Current and context-specific geospatial data are critical to plan sustainable land use, establish resilient local food systems, and tackle environmental issues such as desertification, floods, and climate-induced displacement. In Nigeria's Middle Belt region, particularly Plateau State, intensified environmental degradation and conflict have forced thousands of rural farmers to abandon ancestral homelands, resettle in marginal lands, and practice unsustainable land use. These movements go unrecorded, making communities invisible to plan for infrastructure, humanitarian distribution, or climate change adaptation. This study presents a community-led agroecological mapping project that employs OpenStreetMap (OSM) and participatory GIS to map land use, identify restoration opportunities, and advocate for the concerns of displaced farming communities in Bassa and Riyom LGAs of Plateau State.

The general aim of this research was to integrate open geospatial technology and local knowledge in scaling up climate-resilient agricultural practices and improving marginalised rural citizens' visibility within formal development and planning processes. Under a youth-led community mapping process supported by Kitron Green Initiatives (KGI), over 30 young mappers were trained and mobilised in collecting data on degraded lands, existing farmlands, agroforestry fields, water points, and climatic hazards. Using Field Papers, OpenDataKit (ODK), iD Editor, and QGIS, the data was validated with the community and uploaded to OpenStreetMap. The mapping project also incorporated women farmer groups, traditional leaders, as well as displaced persons to ensure inclusivity and contextual relevance of mapped features.

Methodologically, the research employed a mixed-methods participatory research design. Baseline surveys were initially conducted using qualitative tools—focus group discussions, community transect walks, and semi-structured interviews—to attain a deeper understanding of the lived experience of land use change and food insecurity. This was complemented by hands-on mapping using mobile and satellite-assisted data capture. Data quality was assured through iterative feedback loops with local stakeholders and peer review with members of the YouthMappers chapter of the University of Jos.

It mapped a total of 19,200 hectares across five displacement-prone villages and detected 267 points of interest related to sustainable agriculture and community resilience. These included organic farms, community storage silos, animal pens, degraded gullies, and informal settlements. The resulting OSM datasets were converted into dynamic story maps, printed community atlases, and open-access web dashboards for stakeholders including the local government, NGOs, and research institutions. Additionally, the project used a digital agro-ecological vulnerability index based on mapped features, local climatic trends, and farmer interviews—guiding focused interventions such as tree planting, drip irrigation, and composting workshops.

The findings show that participatory open mapping not only improves data coverage in otherwise "invisible" rural areas but also builds agency and digital literacy among community members. Young people and women, who were previously excluded from decision-making, gained valuable skills in geospatial technologies and were able to identify previously unrecognized resources and hazards in their locality. Mapping products were also used in a municipal government climate roundtable to advocate for inclusive budgeting and farmer support. Significantly, integrating OSM data into post-displacement planning allowed humanitarian organizations to better map aid delivery to evolving community structures and risk zones.

Academically, the project contributes to nascent research on community-driven cartography, climate resilience, and data justice in geospatial science. The project demonstrates how the combination of high-resolution open-source mapping technologies and participatory action research can expose spatial inequalities and enable bottom-up climate adaptation. Furthermore, the project confirms that community data—when digitized and mapped—can be powerful evidence for humanitarian response and development planning. The model has replicable potential for other conflict-displaced or climate-stressed agricultural zones in sub-Saharan Africa.

The practical implications are numerous. For OSM communities, the project illustrates how intentional inclusion of displaced and marginalized communities can strengthen the mapping ecosystem and expand use cases beyond urban-focused projects. For scholars, it offers an empirically tested model for the integration of open data in climate resilience planning, particularly in resource-constrained settings. For government and NGOs, it provides a low-cost, scalable example of bottom-up geospatial data capture that can fill holes in national land-use and cadastral systems.

Reproducibility of the research is ensured through the publication of the complete mapping dataset on OSM under the Open Database License (ODbL), with supporting materials—like training manuals, map CSS stylesheets, and dashboard templates—published on GitHub under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license. Mapping forms and backend ODK configurations are also shared to facilitate replication in similar settings.

Lastly, this study bridges the gap between geospatial science and community development, employing OSM as an empowering, documenting, and planning tool. The study highlights the role of open mapping in building agroecological resilience and enhancing the visibility of the hidden communities, who are typically marginalized by traditional mapping processes. Through the use of participatory methods and open technologies, the project amplifies voice, increases preparedness, and co-produces knowledge that is both locally embedded and globally reproducible. This paper encourages more collaboration between universities, grassroots movements, and the OSM community to continue to explore the nexus of open geodata, climate justice, and rural livelihoods in Africa.