Digital Technologies and ICT Applications for Disaster ...

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Sarah Wade-Apicella, Programme Management Officer

UNDRR Global Education and Training Institute (GETI)

18 June 2021

With the support of

Digital Technologies and ICT Applications

for Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience

Presentation II of the UN DESA–Seoul National University Governance Capacity

Development Session Series

Strengthening Public Governance & Accelerating Innovation to Achieve Agenda

2030


Introduction & Objectives

Recall

What are disasters, and how they undermine sustainable

development

Explore

How ICT applications contribute to DRR and building resilience

especially in vulnerable countries and communities.

How is the application of ICT tools promoting citizens engagement

and transparent risk-informed governance in times of disasters

especially in this COVID-19 pandemic.

What are some of the challenges and barriers to access, adoption,

and utilization ICTs and innovative technologies for DRR.


Why?

because disasters are not natural

Photo courtesy of Alberto Bisbal


Understanding Disaster Risk

https://gar.undrr.org/


Hazards are not only natural

The Report supports Sendai Framework, the SDGs, and Paris Agreement implementation and review by providing a common set of hazard definitions which calls for “a data revolution, rigorous accountability mechanisms and renewed global partnerships.”

Meteorological and hydrological

Extraterrestrial

Geohazards

Environmental

Chemical

Biological

Technological

Societal

Understanding the full spectrum of underlying hazards is the first step to understanding and addressing exposure and vulnerability and their interconnections as key components to effectively reduce risks.

https://www.undrr.org/publication/hazard-definition-and-classification-review


‘New’ Hazards: Impact of COVID-19

COVID-19 is likely to cause the first increase in global poverty since 1998, when the Asian Financial Crisis hit.

COVID-19 has threatened cities and communities, endangering not only public health, but also the economy and the fabric of society.

The World Bank has estimated that COVID-19 is pushing between 88 and 115 million people into extreme poverty in 2020 and as many as 150 million by 2021.

Many of these “new poor” will be people living in cities and who are self-employed, mostly working in the informal sector.

World Bank: Data Blog and Sustainable Cities Blogs, April and June 2020


The impact on progress towards the SDGs of natural and biological hazards

https://www.undrr.org/publication/integrating-disaster-risk-reduction-and-climate-change-adaptation-un-sustainable


The impact on progress towards the SDGs of technological and slow-onset climate change related hazards

https://www.undrr.org/publication/integrating-disaster-risk-reduction-and-climate-change-adaptation-un-sustainable

Division For Public Institutions and Digital Government UNDRR Global Education & Training InstituteWith the support of

Risk-Informed Decision-Making (RIDM)

Source: Opitz-Stapleton, Sarah, Rebecca Nadin, Jan Kellett, Margherita Calderone, Adriana Quevedo, Katie Peters, and Leigh Mayhew. 2019. Risk-Informed Development: From Crisis to Resilience. ODI, UNDP, and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. http://bit.ly/30UJjJQ.

“Despite increasing understanding of some complex risks among risk reduction practitioners, global commitments to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and previously the Millennium Development Goals, development planning and programming still do not adequately consider or act upon these risks.”

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Data & Information in Decision-Making

http://bit.ly/30UJjJQ


Prevent the creation of new risk Reduce existing risk Invest in Resilience

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction


Source: UN Economic and Social Council. 2019. The role of science, technology and innovation in building resilient communities, including through the contribution of citizen science. Commission on Science and Technology for Development. March 4. http://bit.ly/2lCq48U.EMSC, 2019.

“Science, technology and innovation play a critical role in building community resilience. Diverse fields of science generate new knowledge that improve understanding of the mechanisms and drivers of community resilience. New market-ready technologies create innovative opportunities for increasing economic, social and environmental resilience, and new approaches to innovation can bring together non-traditional innovation actors to unite their efforts and pool their resources towards community resilience.”

