The growing role of web-based geospatial technology in disaster response and support

Implementing Geospatial Science and Technology to Get to Zero New HIV Infections

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Tremendous advancements have been made in HIV treatment and prevention during the last 40 years that zero new HIV cases has become an attainable goal declared by international agencies. However, new cases of HIV infection persist.

RECENT FINDINGS

The emerging field of geospatial science is positioned to play key role in the reduction of continued HIV incidence through technology-driven interventions and innovative research that gives insights into at-risk populations. As these methods become more utilized, findings consistently show the important role of location and environment plays in HIV incidence and treatment adherence. This includes distance to HIV provider, locations of where HIV transmissions occurs compared to where people with HIV reside, and how geospatial technology has been leveraged to identify unique insights among varying groups of those at increased risk for HIV, among others. Given these insights, leveraging geospatial technology would play a prominent role in achieving zero new cases of HIV infections.

Transparency in humanitarian logistics and supply chain: the moderating role of digitalisation

Purpose

Mismanagement and corruption in disaster relief operations (DROs) have created a demand for transparency and visibility in humanitarian logistics and supply chains. The global relief organisations and recent research endorse the adoption of digital solutions in DROs. The purpose of this research is to examine the moderating role of digitalisation in enhancing transparency in humanitarian logistics and supply chains of DROs in Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

Employing the quantitative research method, the data were collected from 340 disaster relief workers through survey questionnaires using the snowball sampling technique. The data were analysed in the SmartPLS3 software of PLS-SEM.

Findings

The findings suggested that in Pakistan, where corruption and mismanagement in humanitarian logistics and supply chain have been the greatest concerns of all the stakeholders, digitalisation of the DROs is a way forward to create transparency in the system and build the trust of the donor organisations and public.

Research limitations/implications

The sample included only 340 disaster relief workers, future researchers may test the proposed model on a larger sample size and from different stakeholders' perspectives such as the disaster victims, government agencies and NGOs.

Social implications

The ultimate beneficiaries of a digitalised and transparent humanitarian logistics and supply chain will be the society as a whole and particularly the victims of the disasters. By adopting the appropriate technologies in DROs, the victims will receive timely and entitled resources, and early warnings will save many lives.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the body of knowledge by providing the first empirical evidence of examining the moderating role of digitalisation in creating transparency in humanitarian logistics from one of the top ten most disaster-affected nations.

Deploying Spatial Data for Coastal Community Resilience: A Review from the Managerial Perspective

The use of spatial data for coastal community resilience applications has diversified as a consequence of the increasing availability of data, and extensive development in data processing. However, the true value of spatial data is not fully exploited as a result of lacking scientific managerial models that incorporate spatial data into decision-making. This article synthesizes the cross-disciplinary literature review on deploying spatial data for coastal community resilience from the managerial perspective. It systematically reviews research addressing the topic of deploying spatial data for coastal resilience operations from the earliest available to 1999. The review uses 142 studies to address three research questions: (1) What kind of data can be obtained for coastal resilience situational awareness? (2) What outcomes have spatial data attributed to coastal resilience applications? and (3) What are the missing pieces (gaps) in connecting the spatial data with coastal resilience applications? In addressing these research questions, the authors review articles based on three dimensions including the availability of spatial data, the availability of applications, and limitations. Based on the findings of the analysis, the authors conclude that the managerial perspective of deploying spatial data in coastal hazards are understudies, and outline problem formulation, mission prioritization, and information salience as an agenda for future research.

An Open Data Approach to Mapping Urban Drainage Infrastructure in Developing Communities

Urban flooding in developing countries represents a growing threat to sustainable development efforts, yet the tools needed to study these infrastructure systems in data-scarce environments are woefully inadequate. This study seeks to propose a standardized approach and methods for mapping urban drainage systems in developing communities. The research draws on a case study from the Philippines, which sought to conduct rapid elevation surveys and drainage assessments employing open source geographical information system (GIS) tools. We develop a standardized procedure for digitizing drainage systems using OpenStreetMap and Field Papers, as well as discuss applications of this data for drainage design. The results contribute to a methodological framework that can be replicated in other similar developing communities where study of urban drainage is needed for sustainable development and disaster risk reduction efforts.

