An alternative to Google Maps, how America’s forgotten second national park became a state park, and beavers returning to Portugal after more than 500 years are among the interesting stories I’ve read and enjoyed in the past month.
I hope you enjoy them, too!
What I Found Interesting
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Congrats! At today’s United Nations Open Source Week event Mastodon was named as a Digital Public Good.
Digital public goods are defined as open source software, open standards, open data, open AI systems, and open content collections that adhere to privacy and other applicable best practices, do no harm, and are of high relevance for attainment of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Personally, I’m proud to use and support Mastodon, a transparent and ethical social media channel not owned by a corporation. Social media that serves people over profit.
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An alternative to Google Maps, Organic Maps was forked last month due to concerns over project governance (financial management, code, and partnerships).
Former Organic Maps contributors joined together to fork the project and launched CoMaps, “an offline-focused navigation app that offers detailed maps and turn-by-turn directions without mining for user data.”
I’ve uninstalled Organic Maps on my phone and downloaded CoMaps. As of June 18, 2025, it’s only available on Google Play, F-Droid, and as an APK download.
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After more than 500 years, beavers have returned to Portugal, crossing over the border with Spain.
Exciting news to read! (I remember how thrilled folks were in southeast Michigan area when beavers returned to lakes and metroparks over the past 10 years.)
Beavers are often considered engineers of ecosystems, building dams in waterways which create small wetlands and marshes which help to filter water.
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I’ve visited and stayed on Mackinac Island many times, but didn’t know the history of how it became the second national park in the United States.
Or how Mackinac Island lost its national park status to become a Michigan state park.
Until now.
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Here’s a fun project for children, or for yourself!
Build your own tri-dimensional star map with a tool to print the star map that folds into a dome.
Written by a physics professor, NOX MINIMA creates a three-page PDF file you print out, cut with scissors, and glue together to make the dome.
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When elected officials leave office, they often find high-paying roles at private companies.
It’s a common practice around the world.
But that’s not what Iceland’s previous president is doing this summer.
The former eight-year president of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson is working a summer job as a national park ranger.
