KnowWhereGraph
Overview
KnowWhereGraph is the first large-scale geospatial and environmental knowledge graph, combining knowledge graph technology with geo-enrichment capabilities to answer fundamental geographic questions: “What is here?”, “What happened here before?”, and “How does this region compare to…?” for any location on Earth within seconds.
The graph contains over 29 billion RDF triples representing densely-integrated statements across diverse environmental and human systems domains. It integrates 30+ data layers spanning natural hazards, climate variables, soil properties, demographics, health indicators, agriculture, and more, creating a comprehensive framework for environmental intelligence and geospatial knowledge discovery.
Data Content and Scale
Graph Statistics
- Total Triples: 29+ billion RDF statements
- Node Count: Estimated 5+ billion entities
- Data Layers Integrated: 30+ diverse datasets
- Spatial Coverage: Global - designed for any location on Earth
Domains and Topics
KnowWhereGraph covers a comprehensive range of environmental and human systems:
Environmental and Climate:
- Natural hazards: hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, debris flows, severe weather
- Climate variables: air temperature, precipitation, climate divisions, seasonal patterns
- Soil properties: soil types, soil characteristics, pedogenic processes
- Land cover: crop types, land use classifications
- Water systems: hydrological features, water availability
Human and Social Systems:
- Demographics: population statistics, population density, population change
- Human health: health indicators, disease data, health outcomes
- Transportation: transportation networks, infrastructure data
- Food systems: agricultural production, food security, food supply chains
- Expert networks: domain expertise, research networks
Geographic and Spatial:
- Place and region identifiers: gazetteers, boundaries
- Hierarchical spatial representations: S2 Discrete Global Grid cells
- Multiple geographic conceptualizations: ZIP codes, climate divisions, administrative boundaries
- Geopolitical boundaries: administrative regions, political entities
Query Interfaces
SPARQL Endpoint
- Direct SPARQL and GeoSPARQL query support
- Location: https://knowwheregraph.org/sparql/
- Enables complex geospatial queries across all data layers
- Supports spatial reasoning and analysis
Knowledge Explorer
- Web-based faceted search interface
- Features:
- Faceted filtering by multiple data characteristics
- Table view and map view panels for results
- Automatic SPARQL query generation from user input
- Hyperlinked result navigation for graph dereferencing
- Location: https://www.knowwheregraph.org/tools/knowledge-explorer/
GIS Integration
ArcGIS Integration
- Native ArcGIS Pro plugin for graph queries
- Automatic geodatabase creation from query results
- Seamless integration with GIS workflows
QGIS Integration
- Open-source GIS plugin for graph querying
- Geo-enrichment capabilities within QGIS
- Support for adding multidisciplinary geospatial data
- Primary Format: RDF (Resource Description Framework)
- Standards: OWL (Web Ontology Language), GeoSPARQL, SHACL
- Ontologies: Custom KnowWhereGraph Ontology, SOSA, OWL-Time, GeoSPARQL
- Spatial Representation: S2 Hierarchical Discrete Global Grid (DGG)
- Backend: GraphDB semantic repository
Technical Architecture
Ontology
The KnowWhereGraph Ontology (KWGO) provides the semantic foundation:
- 150 entity classes for representing concepts
- 70 object properties for relationships
- 75 data properties for attributes
- Modular design for extensibility
- Alignment with standard semantic web vocabularies
Design Principles
- Geo-enrichment: Specialized capabilities for linking disparate geospatial datasets
- Cross-domain integration: Semantic linking across diverse data silos
- Densely connected: Highly interconnected through inferred relationships
- Spatially explicit: All data elements have spatial grounding
- Semantically lifted: Includes novel strategies for lifting imagery data into semantic form
Key Features
Geo-Enrichment Pioneer
KnowWhereGraph is pioneering geo-enrichment capabilities directly integrated into knowledge graphs and GIS environments, enabling:
- Automatic data enrichment based on spatial relationships
- Cross-domain insights for any geographic location
- Multidisciplinary data synthesis at scale
Multi-Interface Access
Multiple complementary interfaces for different use cases:
- Programmatic access for developers (SPARQL, GeoSPARQL)
- GIS-native tools for domain specialists (ArcGIS, QGIS)
- Faceted search for knowledge discovery (Knowledge Explorer)
- API-based access for application integration
Densely Connected Graph
Highly interconnected relationships enable:
- Complex multi-hop queries across domains
- Inference of new knowledge through semantic relationships
- Comparative analysis across regions and time periods
Semantically Lifted Imagery
Novel approaches to include:
- Remotely sensed imagery integrated as knowledge graph entities
- Drone imagery semantically linked to ground-truth data
- AI-based methods for automated imagery analysis and integration
Use Cases and Applications
Supply Chain Management
- Food supply chain sustainability and traceability
- Wildfires impact assessment on agricultural production
- Commodity market and supply chain analysis
- Food security assessment and forecasting
Humanitarian Response
- Emergency response coordination and resource allocation
- Expert-need matching during crises
- Humanitarian aid supply chain management
- Crisis situation awareness and rapid assessment
Disaster Management
- Natural hazard monitoring and forecasting
- Emergency management planning and response
- Risk assessment for communities and critical infrastructure
- Multi-hazard analysis and planning
Agricultural Applications
- Crop planning and optimization
- Soil analysis and land suitability assessment
- Farm credit assessment and land valuation
- Agricultural sustainability evaluation
- Food system resilience analysis
Environmental Policy
- Agricultural sustainability metrics and assessment
- Soil conservation practice evaluation
- Farm labor impact assessment
- Environmental regulation development and enforcement
- Climate adaptation planning
Organizational Structure
Lead Organization
- University of California, Santa Barbara - Center for Spatial Studies, Department of Geography
Partner Institutions
- Kansas State University (agricultural data expertise)
- Michigan State University (soil and agricultural systems)
- Arizona State University (supply chain and optimization)
- University of Southern California (environmental systems)
- University of Bristol (knowledge graph and semantic web)
Industry and Government Partners
- Esri - Geographic Information Systems technology
- Oliver Wyman - Commodity markets and supply chain expertise
- Hydronos Labs - Weather, climate, and agriculture information
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) - Geospatial data expertise
- Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) - Agricultural and environmental data
- Direct Relief - Humanitarian aid operational experience
Funding and Support
- Funder: National Science Foundation (NSF)
- Program: Convergence Accelerated Program
- Grant: OIA-2033521
- Duration: Multi-year support for infrastructure and research
Citation and Usage
KnowWhereGraph data and services are freely available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) license. Users are encouraged to cite appropriate KnowWhereGraph publications when using data or services in research and applications.
The knowledge graph is maintained and operated by the Center for Spatial Studies at University of California, Santa Barbara in collaboration with partner institutions and supported by the National Science Foundation.
Automated Evaluation