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School students attending a ��ɫ��Ƶ Geography lecturer’s summer camp completed the programme equipped with ‘in-demand’ digital skills and hands-on experience of top geographical technologies.

More than 60 school students, aged 10 to 16, recently attended Carlow College, St Patrick’s to participate in this immersive digital skills summer camp, designed and led by , Assistant Professor in Geography ��ɫ��Ƶ.

Now in its second year, and supported by local schools and county partners, the camps are designed to empower young people with critical digital and spatial analysis skills, using real-world environmental and cultural data relevant to their communities.

Participants of the week-long programme learned how to use Google Earth Pro to map environmental change in their local area; create StoryMaps to tell narratives about biodiversity, local climate risks, and heritage sites; use RStudio to visualise geospatial data; and, using the geographic information system QGIS, analyse spatial datasets to explore topics like green space distribution and sea-level rise.

The students also had the opportunity to learn from local professionals, with representatives from the county heritage office, climate action group and museum invited in to host guest sessions. This also afforded students the chance to engage with datasets from their own region.

Dr Darkwa explained the objectives behind the camps, all of which align with national digital literacy strategies, the UN Sustainable Development Goals (especially SDG 4 – Quality Education, and SDG 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities), as well as UL’s commitment to engaged scholarship.

“The camps were created … to equip young people with in-demand digital and geospatial skills; to increase environmental and heritage literacy through hands-on mapping and storytelling projects; and to strengthen engagement between university teaching and practice and local communities on sustainability, climate, and cultural awareness,” said Dr Darkwa.

The impact of this year’s camps reached far beyond the walls of the classroom and into the wider community. Of the 60+ participants who produced digital projects, mapped biodiversity loss, and documented local history, many had no prior experience with coding or geographic technology and left equipped with new skills and competencies. 

The students’ projects also earned praise from local representatives, with the local council’s climate action team expressing an interest in incorporating some of the youth-led visualisations into their public engagement strategies.

“These camps align with UL’s strategies for digital inclusion, climate education, and youth engagement. They support local efforts under the Climate Action Plan, particularly in raising public understanding of climate data, and contribute to our university’s third mission by offering community-based, accessible education initiatives. It is also evidence of innovation and impact in teaching, outreach, and community partnership,” explained Dr Darkwa.

“The camps exemplify how geospatial technologies can serve as a bridge between academia and community, building capacity in young people and strengthening our shared sustainability goals.”

Dr Darkwa wishes to acknowledge the following individuals and organisations:

• Dr Gourav Misra, School of History and Geography, ��ɫ��Ƶ
• Dr Eoin O’Sullivan, Heritage Officer, Carlow County
• John McDarby, Carlow County Museum
• Jannete O’Brien, Environmental Awareness Officer, County Carlow
• Stephen Dargen, WakeUP, Carlow
• Gemma Russell, Kilkenny
• Kate McHugh, Carlow
• Siobhan Cleary, Department of Justice and Equality