Matthew Toro
Matthew Toro is a broadly trained geographer serving as the director of maps, imagery, and geospatial services at the Arizona State University Library in Tempe, Arizona. He founded and leads the Map and Geospatial Hub, a fusion of a traditional map library and a modern GIS center. The Hub executes a wide range of projects at the intersection of data management, geography, history, cartography, and visualization.
Session
QGIS’s plugin ecosystem enables accessible workflows that extend beyond traditional mapping. This 90-minute, hands-on workshop presents a streamlined process for creating 3D terrain models suitable for 3D printing using freely available data and core QGIS plugins. Participants will use four widely adopted plugins — QuickMapServices, OpenTopography DEM Downloader, QuickOSM, and Qgis2threejs — in a cohesive, step-by-step workflow. Starting with basemap acquisition, we will retrieve elevation data, enrich it with OpenStreetMap features, and generate a 3D scene suitable for web-based interactive visualization or export to 3D printing software.
Designed for beginners and educators, the session emphasizes reproducibility and accessibility. Participants will leave with a digital 3D model and a reusable workflow for teaching, research, or public engagement.