The Mapmaker Who's Saving Lives In Panama's Pandemic

When COVID-19 was detected last spring in Panama, 26-year-old cartographer Carlos Doviaza feared for his "brothers" — not his blood relatives but indigenous people like himself.

He believed the way he could help them was to do what he does best: making maps.

"I thought, why not use my strength to build a platform created by indigenous people for indigenous peoples to show relevant information about the pandemic visually and easily?"

Doviaza didn't go down a traditional path to learn his trade. He had to drop out of college where he was studying computer engineering because he couldn't afford the fees. A true believer in the power of maps, Doviaza taught himself cartography skills and began making maps to help indigenous communities deal with various land issues.

"I have learned that data and maps often are more powerful than words," says Doviaza, who was born and raised in an indigenous village