Please join us for a mapping party to celebrate OpenStreetMap(OSM) Geography Awareness Week 2015! OSM GeoWeek is a global series of events to highlight OSM and the importance of geographic education, and we want to celebrate with you. The purpose of this event is to actively contribute to OpenStreetMap (we'll have a training for beginners), but we'll also hear  remarks on the importance of open geographic data in humanitarian and international development work from top government and institutional leaders and OSM community members: 

• Carrie Hessler-Radelet, Director of Peace Corps

• Evan Ryan, Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs

• Cori Zarek, Senior Advisor for Open Government at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

• Joshua Ogure of Map Kibera and Open Schools Kenya

• Nama Budhathoki, Director of Kathmandu Living Labs

• Marc Forni, Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist for the World Bank

• Chad Blevins of the USAID GeoCenter

• Drishtie Patel, GIS Analyst and Missing Maps Coordinator for the American Red Cross

Please bring a laptop and create an account at www.openstreetmap.org. Beverages, pizza (including vegan pizza) and cake pops provided. 

We'll also have a virtual OSM training and participation option -- just register as a virtual participant and we'll follow up with instructions on how to join our fete via Google Hangout.

Universities, schools, businesses, non-profit organizations, governments and communities around the world will hold dozens of OpenStreetMap events this November 15th-21st. In November 2014 The Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT), National Geographic, the U.S. State Department (MapGive), USAID (GeoCenter), the Peace Corps, Missing Maps and the World Bank’s Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery collaborated to inaugurate the first OSM GeoWeek.