Working towards an Improved Monitoring Infrastructure to support Disaster Management, Humanitarian Relief and Civil Security

Within this paper experiences and results from the work in the context of the European Initiative on Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) as they were gathered within the German Remote Sensing Data Center (DFD) are reported. It is described how data flows, analysis methods and information networks can be improved to allow better and faster access to remote sensing data and information in order to support the management of crisis situations. This refers to all phases of a crisis or disaster situation, including preparedness, response and recovery. Above the infrastructure and information flow elements, example cases of different crisis situations in the context of natural disasters, humanitarian relief activities and civil security are discussed. This builds on the experiences gained during the very active participation in the network of Excellence on Global Monitoring for Stability and Security (GMOSS), the GMES Service Element RESPOND, focussing on Humanitarian Relief Support and supporting the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters as well as while linking closely to national, European and international entities related to civil human security. It is suggested to further improve the network of national and regional centres of excellence in this context in order to improve local, regional and global monitoring capacities. Only when optimum interoperability and information flow can be achieved among systems and data providers on one hand side and the decision makers on the other, efficient monitoring and analysis capacities can be established successfully

Haiti Earthquake January 2010: What Actions and Policies Can the Government of Haiti Implement to Improve Emergency Management Response

In 2010, Haiti experienced a devastating earthquake that destroyed much of its capital city and the governmental offices that should have guided the response to the disaster. This research focuses on how Haiti can benefit from the Caribbean Disaster Management Agency’s standards for disaster resilience as it works to recover from the earthquake. Unfortunately, Haiti has long been dependent on assistance from non-governmental organizations due to its extreme poverty; its recovery is complicated by the need to integrate disaster assistance and on-going economic and social assistance into its development of a more resilient society

Laws and Policies Affecting Volunteerism Since 2001

This Research Report represents an attempt to synthesize lessons learned over the last eight years in order to promote best practices and analyze obstacles and impediments that continue to block the development of volunteerism law and policy

New Outlooks on Reshaping and Revitalizing Post-Conflict Regions: Strategies, Principles and Models of Reconstruction

Within societies recently recovering from war, people operating at the community or national levels are pressed to deal with reconciliation, development, reintegration and security. Changes and advancements are already at our front door in political philosophy, technology, communications, infrastructure, and shifts in attitudes and behavior of people. All of this will affect regions and communities, and basically alter the requisites for future planning and roles of professionals. Planning in the new millennium is needed to assist people and communities to manage change by all the techniques and skills that it possesses. In progressive crisis situations there is a need for progressive methods and new approaches, especially if the systems in use are not producing necessary results and changes. The situation where the primary objective is the rebuilding of livelihoods and rebuilding a community in a traumatized setting, a holistic way of looking at the ''big picture'' is a condicio sine qua non for any sustainable development effort. The paper draws attention to situations, which require interdisciplinary approaches and the collaboration of different professional actors. In order to structure the complex question of post-conflict reconstruction in a more systematic way, a conceptual interdisciplinary model called Sustainable Communities in Post-Conflict Environments (SCOPE) could be developed for rebuilding communities. This presentation looks at how such a model, applied to places like Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, can effectively conceptualize and design policies, programs and projects that efficiently address the above-mentioned issues, giving at the same time a new strategic and innovative approach.

CSRS: Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies

Brochure publication development by Graseilah Coolidge. Editing by Matt Vaccaro, Nick Tomb and Roseann Johnson

The Integration of Intergovernmental Coordination and Information Management in Response to Immediate Crises: Thailand Emergency Management

Recent occurrences of natural disasters and severe manmade hazards have increased awareness of the need for effective mitigation and response to extreme events. States of emergency require multiple agencies to perform multiple tasks simultaneously to return the situation to normal. This study proposes an inter-organizational model supported by the efficient use of information and communication technologies to assist multiple agencies in coordinating their actions more effectively during states of emergency. The model will assist participating agencies to develop the capacity to adapt to emergency conditions as well as the ability to replace other functions that fail in order to maintain the continuity of basic operations for the community until the state of emergency is cleared. Three recent cases of emergency operations in Thailand are examined to assess whether coordination among response agencies can be improved by using appropriately designed interagency operations. The complex environment of emergency response operations offers an extraordinary opportunity to investigate methods that may be used to understand and identify factors that build strength or lead to weakness in practice. The interdependence of sequential failures from sudden impacts such as the collapse of electrical transmission lines or a communication system provides a practical challenge for assessing the use of information and communication technologies in managing emergencies. Insights gained from this project may assist public agencies to work together more effectively.This research is conducted as an exploratory study with a nested case design. It employs both qualitative and quantitative methods of observation, interviews, social network analysis, document review and structured surveys to identify complementary characteristics rather than advocating a single style of research. Units of analysis are the emergency response organizations at national, provincial and local levels while units of observation are emergency response personnel in each organization. In addition, units of observation are stratified into top, middle, and operational levels of management in order to obtain information that may vary by levels of authority. Information obtained from multiple sources is analyzed to understand better the existing emergency response operations and how to improve the system effectively and efficiently.An alternative approach based on lessons learned from this study is to build systematic and adaptive collaboration among agencies, national, provincial and local levels, in emergency management of Thailand. The primary actors, Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), Bangkok Metropolitan Authority (BMA), Civil Emergency Relief Department (CERD), and District Offices (DO) can play effective roles in emergency response network under different scales of emergency. Insufficient information support and communication channels increase the difficulties of activating the action plan in wider response in states of emergency. Information technology and communication systems allow multiple agencies to share their knowledge and information they need in making informed decisions. Communication is a significant means to enable participating agencies to coordinate their operations simultaneously. These functions of information technology and communication help connect the entire emergency operation into a well-organized direction