My My engagement as a Google Local Guide was prompted by a lesson of benevolence and tolerance that I learned during my childhood in my local village in Bamumbu in the Southwest region of Cameroon. I was thought as a kid that anyone, in order not to miss out their way when adventuring in the dense equatorial forest, would carry a cutlass and cut grass to mark a trail as they move along, so that they may easily find their way back home afterwards by walking along the previously cleared path created in the bush.
I was inspired to establish landmarks that would provide orientation and useful information for identification as well as encourage other persons to develop interest in various locations on our beautiful
planet earth.
In a community like mine where the use of the internet is still remote, it is still very difficult getting useful directions about places. I therefore embarked on improving on the visibility of as many locations as possible on Google Map.
Initially, I was just interested in localising my church building on the map, but I later on realised that many other locations were not visible as well. I eventually applied to Google and got geospatial coordinates and localised my office and my county bookstore. Gradually, as interactive as the Google platform is, thanks to the Android platforms, I began receiving requests to make highlights on local sites as I moved around. The more I answered the question, the more the passion to do more grew. I hope to continue and grow in my experience.
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