Google Earth for Landowners: Insights from Hands-on Workshops

Google Earth is an accessible, user-friendly GIS that can help landowners in their management planning. I offered hands-on Google Earth workshops to landowners to teach skills, including mapmaking, length and area measurement, and database management. Workshop participants were surveyed at least 6 months following workshop completion, and learning outcomes as well as landowner application of Google Earth were assessed. Participants made significant gains in Google Earth skill level immediately following workshop completion, but longer-term skill retention was variable. Most participants found Google Earth to be a valuable tool for a variety of land management purposes.