Economic resilience and crowdsourcing platforms

The increased interdependence and complexity of modern societies have increased the need to involve all members of a community into solving problems. In times of great uncertainty, when communities face threats of different kinds and magnitudes, the traditional top-down approach where government provides solely for community wellbeing is no longer plausible. Crowdsourcing has emerged as an effective means of empowering communities with the potential to engage individuals in innovation, self-organization activities, informal learning, mutual support, and political action that can all lead to resilience. However, there remains limited resource on the topic. In this paper, we outline the various forms of crowdsourcing, economic and community resilience, crowdsourcing and economic resilience, and a case study of the Nepal earthquake. his article presents an exploratory perspective on the link can be found between crowdsourcing and economic resilience. It introduces and describes a framework that can be used to study the impact of crowdsourcing initiatives for economic resilience by future research. An initial a set of indicators to be used to measure the change in the level of resilience is presented.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evolving technologies for disaster management in U.S. Cities

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2011.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 63-65).The rapid development of modem technology has increased access to and reliance on sophisticated communication and real time technology. These technologies, which have become embedded within everyday life, have significant implications for government agencies - particularly within the field of disaster management. This paper draws on the evolution of disaster research, the history of disaster management in the US, literature on emerging uses of social media technology, and interviews from 24 emergency management offices in the US to examine three questions: 1) What types of technology are cities currently using in disaster management, 2) Which factors are most influential in determining how cities select emergency management technology, and 3) How can future technology development better address the needs of emergency managers? Several conclusions and observations emerged from analysis of the current literature and interview data. First, technology is primarily used by city disaster management agencies in the preparedness and response phrases of the disaster cycle. These technologies can be grouped into communications, data management, and simulation technologies. Cities are already operating on web-based platforms and are, in many cases, tentatively experimenting with the use of social media as a one-way broadcasting system rather than a bi-directional platform to gather information from the general public. Second, while various factors impact technology adoption, funding, the support of a political champion, and legal concerns stand out in particular. In addition to these adoption factors, cities are also currently facing a number of challenges including general interoperability, changing government-public relations, and increasingly mobile populations. Future technology needs must work to address these issues through the development and adoption of open standards, strengthening data integration capacities. Cities much also better leverage both existing and new forms of communication to build the level of trust needed to both reduce vulnerability and increase resilience.by Vanessa Mei-Yee Ng.M.C.P

Utilizing Volunteered Geographic Information to Develop a Real-Time Disaster Mapping Tool: A Prototype and Research Framework

The global proliferation of personal mobile devices has provided the capability of electronic data collection to billions of people. Furthermore, recent innovations in technologies and implementation methodologies have allowed groups of people to collect and analyze large quantities of data. Examples of such systems include Wikipedia, a community-sourced digital encyclopedia, and Yelp, a directory and review tool of local businesses. The occurrence of important events or the establishment of new restaurants has motivated individuals to provide timely and accurate contributions to Wikipedia or Yelp, respectively. Considering the benefits of widespread data collection capabilities and the motivations to contribute to public knowledge, this design-science paper proposes and prototypes components of a publically driven, real-time disaster-response mapping system

ICT Update 69: Engaging with communities through crowdsourcing

ICT Update is a bimonthly printed and on-line magazine (http://ictupdate.cta.int) and an accompanying e-mail newsletter published by CTA. This issue focuses on crowd sourcing

Collaboration among humanitarian relief organizations and volunteer technical communities : identifying research opportunities and challenges through a systematic literature review

Collaboration is the foundation to strengthen disaster preparedness and for effective emergency response actions at all levels. Some studies have highlighted that remote volunteers, i.e., volunteers supported by Web 2.0 technologies, possess the potential to strengthen humanitarian relief organizations by offering information regarding disaster-affected people and infrastructure. Although studies have explored various aspects of this topic, none of those provided an overview of the state-of-the-art of researches on the collaboration among humanitarian organizations and communities of remote volunteers. With the aim of overcoming this gap, a systematic literature review was conducted on the existing research works. Therefore, the main contribution of this work lies in examining the state of research in this field and in identifying potential research gaps. The results show that most of the research works addresses the general domain of disaster management, whereas only few of them address the domain of humanitarian logistics. Collaboration among Humanitarian Relief Organizations and Volunteer Technical Communities: Identifying Research Opportunities and Challenges through a Systematic Literature Review (PDF Download Available). Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/315790817_Collaboration_among_Humanitarian_Relief_Organizations_and_Volunteer_Technical_Communities_Identifying_Research_Opportunities_and_Challenges_through_a_Systematic_Literature_Review [accessed May 26, 2017]

