How it works?

Finding, filtering, curating and downloading relevant datasets can take up a lot of time when doing research on just about any subject. And for regional inequality that used to be no different.

Now, through the Mapineq API, you can gain access to a broad range of open datasets related to this subject. We specifically recommend using the API, if you wish to analyze our curated data in ways beyond the out-of-the-box capabilities of our interactive map. If our platform has helped your research, we do appreciate a citation.

Before using the API, the interactive map and data catalogue can be used in tandem to quickly search through the available datasets, and visualize their contents on a map. To familiarize yourself with these tools, we suggest you read through the tutorial.

Why would data scientists use the Mapineq API?

1. Beautiful and colorful visualizations to bring the point home to your readers. You can map all sorts of differences across Europe or you might want to drill down to very small regional differences within a country. We have it for you on our interactive dashboard with just a few clicks of a mouse. You are then free to embed it into your article.
2. Exploratory sandbox to uncover your next 'scoop' about regional or country-level differences. Our easy-to-use interactive dashboard gives you the freedom to visually explore geographic differences, from country differences in spending to unemployment or cause of death rates in small regions.
3. Go beyond the mundane and obvious to visually show the relationship between two factors. It can be hard to get across the point about how different factors are associated or related to one another. For example, you might know that certain regional areas have high pollution. But so what? The bivariate plot function in our Mapineq interactive dashboard allows you to go beyond just showing that there are certain areas where air pollution is high to graphing the association with multiple outcomes like health, deaths or educational achievement. See our case study as an example.
4. Inspiration from our case studies. Our case studies bring the possibilities to life by discussing a multitude of topics and geospatial possibilities. We unpack examples like pandemic preparedness by geography, the link between air pollution and educational achievement, regional economic uncertainty in the labour market and fertility and how urban green spaces are linked to health outcomes.
5. Multiple reliable measures: Understanding the various measures used to measure regional inequalities is crucial. Using Mapineq Link, journalists can explore multiple metrics such as GDP per capita, income, labour market or even environmental differences such as levels of pollution or green space. Each measure offers different insights into economic conditions and disparities among regions
6. Multiple Data Sources all in one place: Identifying reliable data sources is essential for accurate and good journalism but it is often hard to find the different sources. Journalists need to consider where the data comes from (e.g., government statistics, Eurostat, OECD reports) and its granularity (e.g., NUTS2 level) to ensure that their analysis reflects true regional conditions

Have questions or suggestions?

We welcome you to reach out to us, in case you would like to publish your work on the Mapineq website, or have other ideas to enrich the Mapineq platform.