Preparing the datasets and importing into MyWorld

Step 1 –
Note: This chapter was retired in August 2022. The visualization tool (My World GIS) is no longer supported.

Preparing the ESI Dataset

The 2002 ESI dataset you downloaded and saved in the previous section consists of four worksheets wrapped in a single Microsoft Excel workbook file called ESI2002_data.xls. You access each worksheet opening the by ESI2002_data.xls file and clicking on the tabs on the bottom left of the Excel window. The source information sheet provides key provenance information about the 2002 ESI dataset. The variable descriptions sheet provides a definition for each variable used in calculating the ESI for each country, including abbreviations, units, computation details, and additional notes. The aggregation descriptions sheet shows the relationships between the original 68 variables, the 20 composite indicators and the 5 core components comprising the ESI. The data section shows the computed values for the original 68 variables, 20 indicators, 5 core components and ESI for 142 different countries. Take a few moments to explore the contents of each one of the worksheets.

Of the four worksheets included in the ESI2002_data.xls file, only the data sheet is imported into My World GIS for mapping. This section shows you how to save just the data sheet into a Comma-Separated Values (CSV) file, the format used for importing data into MyWorld. Note that while the following steps apply specifically to this Excel spreadsheet dataset file, other datasets may require similar preparation steps for use within MyWorld.

  • Open the 2002 ESI dataset file and click on the "data" tab.
  • Go to Save As... in the File menu and save the file as a CSV (Comma delimited) file. Name the file ESI2002_data.csv.

At this point, you have successfully saved the data portion of the 2002 ESI dataset as a CSV file for processing inside MyWorld. You may exit the Microsoft Excel application, keeping in mind that you do not have to re-save the CSV file.

Step 2 –
Constructing the world map display with the ISO Countries dataset

1. Open My World GIS

Accessing Help within MyWorld
Once you have started the MyWorld software, you can access help information related to general use of the MyWorld software by clicking on the Windows entry in the main menu and selecting Help... to open the help information into a new web browser window.

2. Click on the Construct mode button to switch MyWorld into Construct mode.

In Construct mode, MyWorld displays the following three panes: Data Library (left), Layer List (middle) and Map (right). The Data Library pane lists all of the Data Libraries My World was able to find when it started up in the menu titled Data Library:, and below the menu it displays a list of the data files in the selected Data Library. The Layer List pane displays a list of layers currently displayed in the Map pane. You can drag data files from the Data Library into the Layer List to add them to the Map. The Map pane displays the map visualization based on the data files in the Layer List. [Screenshot]

3. Click on the down-arrow located on the field next to the Data Library: label on the Data Library pane on the far left of your MyWorld window to display the Data Library menu. Scroll this menu to locate and select the All Data Files entry. MyWorld displays all data files currently available in the Data Library pane as a scrollable list.

4. Locate the ISO Countries folder in the Data Library pane. You may need to scroll to locate the folder representing the ISO Countries dataset you downloaded and saved earlier in this guide.

5. Use your mouse to select, drag, and drop the ISO Countries folder to the Layer List pane located immediately to the right of the Data Library pane. MyWorld shows the ISO Countries data file in the Layer List pane, and displays this newly created layer as a world map with country boundaries in the Map pane of your MyWorld window. Note that MyWorld uses the data in the ISO Countries dataset to construct the graphical display of the world map. [Screenshot]

Step 3 –
Importing the 2002 ESI dataset into My World GIS

1. Click on the Edit mode button to switch MyWorld into Edit mode.

In Edit mode, MyWorld displays the Layer List pane on the left hand-side and the Map pane on the right-hand side. You also have a new set of tools available on the Toolbar.

2. Double-click on the ISO Countries entry in the Layer List pane located on the left of your MyWorld window to select this layer for further interaction. MyWorld displays a highlighted border around the ISO Countries entry in the Layer List pane.

Note that the ISO Countries dataset information is shown in the scrollable table right below the world map display. Feel free to scroll down this table and explore the ISO Countries dataset.

3. Click on the Import Data… button right below the world map display to open the Import Data From… window. [Screenshot]

4. Click on the down-arrow on the field next to the Files of Type: and select the Comma-Separated Values (*.csv) entry, since this is the format you used to save the data portion of the 2002 ESI dataset in step 1 of this section.

5. Browse to and select the ESI2002_data.csv dataset file. Then click on the Open button to begin the import process.

6. MyWorld opens a question window asking how it should interpret the first line of data in the dataset file. Since the first line of the CSV file contains the attribute names for the dataset, click on the Attribute Names button to continue the import process.

7. On the Import Data window that appears next, [Screenshot] choose ISO_3 from the Link Attribute menu.

8. Click on the Join button to connect the two datasets. MyWorld displays a progress window that disappears once the operation completes.

The table below the world map display now lists attributes from both the ISO Countries and the 2002 ESI datasets. Use the scrollbars located around the table to scroll to the right to verify that the 2002 ESI dataset attributes are shown as columns in the table. For instance, make sure you can see a column titled ESI. If horizontal scroll bars are not displayed, you may need to resize the MyWorld window slightly. As you scroll down the list of countries, you may notice several countries without ESI data. This indicates that while the ISO Countries dataset contained the necessary geographical information to create the map display, the 2002 ESI dataset lacked environmental sustainability index information for such countries. For example, the line entry for Luxembourg (the first entry) does not have data in the ESI column.