Balachander T

Balachander T
Empowering rural development through geospatial technologies
Insights from GeoSmart India 2023 Rural Track on 'Civil Society & Geospatial Knowledge Co-Creation' anchored by Foundation for Ecological Security
Posted on 15 Feb, 2024 04:20 PM

The simplification of access to the Global Positioning System (GPS) via smartphones, along with mapping solutions built to leverage these in the form of easy-to-use apps, has contributed to the widespread adoption of geospatial technologies in the rural landscape.

Composite Landscape Assessment & Restoration Tool (CLART) being used by rural people (Image: FES)
Categorising watersheds for freshwater ecosystem conservation in India
These maps at the watershed scales have been made to not only ensure inclusion of different freshwater ecosystems, their connectivity and hydrological processes, but can also provide a spatial context for conservation decisions. Posted on 25 Nov, 2022 04:20 PM

We invite your feedback and contributions to this article. Please view the maps by clicking the link at the end of the article.

A stream at Anini, Arunachal Pradesh (Image Source: Roshni Arora)
Water works: Keystone’s interventions in the Nilgiris
Keystone Foundation is best known for its work on issues of indigenous people in the Nilgiris. This article details its projects on water over the last two decades, from a water data perspective.
Posted on 07 Apr, 2014 12:50 PM

A village of nine families bounded by a river on one side and thick forests on the other, lived here in Kilcoupe, an Irula hamlet in the Nilgiris. The women went out into the forest in search of water, a risky activity, as there was quite a large chance that they would encounter either a gaur or an elephant, sometimes even a leopard.

A stream flowing through a settlement and farms.
My experience with e-learning courses
Online courses have opened up a world of possibilities for learning while working from virtually anywhere. Explore some of these courses.
Posted on 20 Feb, 2014 12:55 PM

The Internet and mobile revolutions have combined to give birth to whole new generations of tools that put skills that were squarely in the domain of specialists a decade ago, in the hands of laypersons and amateurs.

Massive Open Online Courses
A peak at the future: Simulating Coonoor’s water situation
Using computer simulation, Keystone Foundation demonstrates the impact of domestic use, tourism, plantation and farming on the water situation in Coonoor in the Nilgiris.
Posted on 23 Dec, 2013 03:40 PM

The Nilgiris have undergone an incredible amount of change in the last 10 years. Coonoor, an area well endowed with natural resources, is the second largest tourist destination here. However, over the last year (2012-13), the town has been reeling under a water crisis [1].

Coonoor Land Use Map
Tips for working with spreadsheets
Spreadsheets are ubiquitous and a popular choice for data entry. Here are some tips to use them effectively and to avoid common mistakes.
Posted on 08 Dec, 2013 10:14 PM

Working with spreadsheets
×