11

Enhancing DRM and Resilience with STI

http://bit.ly/2lCq48U


Part 1: How ICT applications contribute to DRR and building resilience especially in vulnerable countries and communities


Special Scenario: What will success look like in the fictional city of Drecca-Susdev? Fictional delta city of Drecca-Susdev - some elements of integrated risk governanceenabled by technology



Information Sharing Systems

• Sharing at the individual level

• Sharing at the organizational level

• Sharing at the inter-organizational level Top Image: Facebook safety check. Middle Image: US Office of Personnel

Management Operating Status Website. Bottom Image: Relief Web Information Sharing Page.

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Hazard Monitoring and Warning Data

• Dynamic, real time• May be automated or require human

surveys• Aerial imagery • Citizen reporting

Top Image: Stream gauge on the Big Wood River, Idaho, USA. Bottom image: Mobile emergency alert message.Top Image Source: Lac du Flambeau Tribe, 2019.

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Image: Mobile phone screenshot of a mistaken warning message, January 2017.

• Alert and Warning• Citizen Science• Status Checks• Search and Rescue and Relief Alerting

16

DRM Applications for Mobile Messaging

Mobile Messaging Systems


Image: Salgar early warning system diagram.Source: ITU, 2019.

• Problem: Risk from riverine flooding and associated landslide risk threaten citizens in a remote village community.

• Need: Early warning capabilities.• Obstacle: Manual collection of riverine and

precipitation data is not responsive enough to provide effective warnings.

• Solution: IoT-connected sensors and an automated warning system identify flood risk and communicate that to DRM stakeholders.

17

Case Study: IoT Early Warning and Risk Monitoring for River Flooding in Colombia

Internet of Things (IoT)


Video: In Tanzania, Citizen Scientists Help Reduce Flood Risk with Soil

Sampling. Source: World Bank, 2019.

• Problem: Information to inform

disaster risk reduction efforts is

often outdated, and therefore

irrelevant or inaccurate.

• Need: Up-to-date data.

• Obstacle: Technical surveying

efforts can be very expensive.

• Solution: Crowdsourcing of soil

data for the purpose of building a

comprehensive soil map.

Case Study: Crowdsourcing Flood Resilience

Crowdsourcing and Crowdfunding

Division For Public Institutions and Digital Government

Video: Maps Program Description.

Source: Humanitarian OpenStreetMap, 2015.

• Problem: Disaster response

operations are dispersed throughout

large geographic areas, which

influence those operations.

• Need: Accurate maps.

• Obstacle: In vulnerable places where

disasters are most likely, accurate

maps are least likely to exist.

• Solution: Crowdsource mapping

efforts using global and local

volunteers.

Case Study: Crowdsourcing Maps

UNDRR Global Education & Training InstituteWith the support of


Case Study: European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre

(EMSC)

• Collects real-time information

from over 70 seismological

networks

• Earthquake events displayed

on an easy-to-use, open

access website

• Services supported by

“LASTQUAKE” mobile phone

app

• Site-specific notifications

• Citizen-science capabilitiesImage: Screenshot of the EMSC Website, December 17, 2019.Source: EMSC, 2019.

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Case Study: Digital Government and ICT tools for

Alerting and Evacuating

• One of the logical developments of ICT for

disaster preparedness is the design of

apps to assist citizens in the

preparedness phase.

• To raise their awareness of the risks in

their area, inform them about what to do

in case of an emergency.

• Alert them of possible hazard events or

guide them to evacuate.

https://www.unapcict.org/sites/default/files/2020-08/Academy%20Module%20on%20ICT%20for%20DRM.pdf

ShakeAlert – An App for

Earthquake Warning

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk ReductionDivision For Public Institutions and Digital Government UNDRR Global Education & Training InstituteWith the support of

Image: Screen shot of Google-generated

warning in India. Source: Google, 2018.

• Problem: Floods can occur with little or no warning

and affect an otherwise unprepared population.

• Need: Effective warning prior to a flood event.

• Obstacle: It can be very difficult to reach at-risk

populations because there are so many different

channels through which people receive their risk

information.

