As we draw close to 100% on the Rural Lesotho Task in the #MapLesotho initiative I find myself filled with very strong reaffirmation of the power of community and the many implicit and explicit benefits and values of crowdsourced engagement.

On the 16th of January at Fingal County Hall I participated in my third marathon for the #MapLesotho project. There was a full house for this event with the organiser working his usual magic to get involvement from a collection of fifth year students from a number of schools in the area as well as publicly minded volunteers who have been involved in this specific project or associated ones around Open Street Map. We were joined by volunteers participating from around the world: Canada, the US, Germany and of course stalwarts in Lesotho itself, to name a few identifiable ones. As we were closing in on having a publicly available, robust, complete basemap for the eastern half of Lesotho this day witnessed not just the completion of nearly 10% of the task but more importantly the infectious sharing of enthusiasm for the project and its ethos amongst all attending. As we all shared our own reasons for why and how we do what we do and what we have learned from the project, I watched those newly engaged lightening up with their own enthusiasm for the project, imagining what else might be accomplished with the raw mapping materials and being positive about what they themselves can contribute. It was truly striking and wonderfully energising to feel the positive energy in the room, on interaction through twitter and demonstrated most concretely by the placing of nodes and progress towards tasks.

I was privileged to work with some new converts to the cause and help them get them started with OpenStreetMap - what was involved, what tools were available and then to let them take it for themselves. They embraced the challenge with vigour and I was particularly impressed by how they helped one another as they got going and shared their own newly acquired skills with others. As the students around me moved along they gained in confidence and shared their experience helping each other along the way.

I had a number of thoughtful conversation with a particular student beside me who was helping his own colleague move from using IDEditor to JOSM aided by his own infectious enthusiasm for what the tool afforded him. He shared with me his reason for doing what he does and it cannot be expressed any more clearly: he gives of his time to help others help themselves. As he said this is not charity, this is enablement - it is starting a process that grows with its own generated synergy.

This is #MapLesotho. The achievements continue build and to speak for themselves.