screen shot of map
The Office of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has unveiled a new web mapping tool that shows confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus in proximity of mid councils and congregations.
“The OGA has developed this application in order to spread accurate information among its members and constituents, in an effort to help Presbyterians be a connectional church and find one another in the midst of this crisis,” said Vicente Guna, manager of technologies.
The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at the Whiting School of Engineering (Johns Hopkins University) provides and maintains data on confirmed cases of the virus, which they made publicly available through the ArcGIS online platform, with technical support from ESRI and the John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
“You can click on any element of the map to get updated information on mid councils/congregations contact information and COVID-19 cases,” Guna said. “You can also activate or deactivate layers on demand or perform different queries and searches on PC(USA)’s data.”
The Reverend Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the PC(USA), says the mapping tool provides another means of helping churches and church leaders stay informed.
“As this virus continues to spread at an alarming pace across the country, we want to be able to share as much information as we can with mid councils and church members,” he said. “This new tool helps zero in on where the greatest need is.”
Information about the U.S., China, Canada, and Australia is shown by province/state, and data on the rest of the world are provided by country. Click here to access the mapping tool. All PC(USA) information and web application is provided by the Office of the General Assembly, with the support of ESRI. You can also check the CSSE’s full dashboard here.