In the last few days, Google has announced two pretty cool new features to Google Maps that are clearly geared for local advertising, but could be powerful participatory mapping tools as well.

Google Maps with My Location
If you have a web enabled phone, you could always get maps if you knew where you were. Even better, if your phone had a build in GPS, you could know exactly where you were without having to know street addresses, cites, really anything. If you could see three GPS satellites, your mobile device could place you on a map the same way your GPS unit could. Now Google is doing nearly the same thing for folks who don’t have GPS-enabled devices. By using cell phone tower triangulation Google can place your location on their Maps with, they claim, about 1000ft accuracy. That’s close enough for local ads, but it’s also close enough for much of the participatory mapping work we’re planning. This is quite an exciting development!

Our Maps
Google is now allowing people to collaboratively create “My Maps” the same way that people can collaborate on a Google Doc or Spreadsheet. Now you can create a map and invite your friends (who also have Google Accounts) to edit or add points, lines, or polygons – whatever you’ve created in your “My Maps.” This could also have a transformative effect on participatory mapping, making it very easy for people to collaborate as long as they have a computer and internet access. Another exciting development!

Location, location, location (Google LatLong Blog)
My Our Maps (Google LatLong Blog)

This is a particularly ingenious use of Google Maps/Earth for advocacy. The Sunlight Foundation, which powers Earmark Watch, put together a simple Google map and KML file for Google Earth that shows all the Congressional earmarks in the House version of the FY08 Defense appropriations bill. Check out the Google map here, or launch the Google Earth KML here.

Sunlight Foundation sheds political light on Google Earth (Google LatLon Blog)