Assessing OpenStreetMap Completeness for Management of Natural Disaster by Means of Remote Sensing: A Case Study of Three Small Island States (Haiti, Dominica and St. Lucia)

Over the last few decades, many countries, especially islands in the Caribbean, have been challenged by the devastating consequences of natural disasters, which pose a significant threat to human health and safety. Timely information related to the distribution of vulnerable population and critical infrastructure is key for effective disaster relief. OpenStreetMap (OSM) has repeatedly been shown to be highly suitable for disaster mapping and management. However, large portions of the world, including countries exposed to natural disasters, remain incompletely mapped. In this study, we propose a methodology that relies on remotely sensed measurements (e.g., Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS), Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-1) and derived classification schemes (e.g., forest and built-up land cover) to predict the completeness of OSM building footprints in three small island states (Haiti, Dominica and St. Lucia). We find that the combinatorial effects of these predictors explain up to 94% of the variation of the completeness of OSM building footprints. Our study extends the existing literature by demonstrating how remotely sensed measurements could be leveraged to evaluate the completeness of the OSM database, especially in countries with high risk of natural disasters. Identifying areas that lack coverage of OSM features could help prioritize mapping efforts, especially in areas vulnerable to natural hazards and where current data gaps pose an obstacle to timely and evidence-based disaster risk management.

A Promising Tool to Assess Long Term Public Health Effects of Natural Disasters: Combining Routine Health Survey Data and Geographic Information Systems to Assess Stunting after the 2001 Earthquake in Peru

Background

Research on long-term health effects of earthquakes is scarce, especially in low- and middle-income countries, which are disproportionately affected by disasters. To date, progress in this area has been hampered by the lack of tools to accurately measure these effects. Here, we explored whether long-term public health effects of earthquakes can be assessed using a combination of readily available data sources on public health and geographic distribution of seismic activity.

Methods

We used childhood stunting as a proxy for public health effects. Data on stunting were attained from Demographic and Health Surveys. Earthquake data were obtained from U.S. Geological Survey’s ShakeMaps, geographic information system-based maps that divide earthquake affected areas into different shaking intensity zones. We combined these two data sources to categorize the surveyed children into different earthquake exposure groups, based on how much their area of residence was affected by the earthquake. We assessed the feasibility of the approach using a real earthquake case – an 8.4 magnitude earthquake that hit southern Peru in 2001.

Results and conclusions

Our results indicate that the combination of health survey data and disaster data may offer a readily accessible and accurate method for determining the long-term public health consequences of a natural disaster. Our work allowed us to make pre- and post- earthquake comparisons of stunting, an important indicator of the well-being of a society, as well as comparisons between populations with different levels of exposure to the earthquake. Furthermore, the detailed GIS based data provided a precise and objective definition of earthquake exposure. Our approach should be considered in future public health and disaster research exploring the long-term effects of earthquakes and potentially other natural disasters.

Social media and disasters: a functional framework for social media use in disaster planning, response, and research

A comprehensive review of online, official, and scientific literature was carried out in 2012-13 to develop a framework of disaster social media. This framework can be used to facilitate the creation of disaster social media tools, the formulation of disaster social media implementation processes, and the scientific study of disaster social media effects. Disaster social media users in the framework include communities, government, individuals, organisations, and media outlets. Fifteen distinct disaster social media uses were identified, ranging from preparing and receiving disaster preparedness information and warnings and signalling and detecting disasters prior to an event to (re)connecting community members following a disaster. The framework illustrates that a variety of entities may utilise and produce disaster social media content. Consequently, disaster social media use can be conceptualised as occurring at a number of levels, even within the same disaster. Suggestions are provided on how the proposed framework can inform future disaster social media development and research.