European Prominent Authors on a Story Map (BIO-MAPS)

Abstract

BIO-MAPS is a transdisciplinary Erasmus+ project exploring the connections between geography and European literary heritage through digital cartographic storytelling. It utilizes the Digital Storytelling Map (DSM) technique with ESRI®'s ArcGIS StoryMaps tool to visualize the lives and works of selected literary authors writing in Spanish, Hungarian, Portuguese, and other European Union languages. In a context where digital humanities gain relevance, this project serves as a reference, demonstrating how geography effectively integrates humanities and social sciences teaching. It harnesses digital cartography’s potential to uncover how significant places and journeys influenced these writers’ lives and creations. BIO-MAPS’ primary objective is to awaken awareness and motivation among high school students and teachers regarding European literature and its creators. Each participating center meticulously selected classical and contemporary authors, applying various biographical research methods reflected in a digital cartographic narrative. This process has shown that cultural heritage generates economic resources and fosters key competencies, including linguistic communication, cultural awareness, digital proficiency, and spatial skills. It reveals location’s potential across diverse disciplines promoting European citizenship education through geographical space. The project culminates in an online Map Library housing stories of all selected authors, accessible through a story map at: https://arcg.is/0j4GLC