Bioregional Mapping
Characteristics
Characteristics and Scope of Bioregional Mapping
Mathias Rollot:
1. Water, Watershed
This can refer to a body of water (river, stream, lake, ocean…), a water point (natural or artificial lake…), a territory (watershed…), or even the ocean (a shoreline, an island…).
2. Geology, Soils, Subsoils
What defines the place? Is it plains, valleys, mountains, cliffs, unique landforms, or particular soil types (rocky, desert, sandy, fertile)? Are there also significant subsoil features (traces of the Roman Empire, magnificent cenotes, bunkers, tunnels, and other remnants of World War II)?
3. Vegetation Profile
Is there a generally identifiable vegetation type (forests, shrubs, garrigue…)? What are the region’s emblematic plant species? Are coniferous or deciduous trees more common? This category considers both quantity and quality, as well as the cultural imagination tied to vegetation.
4. Human Settlements
What cities, villages, or metropolitan areas define this "home"? This includes urban centers, local shops, workplaces, and distinctive landmarks in the landscape—ranging from classified heritage sites and monumental castles to old ruined mills, beautiful bread ovens, and abandoned factories.
5. Fauna
What is the totem animal of this place? Are there invasive species, welcome exotic species, or native animals that are part of the collective imagination? This could include real animals (deer, vultures, beavers…) or mythical creatures (Yeti, Dahu, the Grésivaudan Wolf…).
6. Infrastructure
What about infrastructure? What should be represented in terms of:
- Energy infrastructure (nuclear power plants, wind farms, solar panel fields…).
- Transport infrastructure (major highways, viaducts…).
- Industrial infrastructure (major industrial zones, semiconductor or nuclear arms industries, gas or fuel storage…)—even if these exist against our will.
7. Agriculture
Is the landscape dominated by vineyards or organic orchards, vast monoculture fields dependent on chemical inputs, or industrial mega-farms for pigs or battery-raised chickens? Are there small-scale local farming practices that are ethical and ecologically sound?
8. Communities
This layer represents the structuring human relationships within this shared "home": your friendships, sources of stability and comfort, and their geographical locations relative to other elements. It also includes neighborhoods you avoid out of fear or people you see as responsible for major social or environmental destruction. This is the "psycho-social" layer, mapping people and places. It’s also an opportunity to identify and name local communities that are "disanchored"—those prevented from participating locally due to exclusion, landlessness, or marginalization.
9. Outbound Relations (Human)
This represents relationships with human and non-human life that extend beyond this mapped "home." Through outward-pointing arrows at the map’s edges, one can place key external relationships (e.g., grandparents who take care of your children every summer, your German boss you meet via video calls, etc.).
10. Inbound Relations (Material, Food, etc.)
This final category covers inbound flows of objects, materials, and energy—things essential to daily life but originating elsewhere (imported clothing from Bangladesh, a phone made in China, extra-European gas used for showering, cooking, and heating, etc.)."
(https://topophile.net/savoir/cartographie-bioregionale-la-methode-101/)