Social innovations in Geo-ICT education at Tanzanian Universities for improved employability (GeoICT4e)

Geospatial-ICT technologies are making an impact leap due to globally accessible digital solutions. We are witnessing a massive growth of innovations built on open geospatial data through affordable mobile technologies, and these are tackling major challenges, such as rapid urbanization, degradation of marine and land environments, and humanitarian crises. The number of experts needed is growing, but also the required skills, capabilities and attitudes are changing. Universities need to think that although the future jobs rely on graduates' solid digital data and technology skills, students need to have good conceptual and practical understanding of societal problems.

New generation university graduates need to be competent with the novel technologies, but equally they need to master the interface between technologies’ potential and societies’ emerging needs, working in a multi-stakeholder environment creating innovative and impact-based solutions. Rapidly developing countries have a vast amount of environmental and social problems, especially when looking at them through the lenses of sustainable development. These real world needs are contextual and dynamic in space and time and thus students need to become competent in linking plausible solutions to good practices of sustainability. Furthermore, HEIs must take a proactive and participatory approach to build future education solutions together with these problem-owners. This is a crucial and crosscutting element of successful transformation of HEIs education towards faster and agile ‘service learning’ solutions with real impacts in the society.

Authors and Affiliations – Niina Käyhkö (1), Department of Geography and Geology, University of Turku (UTU), Finland Mercy Mbise (2), College of ICT, University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), Tanzania Zakaria Ngereja (3), Department of Geospatial Sciences and Technology, Ardhi University (ARU), Tanzania Makame O. Makame (4), Department of Social Sciences, State University of Zanzibar (SUZA), Tanzania Ernest Mauya (5), Department of Forest Engineering and Wood Science, Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Tanzania George Matto (6), ICT Department, Moshi Co-Operative University, Tanzania Eeva Timonen-Kallio (7), Faculty of Health and Well-being, Turku University of Applied Sciences, Finland Romi Rancken (8), Department of Bioeconomy, Novia University of Applied Sciences, Finland

Track – Education & research

Topic – Education

Level – 2 - Basic. General basic knowledge is required.

Language of the Presentation – English