• Solution: Identify at risk people by their internet use

and provide them with hazard information when they

are likely to be impacted.

Case Study: Google Flood Prediction in India


Image: mVAM information flow.Source: WFP, 2019.

• Problem: DRM stakeholders must manage the life sustaining needs of disaster impacted populations.

• Need: Frequent and reliable data on food security.

• Obstacle: Collection of this data is time and resource intensive.

• Solution: Mobile surveys and reporting mechanisms that allow thousands to report conditions and needs.

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Case Study: WFP Mobile Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping

(mVAM) pilots in Somalia and Congo DRC



Image: 4636 Process.Source: Chhetri, Prem, 2017. http://bit.ly/36DEpVc.

• Problem: Disaster victims throughout the impacted area will face a variety of rescue needs.

• Need: A method to communicate needs to responders.

• Obstacle: Multiple languages are spoken by citizens, and many locations do not have official numerical addresses.

• Solution: SMS-based reporting line staffed with volunteer translators and staff capable of georeferencing messages.

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Case Study: Mission 4636 – Response in Haiti



How is the application of ICT tools

promoting citizens engagement and

transparent risk-informed

governance in times of disasters

especially in this COVID-19

pandemic?

Part 2


Testing, tracing, tracking apps Transparency: Public information updates, alerts Myth busters: Public health information


Case Study: Digital technologies are helping

Singapore to tackle COVID-19


UNDRR Asia-Pacific COVID-19 Brief: Disaster-Responsive Social Protection

https://www.undrr.org/publication/undrr-asia-pacific-covid-19-brief-disaster-responsive-social-protection

Case Studies: Digitization enhances inclusionin Asia-Pacific and Mongolia

Digital solutions and connectivity are providing new avenues to attain universal social protection and minimize exclusion errors.

Across Asia Pacific, digital identities and digital cash transfers are two innovations that could be scaled up to enable timely responses, curb corruption and ensure that no one is left behind.

Digital cash transfers are not only quick and efficient, but in cases like pandemics, can minimize the need for in-person transactions – thus ensuring assistance reaches those who need it without adding new risks to the beneficiaries or the frontline personnel.

In Mongolia, a large and sparsely populated country, digital connectivity has

helped strengthen outreach to people living in remote areas.

https://www.undrr.org/publication/undrr-asia-pacific-covid-19-brief-disaster-responsive-social-protection


Source:Presentation of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Republic of Korea (00:20:59), UNDRR GETI & WHO Webinar: Emerging Technologies in Response to COVID-19https://www.undrr.org/event/undrr-geti-who-and-global-policy-house-webinar-lessons-covid-19-pandemic-emerging and https://youtu.be/91Bb3IRrrd4

https://www.undrr.org/event/undrr-geti-who-and-global-policy-house-webinar-lessons-covid-19-pandemic-emerging

https://youtu.be/91Bb3IRrrd4


What are some of the challenges

and barriers to access, adoption,

and utilization ICTs and innovative

technologies for DRR?

Part 3


Public Confidence, Political Support,

Stakeholder Engagement

Policies / Strategies

Resources

Statutory Framework

Establishing an Enabling Environment

© UNDRR – United Nations Office for Disaster Risk ReductionDivision For Public Institutions and Digital Government

Division For Public Institutions and Digital Government

• Laws can constrain or support implementation

• The broad scope of emerging technology applications means

many individual laws will have some impact or influence

• Laws may impact:

• Directly (e.g., laws governing drone piloting)

• Indirectly (e.g., laws guiding data protection)

• Laws should be explicit

• Legal frameworks should be flexible and responsive

• Considerations for:

• Civil liberties

• Security

• Privacy

• Other concerns

Statutory Framework



• Problem: Research efforts require

significant data collection support.

• Need: Access to resources to increase

citizen science opportunities.

• Obstacle: Traditional governmental grant

programs may not have the eligibility

provisions to support citizen science, nor are

there other wraparound supports like a

dedicated platform.

