Tools for Interactive Visualization of Global Demographic Concepts in R

Data visualization is a core component of the demographer’s workflow, as visualizations are essential to communicate the findings of demographic research. Recent advances in interactive data visualization have made it easier to produce dynamic web-based graphics in a variety of computing environments, including R, a popular tool for demographers. This article illustrates how to produce interactive charts and maps of demographic data in R using Plotly and Shiny, two frameworks for web-based visualization. Data for the examples come from idbr, a new R package to download demographic indicators from the US Census Bureau’s International Data Base.