Introduction to Mapmaking with QGIS

As a GIS 101 tutorial, review of this resource is prerequisite for attending all other GIS and Mapping workshops facilitated by the Research Commons.

This resource provides an overview of mapmaking with QGIS, a free and open-source Geographic Information System (GIS) for analyzing, modifying, and visualizing spatial data. By the end of this short overview, you will:

1. Understand what a GIS is, and the advantages to using QGIS;
2. Be able to identify different kinds of spatial data;
3. Differentiate between reference maps and thematic maps; and
4. Be familiar with the QGIS interface, having downloaded the software and practiced setting up a QGIS project.

The skills and concepts introduced by this resource are fundamental to mapmaking with QGIS. Reviewing this resource, either by working through it asynchronously on your own or by attending a 1-hour facilitation of its content, is prerequisite for attending any of the Research Commons GIS and Mapping workshops. Once you’ve reviewed this resource, we invite you to attend any of UBC Research Commons’s mapping with QGIS workshops (colored teal in the Events Calender here):

• Intro to Map Production with QGIS
• Reference Mapping with QGIS
• Thematic Mapping with QGIS
• Tools and Workflows in QGIS.
• Plugins with QGIS

While you are welcome to register for upcoming workshops, please take an hour to review the following material prior to the workshop date. That way, we can spend all our time learning new skills together!

GIS Resources at UBC:

• UBC Library guide for finding and working with GIS resources: guides.library.ubc.ca/gis
• Archive of Research Commons workshops
• Research Commons Events Calender for upcoming facilitated workshops
• Contact UBC Library’s Geospatial team: library.gis@ubc.ca
• Schedule a 1:1 consult with the geospatial team here

This workshop was authored by Lily Demet and reviewed by Alex Alisauskas.