• Solution: National legal framework to guide

and support citizen science.Image: Screenshot of CitizenScience.Gov, 2020.

Source: US Government, 2020.

Case Study: Legislation to Support Citizen Science


• Resource deficiencies one of the greatest

obstacles to DRR capacity development

• For emerging technologies, there exist unique

resourcing pathways and opportunities

• Capacity development includes the capacity to

develop adequate resourcing channels

• Potential pathways:

• Resource Sharing

• Public Private Partnerships

• Development Assistance

• Mutual Assistance Agreements and

Regionalization

• South-South, North-South, and Triangular

Cooperation for Technology Transfer


Access to Resources


• Problem: Technology implementation

requires significant human resources.

• Need: Human resource capacity

development.

• Obstacle: Many SIDS do not have the

facilities or the trainers to conduct capacity

development efforts.

• Solution: Bilateral assistance through a

triangular cooperation mechanism to

provide technical training to development

partners through a dedicated capacity

development program.

Image: Participants on a SIDSTEC course field trip in February of 2018.

Source: SCPTA, 2018.


Case Study: Triangular Cooperation


• Provide necessary social and institutional structure

• Required at all administrative levels

• Innovation and use will occur with or without clear policies

• Clear policies help increase the likelihood that technologies and

innovations have a positive impact

• STI policies should be linked to development, DRR, and other relevant policies

• Policies can limit unintended consequences / negative impacts

• Collective action on policies and strategies at the regional and global levels can

help to address cross-border implications

• Policies governing data

• Open data

• Data preparedness

• Reducing data disparities

• Preventing data deluge

• Preventing data distortion

• Preventing data damage


Clear and Competent Policies and Strategies


Key Takeaways


“We live in a time of stunning technological

wizardry, but unfortunately, not all of us benefit

from it. Many have already been left behind and

risk falling even further behind due to the

political, economic, and social consequences of

rapidly expanding inequality. Tremendous

technological leaps are being made, but the

economic and social benefits remain

geographically concentrated, primarily in

developed countries.” - ‘Utoikamanu, Fekitamoeloa. 2018.

Bridging the Digital Divide



Takeaways:

Enhancing DRM and Resilience with STI

• Enhanced capacity

• New Capacity

• STI may:

• Empower and give a voice to people of diverse backgrounds and

classes

• Increase inclusion of otherwise marginalized groups

• Extend access to education and healthcare

• Increase government accountability and transparency

• Connect disparate social groups and community stakeholders

• Expand economic diversification

• Strengthen infrastructure networks and nodes

• Reduce environmental degradation

• Improve compliance with regulations (e.g., land use)

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To Move Towards Risk Informed Governance and Resilience

The Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR), 2019

“Innovation curve” – from destructive to regenerative approaches


Disaster Risk Reduction Terminology

https://www.undrr.org/terminology

Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, UN

https://www.undrr.org/implementing-sendai-framework/what-sf

http://www.preventionweb.net/drr-framework/sendai-framework

The Global Assessment Report 2019 with link to 2017 Global Risk Atlas & 2013, 2011, 2009 GARs

https://gar.undrr.org

The Global Risks Report 2021, 16th Edition, World Economic Forum

https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-global-risks-report-2021

30 Innovations linking disaster risk reduction with sustainable development goals

https://www.preventionweb.net/publications/view/70713

Toolkit: Risk-informed Governance and Innovative Technology for Disaster Risk Reduction and

Resilience

https://unpan.un.org/node/588

Key Resources

https://www.undrr.org/terminology

https://www.undrr.org/implementing-sendai-framework/what-sf

http://www.preventionweb.net/drr-framework/sendai-framework


https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-global-risks-report-2021

https://www.preventionweb.net/publications/view/70713

https://unpan.un.org/node/588


Thank YouUNDRR

Global Education and Training Institute (GETI)

4F Songdo G-Tower,

175 Art Center-daero,

Yeonsu-gu, Incheon

Republic of Korea

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