Nepal's cities are growing faster than our understanding of the risks inside them.

Urban Atlas Nepal brings research on urban risk down to where people live: the ward, the municipality, the district. We're starting with Kathmandu Valley.

SmartHousing Nepal

Our first application brings hazard and live air quality to every ward of Kathmandu Valley, in plain language, at the moment someone is choosing where to live.

It's still experimental and we're refining it. Right now you can explore the ward-level flood model; earthquake hazard is paused while we improve it.

How the data is built

Ward-level flood hazard, indicator-based

Not a flood simulation. Six environmental indicators are scored and weighted into one flood hazard index for every ward.

  • Rainfall25%
  • Distance to rivers20%
  • Slope20%
  • Elevation15%
  • Land cover10%
  • Soil type10%

The indicators follow the weighted-overlay method common in GIS flood susceptibility research, including studies of Kathmandu Valley.

Re-weight it yourself

Why we're building this

Research on flood, earthquake, and air quality risk in Nepal's cities already exists, but it sits in reports, agency portals, and papers that rarely reach the people deciding where to live, build, or invest.

We bring that data together, make it comparable ward by ward, and put it where anyone can use it.

  1. 01

    Gather

    Hazard studies, government datasets, and open environmental data, wherever they already exist.

  2. 02

    Structure

    Clean it, reconcile it, and bring it down to the ward, so every place is described the same way.

  3. 03

    Open it up

    Publish it as plain-language maps anyone can read, and as open data anyone can reuse.

Applications on the atlas

One live today, with more layers and applications being explored the same way.

Live now

SmartHousing Nepal

Ward-level flood hazard and live air quality across Kathmandu Valley.

Open SmartHousing Nepal

In exploration

  • More layers for Kathmandu Valley

    Earthquake hazard returns once it's refined, with further layers added as data becomes available.

  • New applications and cities

    Built on the same atlas, one at a time.

Partner with us

Built by Open Knowledge Foundation Nepal

Urban Atlas Nepal is built by Open Knowledge Foundation Nepal (OKF Nepal), a Kathmandu-based civic technology and open data nonprofit.

Learn more about OKF Nepal