Re:Earth consists of three tools: Visualizer (a no-code map authoring tool), CMS (a geospatial data management tool), and Flow (a data transformation tool). Built on Cesium and fully open source, Re:Earth is designed to make GIS accessible to users without technical expertise.

Use Case 1: High School Students Participating in Urban Planning

Many Japanese municipalities face population decline and seek to engage younger generations in local governance. In this project, high school students used Re:Earth Visualizer to design their vision of a future town and presented their proposals to the local mayor as policy recommendations.

To lower the barrier to participation, a custom Visualizer plugin was developed, enabling students to simulate and visualize urban landscapes without account registration or technical setup. This highlights how Re:Earth's open plugin architecture can be tailored to specific community needs.

Use Case 2: Elementary School Students Creating a Disaster Risk Map

In a series of three workshops, elementary school students developed disaster preparedness awareness and hands-on experience with digital tools. Students conducted fieldwork along evacuation routes near their school, identifying hazardous locations and recording observations using tablets.

The collected data was visualized in Re:Earth Visualizer and overlaid with existing hazard datasets — including tsunami and flood risk layers — to create a "Digital Disaster Risk Map." Students then simulated evacuation route selection under different disaster scenarios, making abstract risks concrete and actionable.

Conclusion

These case studies demonstrate that open source geospatial tools, when designed with accessibility in mind, can extend GIS far beyond the expert community — turning it into a tool for civic participation and education.