Two years ago, our research unit cartography published the open-source web map "Grätzlfarben, opens an external URL in a new window", which visualizes land use in Vienna and is based on the Berlin project "Kiezcolors, opens an external URL in a new window". This year, this project has also been implemented and adapted for the city of Basel: Quartierfarben., opens an external URL in a new window

With its own color scheme, corporate design, and new features like an inset map on the postcard, automatic neighborhood-based labeling, multiple basemaps to choose from and daily data updates based on open WFS services, it shows how open-source collaboration can benefit everyone. The Statistisches Amt Basel-Stadt has also published the visualization in their statistical dossier (April 2026), opens an external URL in a new window and as posters around the city, offering a postcard printing option at events, like we do at our GEO-Tag.

It’s wonderful to see this project spread and evolve. If you want to build such a web app for your own city, make sure to check out our GitHub repository, opens an external URL in a new window and reach out to the cartography research unit, opens an external URL in a new window if we can support.