Country: Uganda

Organization: Green Maps

Year the initiative began: 1999

Project Website: www.greenmaps.org

Positioning in the Mosaic of solutions:

• Main barrier addressed: Lack of local input
• Main insight addressed: Develop community assets

Youtube upload:

What is the goal of your innovation?
The goal of my innovation is to make Tororo city a good place to live in for both the inhabitants and the visitors.

How does your approach support or embody geotourism?
My approach support geotourism in that the Eco-tourist green map of Tororo district and the green map of Tororo municipality that we have made show the picture of how Tororo town looks like. It shows which place to visit while in Tororo most especially the tourist or visitors to the town. The map acts as a guide to tourist. The maps also identifies the major tourist attraction which would be otherwise not been known by the tourist so the Green map promotes tourism in Tororo. The Green maps also promotes community conservation because it shows the important green sites such as cultural sites, Art sports etc as may be seen on the Green maps we have created.

Describe your approach in detial. How is it innovative?
. Our approach starts with creating a green map. A green map is a locally made map of sustainability, natural and cultural resources that utilize green map systems globally shared icons and adoptable tools to create a comprehensive guide for every day green living. Green maps are made by the local people from all walks of life who want to transform their area and create sustainability of the area. Our organization called Liberty conservation and development association have created two green maps in partnership with green map system New York. For any place to be good for humanity to live in, it must have most of green sites which are shared globally. It is the work of the green map makers and the community to change positively their area in order to bring economic sustainability.

What types of partnerships or professional developement would be most beneficial in spearding your innovation?
. The type of partnerships or professional development that would be most beneficial in spreading my innovation would include; Cartographers, graphics, designers and Geographers. It would also require the partnership and support of both local government and central government

In one sentence describe what kind of impact, change, or reform your approach is intended to achieve.
To make Tororo a good place for humanity to live in, help residents identify natural resources and utilize these resources for the economic development.

Describe the degree of success of your approach to date. Clearly define how you measure quantitative and qualitative impact in terms of how your approach contributes to the sustainability or enhancement of local culture, environment, heritage, or aesthetics? How does your approach minimize negative impacts?
To date our approach has success to a small degree in that the Green maps that we have created has been used to raise community awareness about the resources we have in Tororo, what we need to do in order to improve and make Tororo a good place to live in. The green maps have made the community to respect and preserve the tourist sites and they are thinking of creating new tourist site , we have also started some small income generating project such as fish farming and tree planting and this is intended to create more green sites. The approach minimizes negative impacts by involving all sectors of people in the community and thinking and working together.

How does your program promote traveler enthusiasm, satisfaction, and engagement with the locale?
My program promote traveler enthusiasm, satisfaction and engagement with the locale in that the Green map show the traveler in Tororo where to go and get what they need. It makes them have a clear picture of the area and to enjoy all the tourist attractions in the area. Every traveler if he/she have the green map in his/her possession. It provide a very clear guidance and the tour can be planned well. The green map can make the tourist interact with many different locale of the area by visiting different green sites shown.

In what ways are local residents actively involved in your innovation, including participation and community input? How has the community responded to or benefited from your approach?
Local residents have been actively involved in my innovation in that some to them participated in identifying the green sites found in Tororo which are shown on the green map of Tororo. Others have volunteered in the making of the map. As a result of our green map, the communities are more aware of the local economic and environmental issues. they are committed to helping us develop local "green sites: and they are supportive and have contributed their labor in the making of the green map, digging of the fish ponds and tree nursery establishment as the new green sites created.

Describe how your innovation helps travelers and local residents better understand the value of the area's cultural and natural heritage, and educates them on local environmental issues. How do you motivate them to act responsibly in their future travel decisions?
When the green map has been created, it shows all the green sites of the area which include all the cultural, natural heritage, economic, spiritual and environmental sites which help to educate the locals and travelers who visit the area about the care and preservation needed to offer to the sites because those Green sites act as natural resources of the area mapped. The green map motivate the future travelers to make responsible decisions on which areas to visit which are shown on the Green map with attractive tourist sites.

