“Mapping Informal Settlements with OpenStreetMap Data: Integrating Urban Morphology and Topology for Slum Detection”

Lucia Mabel van der Heijden; Academic Talk

This study presents a reproducible methodology for detecting informal settlements using OpenStreetMap building footprint data. By integrating urban morphology and topology within a Python-based workflow and leveraging OSMnx for data extraction, the approach enables fine-scale spatial analysis in data-scarce environments. The method is tested across three case studies in the Global South, demonstrating how OpenStreetMap can support urban research, comparative analysis, and data-driven insights into informal settlements relevant to SDG 11.