Photo: A school teacher pauses to admire the flight of a soaring hawk over our urban farm, where I work recycling organic waste for customers. “Greg, all I want to do is teach students where food really comes from. It’s not like you can find a potato chip tree.” She resumes working the topsoil, normally as a lesson plan at this time of year for 4th-graders who would be here, learning about where food comes from. Starting with the soil. However as school is closed, we still have a fantastic opportunity to leverage technology for place-based experiences, our opportunity starting next week will be livestreaming classes so students can have a “virtual-garden” classroom from a physical location.
As everything is closed, except essential services, how can we as Local Guides continue to provide our viewers with content for inspiring places on Google Maps? While Google has some exciting initiatives Teach From Home tools for educators, Kate Brandt, Google Sustainability Officer, shared How to see the World When You’re Stuck at Home by Leif Larsen.
Leif, who has been a Google Street View enthusiast for the past 10 years has been using this feature as a way “to travel” while maintaining good social distancing practices in response to COVID-19 virus. Once everything settles he will be inspired to visit locations, physically where notes and reviews that we have written will help drive customers, visitors, and travelers from near and afar.
Yet, what if Google Maps had a “Go Live” option? As I prepare to meet with educators tomorrow morning in a teleconference call on livestreaming for an actual urban farm, how may this inspire others to visit urban farms more, volunteer, or even have their own plot to grow local food?
What about Google Local Guides Conference in October? What if those selected will not be able to be there physically, is there another livestreaming tool just in case where we can virtually be together?
As you reflect on the many places you have visited (while you will not necessarily go there right now), think of ways to improve Google Maps platform where other tools of thought can be applied to locations (like a livestreaming feature). Or is something like a livestreaming feature on Google Maps worth it?
I think it is worth a shot. I know that once our feature goes live next week, students will never look at the urban farm in the same way; in fact they may Google search urban farms in their travels one day.