Jonathan Riley

As part of a study abroad program at the University of Michigan during my Master’s degree, I was paired with South African legal advocacy nonprofit Social Justice Coalition (SJC) to conduct some spatial analysis and produce a website highlighting the illegal evictions happening to people living in informal settlements by government authorities. This work was highly collaborative and involved stakeholders from multiple organizations, including Social Justice Coalition, Ndifuna Ukwazi, and Reclaim the City. The result was a website that included research, resources on occupant legal rights, and analysis for policy researchers interested in how laws are social constituted by both governments and residents.

The process involved multiple data deep dives and reconciling nondescript government data with shapefiles and raster files available through third parties. Many of the layers we used for analysis we had to generate ourselves. Some of the most interesting findings occurred at district scale, where we conducted analysis using satellite imagery to convey growth of informality. After we completed these tasks, I aggregated the findings and data onto a simple website that I manage and update at the request of our stakeholders.