This participatory mapping project was begun with the goal of giving voice to historically marginalized populations in Latin America by spatially, temporally, visually, and audially recording details of sexual assault and harassment through a Smartphone application (app). Through collaboration with UWEC’s Department of Geography and Anthropology, Latinx and Latin American Studies (LAS), and the Immersions Office, the app prototype was completed in 2022. The app was beta-tested during the summer of 2025 through an Immersions Office partner institution, the Universidad de Congreso in Mendoza, Argentina. Ms. Avery Dresel, a Spanish-speaking LAS and Geography student, and Dr. DeGrave, are now working with the Department of Computer Science to redesign the app based on the feedback from focus groups of university students in Argentina. Ms. Dresel played a key role in capturing the thoughts, ideas, and reflections of these students while openly and successfully addressing our colonial presence and positionality in Argentina and in the representations of local input into the app.