Is your initiative financially and organizationally sustainable? If not, what is required to make it so? What is the potential demand for your innovation?
. The initiative is financially and organizationally sustainable in that the green maps can be sold to tourists who want to visit such mapped area. Since the population is increasing every year in the world, it means that more people need to visit new areas hence the initiative is financially sustainable and demand driven. The initiative does not need a very big number of people to organizationally manage it. Avery small numbers of people say ten can manage it. Tourism is one of the increasing economic sectors in every Country and this makes my innovation here a potential demand.

How is your initiative currently financed? If available, provide information on your finances and organization that could help others. Please list: Annual budget, annual revenue generated, size of part-time, full-time and volunteer staff.
The initiative has been financed by green map system New York. They provided us with technical and material support toward the creation of the green maps. The annual budget for making the green map is estimated to $ 4000 and the annual revenue that can be generated is estimated to $ 3000 depending on the number of tourist who buys the green maps and other green site created which can generate income. The size of the part-time staff is three, full-time five and volunteers 15.

What is your plan to expand your approach? Please indicate where/how you would like to grow or enhance your innovation, or have others do so.
My plan to expand the approach is make a green map of Kampala city and tourist green map of Uganda. This will help thousand of tourist who visit the green map site (www.greenmap.org) to come to Uganda and visit these green sites hence bring a lot of foreign exchange to the Country and as a result economic development will be achieved in Uganda if the tourist sector is promoted.

What are the main barriers you encounter in managing, implementing, or replicating your innovation? What barriers keep your program from having greater impact?
The main barriers I encounter in implementing the innovation is limited amount of funds we had. All the team who created Tororo green map has to work as volunteers first to implement it in Africa. It has not been replicated in many parts of Africa only three countries have replicated it and each country only one small town/area has been mapped. In Uganda I am the only one who has implemented this innovation. The barriers that keep my program from having greater impact is the innovativeness of the approach to tourist industrial development and this needs high awareness to the general public about the importance of the green map to wards the development of tourist industry in African continent and the world over which can help support such an innovative approach to tourist development.

What is the origin of your innovation? Tell your story.
The origin of my innovation is from New York City. Green map making was started by Wendy Brawer who made the Green map of New York City way back around 1997. After making this Green map, she formed Green map system. Other people from other parts of USA and other parts of the world also started making green maps of their town/city. when I got a book published by UN-department of economic and sustainable development in 1999 about the success stories on economic development around the world, I happened to find green map system as one of them. I picked interest and I contacted Wendy E. Brewer who is the founding director of green map systems. She gave me all the technical and material assistance and I talked with some people about the green map and some of them picked interest and we created a green map of Tororo, the first in Africa. The first map was made without the use of a computer and the second edition was made with the use of computer. You can visit www.greenmap.org to learn more about green maps.

Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers' marketing material.
Odulla Joseph, an entrepreneur by heart, teacher and environmental development activist by trade, won recognition for his achievements as the first Green Mapper for ecological and cultural resources in Africa. This recognition came December 2007, during the Global Knowledge Conference where young social entrepreneurs were able to showcase their entrepreneur initiatives to a board of various business developers, educators and policy-makers from around the world. Read more about me

Please write an overview of your project. This text will appear when people scroll over the icon for your entry on the Google map located on teh competition homepage.
Tororo green map project started way back in 1999 with the creation of Tororo green map. Our slogan is “ Think Global, map local.” Our Green map represents locally made images of sustainability related natural and cultural resources that utilize green map icons and adaptable tools to create a comprehensive guide for every day living. Every green map project has a remarkable story behind it, bringing people together, leading to new sustainability out comes and empowering citizens to take actions which can change positively the area they live in. Green sites which are shown on the green map show a visual picture of how the city/town looks like. The green sites that are friendly in the area are preserved and protected and those which are not friendly are demolished compared with other areas the green sites which are missing in the area if possible are created so that the area becomes a good place to live in for the local people and the travelers.

Contact Information
Mr. Odulla Joseph
Your Job Title
Green Maps
Mailing Address
odulla2000@yahoo.com