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British Columbia Maps and Geospatial Data

A guide to finding maps and geographic data about the province of British Columbia

What Is In This Guide

This guide will introduce you to the use of maps and geospatial data produced in and/or about the province of British Columbia. You will be shown what the main sources for data are, what maps and data services are available at UBC, and an introduction to who some of the big third party map and data providers are. 

In the UBC Holdings tab you will be introduced to the print map, monograph, and special collections at UBC libraries

Under Government Data Sources you will find a break down of the kind of data available from the federal, provincial, and municipal levels of government.

First Nations Mapping introduces the place of First Nations history, culture, and community within the province

External Maps and Data has a curated selection of reliable sources of information external to UBC libraries

BC Map and Data Publishers gives an overview of commercial and independent map and data providers that are based in BC

Citing Maps and Data provides resources on to give proper attribution to map and data sources. It also gives some information on the importance of copyright and what kinds of uses of maps and data are and are not allowed.

Research Assistance

UBC has a large number of reference librarians who are able to assist you in finding maps, data, or in forming a clearer search or research question. Each reference librarian has a subject specialty that they have extensive experience working in.  Often times a subject librarian can be contacted by email, phone, or in-person within the open hours of their library branch

Get personalized help

Phone, e-mail, chat or arrange to meet with one of our subject librarians, who can provide specialized help with your research.

Visit a reference desk

Every branch has staff to help you. Check out our reference hours and visit a reference desk today!

Call a librarian

Call the reference desk at any one of our many library locations.

Email a librarian

Fill out our handy online reference assistance form.

Librarian

This guide was created by Mark Landau as part of an experiential learning class as part of his program at the UBC Ischool.

For more information on maps and geospatial data at UBC contact Evan Thornberry GIS librarian