Section: Module 4 - Extracting information from GIS | Cities Spatial Model Training | Short Courses

Main course page

  • General

    • About the course

      This online training course provides a practical, in-depth introduction to the Cities Spatial Model, designed for policymakers, urban practitioners, analysts, and researchers working on city planning and economic development. The course builds a clear intuition for how the model works and why spatial and equilibrium effects matter for urban policy.

      Participants will learn what data the model requires, where to find reliable sources, and how to clean, structure, and manipulate datasets into the formats needed for analysis using QGIS and R. Step-by-step guidance is provided on running the model in R, interpreting outputs, and using visual tools to explore results. The course also focuses on how to communicate findings clearly and effectively, translating technical outputs into policy-relevant insights that can inform real-world decisions. There is also an option to use the Shiny app interface - enabling users to upload data and run the basic model without any coding whatsoever. 

      By the end of the course, participants will be equipped with both the conceptual understanding and practical skills needed to apply the Cities Spatial Model to real urban challenges, supporting better-informed, evidence-based planning and investment decisions.

    • Meet your instructors

      Nick Tsivanidis - Associate Professor of Economics, UC Berkeley and IGC Cities Research Programme Director

      Nick Tsivanidis

      Maria Del Mar Gomez - Research Analyst, Cities Spatial Model

      Maria Del Mar Gomez - Research Analyst on the Cities Spatial Model

      Daniel Ruiz Palomo - Research Analyst, Cities Spatial Model

      Daniel Ruiz Palomo

    • Group training

      If you are looking for something more interactive, please join one of our quarterly training groups. As part of a group, you will follow the content over a week-long structured programme, including access to moderated peer discussions, a live support webinar with one of the instructors, and a capstone project to put your training into practice. The courses will start on the following dates:

      2 March 2026 [This group is now full, please select another date]

      1 June 2026 [This group is now full, please select another date]

      7 September 2026

      30 November 2026

      You can sign up here.

      Please note: Certificates are not issued for this course. The training is designed as a learning and knowledge-sharing opportunity, with an emphasis on practical understanding and application.

Module 3 - Data sources
Module 5 - Running the model in R or the Shiny app

Module 4 - Extracting information from GIS

  • Module 4 - Extracting information from GIS

    •  
      Objectives
      • Understand the core GIS operations required to extract model relevant spatial information.
      • Process vector and raster data to describe land availability, population distribution, and employment location.
      • Define spatial units and calculate travel times between them using GIS tools.
      Before you continue

      This module is highly practical and almost entirely based on work inside QGIS.

      You will perform detailed spatial operations such as cleaning datasets, reprojecting layers, intersecting boundaries, dissolving polygons, and generating travel time matrices.

      The workflow presented here is one structured way to prepare data for the Cities Spatial Model. It is not the only way. Many alternative approaches, tools, and technical pipelines exist. We focus on QGIS because it is transparent, widely used, and accessible.

      This module is for you if
      • You want hands on experience preparing real spatial data.
      • You want to understand how land area, population, jobs, and travel times are constructed before running the model.
      • You plan to build your own city dataset from scratch.
      This module is probably not for you if
      • You only want to run the model with pre prepared inputs.
      • You are not willing to install and use QGIS.
      • You are looking only for theoretical explanations of spatial models.

      In that case, you can continue to module 5. 

    • Module contents

    • Interactive content SCORM package
    • Discussion on using GIS operations Forum
      Not available unless: You belong to any group

    • This data pack accompanies the tutorials in this module and contains all the files needed to follow the steps shown in the videos. It includes administrative and spatial unit layers, thematic GIS datasets, and example files used throughout the demonstrations.

      The data pack allows you to work through the different tutorials in the module step by step, using the same datasets shown on screen. Download the folder before you open the interactive module and keep the files accessible as you watch the videos, so you can pause, replicate each operation, and explore the data in QGIS as you go.

    • Additional resources

Module 3 - Data sources
Module 5 - Running the model in R or the Shiny app