GeoPandas Basics: Maps, Projections, and Spatial Joins - Real Python

"This tutorial uses two packages: geopandas for working with geographic data and geodatasets for loading sample data. It's a good idea to install these packages inside a virtual environment so your project stays isolated from the rest of your system and you can manage its dependencies cleanly. Once your virtual environment is active, you can install both packages with pip: Using the [all] option ensures you have everything needed for reading data, transforming coordinate systems, and creating plots."

"Most geospatial datasets come in GeoJSON or shapefile format. The read_file() function can read both, and it accepts either a local file path or a URL. In the example below, you'll use read_file() to load the New York City Borough Boundaries (NYBB) dataset. The geodatasets package provides a convenient path to this dataset, so you don't need to download anything manually. You'll also drop unnecessary columns:"

Prepare a virtual environment and install geopandas and geodatasets with pip, using geopandas[all] to include dependencies for reading, transforming coordinate systems, and plotting. Installing inside a virtual environment isolates the project and simplifies dependency management; alternative installation options are available on the project's installation page. Use read_file() to load GeoJSON or shapefile datasets from local paths or URLs. Use geodatasets to access the New York City Borough Boundaries (NYBB) sample and drop unnecessary columns. A GeoDataFrame includes rows and columns plus a geometry column that stores geographic shapes; the geometry column is a GeoSeries.

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