. Are we teetering on the edge of an information overload precipice?
Information overload is a figment of your imagination. Or a failure of your filter. Or a symptom of your technological submissiveness. Depends on who you ask.
What if you had to sort through 3.5 million articles and social media posts a day and try to pull out the most relevant items for your organisation? What if you then had to cobble it all together into something readable for your top groups and executives in your organisation?
Alacra Compliance saves time by aggregating information from both free and fee-based sources and enabling users to conduct an accurate federated search across these sources (coined “simultaneous search” by Alacra).
FreePint Family
Quilting big data threads
The fallacy of information overload
Information overload: fact, fantasy or filter failure? 