The Impact of Crowdsourcing on Organisational Practices:The Case of Crowdmapping

In this paper, we investigate the possible impact of crowdsourcing on organisational practices. We answer the research question of whether and to what extent the practices of crowdmapping impact humanitarian organisations. To answer this question, we examine a crowdmapping initiative during a natural disaster. The data collection is based on forty interviews with different actors including crowdmappers, humanitarian organisations, government specialists and technology providers. Concepts from structuration theory are applied to conceptualise and make sense of the data. The findings reveal the process of change that took place in the practices of a humanitarian organisation. They also show that these changes recursively impacted the practices of crowdmapping. We then argue that there is a duality of change between the micro-practices of crowdmapping and the macro-practices of a humanitarian organisation. The implications of the study on research and practice are then discussed

Enhancing Geospatial Preparedness for Disaster Management through the work of development organisations

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor in Information Management, specialization in Geographic Information SystemsDepending on the complexity of a disaster and the local capacities, international organizations and multidisciplinary response teams might be involved in the response. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are used for coordination and information sharing. However, geospatial preparedness is necessary: reliable up to date geodata, tools, and people with the knowledge to use those tools. In least-developed countries the lack of geospatial preparedness, particularly geospatial pre-disaster information, hinders disaster response. In those places, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs creates a framework for cooperation with the Coordinated Data Scramble Initiative where Information Management Officers (IMOs) from different organisations are supported by volunteers and technical communities to provide ad-hoc datasets and infrastructure to use GIS. Nevertheless, long-term solutions are needed. Before the disaster, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) might already be using GIS to implement development projects. Based on the theoretical concept of disaster management and development as a learning circle, this investigation proposes the engagement of development NGOS working in disaster-prone areas to enhance geospatial preparedness. The research was based on a multi-method approach including the study of the body of literature, authoritative reports, and repositories and databases, monitorization of the tools used during responses to real emergencies, and semi-structured interviews to IMOs. Finally, the study concluded with an online survey with a worldwide sample of more than 200 development NGOs. The result show that disaster response requires reliable and up to date geodata which is not always the case. Humanitarian missions often rely on OpenStreetMap as a source of information to overcome this limitation. Therefore, improving OpenStreetMap would improve geospatial preparedness. Many development NGOs use digital geographic information, mostly open-data. They could indeed improve geospatial preparedness allowing community empowerment while conveying relevant pre-disaster datasets to the humanitarian missions. This bottom-up approach would allow for the inclusion of information relevant to the community in the disaster response decision-making process. There is, however, a limitation; most of these development NGOs are not familiar with the platform used by the humanitarian community (i.e., OpenStreetMap). Therefore, the sustainability of this synergic approach requires further harmonization between development and humanitarian organizations working for the wellbeing of the same communitie

Spatial and Temporal Sentiment Analysis of Twitter data

The public have used Twitter world wide for expressing opinions. This study focuses on spatio-temporal variation of georeferenced Tweets’ sentiment polarity, with a view to understanding how opinions evolve on Twitter over space and time and across communities of users. More specifically, the question this study tested is whether sentiment polarity on Twitter exhibits specific time-location patterns. The aim of the study is to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of georeferenced Twitter sentiment polarity within the area of 1 km buffer around the Curtin Bentley campus boundary in Perth, Western Australia. Tweets posted in campus were assigned into six spatial zones and four time zones. A sentiment analysis was then conducted for each zone using the sentiment analyser tool in the Starlight Visual Information System software. The Feature Manipulation Engine was employed to convert non-spatial files into spatial and temporal feature class. The spatial and temporal distribution of Twitter sentiment polarity patterns over space and time was mapped using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Some interesting results were identified. For example, the highest percentage of positive Tweets occurred in the social science area, while science and engineering and dormitory areas had the highest percentage of negative postings. The number of negative Tweets increases in the library and science and engineering areas as the end of the semester approaches, reaching a peak around an exam period, while the percentage of negative Tweets drops at the end of the semester in the entertainment and sport and dormitory area. This study will provide some insights into understanding students and staff ’s sentiment variation on Twitter, which could be useful for university teaching and learning management

Citizens AND HYdrology (CANDHY): conceptualizing a transdisciplinary framework for citizen science addressing hydrological challenges

Widely available digital technologies are empowering citizens who are increasingly well informed and involved in numerous water, climate, and environmental challenges. Citizen science can serve many different purposes, from the "pleasure of doing science" to complementing observations, increasing scientific literacy, and supporting collaborative behaviour to solve specific water management problems. Still, procedures on how to incorporate citizens' knowledge effectively to inform policy and decision-making are lagging behind. Moreover, general conceptual frameworks are unavailable, preventing the widespread uptake of citizen science approaches for more participatory cross-sectorial water governance. In this work, we identify the shared constituents, interfaces, and interlinkages between hydrological sciences and other academic and non-academic disciplines in addressing water issues. Our goal is to conceptualize a transdisciplinary framework for valuing citizen science and advancing the hydrological sciences. Joint efforts between hydrological, computer, and social sciences are envisaged for integrating human sensing and behavioural mechanisms into the framework. Expanding opportunities of online communities complement the fundamental value of on-site surveying and indigenous knowledge. This work is promoted by the Citizens AND HYdrology (CANDHY) Working Group established by the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS)