By Tasbiha Fatima Hasan 

Writer/Reporter

A dataset can tell us that extreme heat exists. A map can help us understand where it overlaps with the people, land and resources affected by it. 

That difference became especially clear to me while exploring environmental applications of GIS at the 2026 Esri User Conference in San Diego. 

One example presented at the conference focused on Kenya. A GIS-based application displayed a suitability-analysis interface where users could examine geographic areas while incorporating multiple variables. 

The demonstration included agricultural information such as the percentage of farming households and total agricultural land alongside a climate extreme-heat estimate. Rather than examining each variable separately, the application demonstrated how different layers of information could be considered together geographically. 

For an environmental science student, this was an especially interesting example. 

Environmental challenges rarely involve only one variable. Heat, water, vegetation, agriculture, population and land use can interact with one another. Understanding those relationships therefore requires more than simply knowing the average value of a measurement. 

We also need to know where it is happening. 

Imagine two regions experiencing similar temperatures. Their vulnerability may be very different if one contains significantly more agricultural land or communities whose livelihoods depend heavily on farming. Spatial analysis provides another dimension for investigating those differences. 

Caption: An ArcGIS Hub suitability analysis of Kenya demonstrates how agricultural and climate data can be combined and weighted to identify priority areas for planning and decision-making. Photo courtesy of Tasbiha Fatima Hasan, Esri User Conference 2026. 

Caption: Tasbiha Fatima Hasan with Heidi Marshall, Geospatial Specialist at Ducks Unlimited, during the Esri User Conference 2026 in San Diego. Photo courtesy of Tasbiha Fatima Hasan.