Geoindigena/Rainforest Foundation
When COVID-19 was detected last spring in Panama, 26-year-old cartographer Carlos Doviaza feared for his "brothers" — not his blood relatives but indigenous people like himself.
He believed the way he could help them was to do what he does best: making maps.
"I thought, why not use my strength to build a platform created by indigenous people for indigenous peoples to show relevant information about the pandemic visually and easily?"
Doviaza didn't go down a traditional path to learn his trade. He had to drop out of college where he was studying computer engineering because he couldn't afford the fees. A true believer in the power of maps, Doviaza taught himself cartography skills and began making maps to help indigenous communities deal with various land issues.