scholarly journals Exploring the impacts of social media and crowdsourcing on disaster resilience

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Nathan Clark ◽  
Kees Boersma ◽  
Sara Bonati ◽  
Chiara Fonio ◽  
Simon Gehlhar ◽  
...  

Social media and crowdsourcing (SMCS) are increasingly proving useful for addressing the effects of natural and human-made hazards. SMCS allow different stakeholders to share crucial information during disaster management processes and to strengthen community resilience through engagement and collaboration. To harvest these opportunities there is a need for better knowledge on SMCS for diverse disaster scenarios. These challenges are being addressed within the LINKS Horizon 2020 project. The project aims at strengthening societal resilience by producing advanced learning on the use of SMCS in disasters. This is done through an in-depth study across three knowledge domains (disaster risk perception and vulnerability, disaster management processes, disaster community technologies), the establishment of an interactive Framework, and an online platform in which a community of relevant stakeholders can learn and share knowledge and experiences. This paper provides an overview of the project objectives and approaches and a summary of the initial results.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saru Arifin ◽  
Sonny S. Wicaksono ◽  
Slamet Sumarto ◽  
Martitah Martitah ◽  
Dewi Sulistianingsih

This article will address the disaster resilience village (DRV) approach as a disaster preparedness method in Indonesia. This scheme became operational in 2012, exactly 5 years after disaster management legislation was passed in 2007. This DRV strategy is a component of the central government’s decentralisation of disaster management to local governments. Using a method of doctrinal legal review, this study argues that the DRV approach to disaster preparedness at the village level is inefficient. That is because the village apparatus is the central player in this DRV, but residents of disaster-prone areas are regarded as an afterthought when it comes to disaster management. Consequently, efforts to strengthen emergency preparedness for residents in disaster-prone areas will be harmed. As a result, it is unsurprising that whenever a disaster occurs in Indonesia, the death toll and damage to property remain high. This is because people who live in disaster-prone areas lack a framework for transforming knowledge and scientific experience with disasters. In addition, this DRV strategy opposes previous disaster experts’ community-based and transformative approaches. However, direct field research on communities living in disaster-prone areas is needed to obtain empirical evidence of the DRV approach’s shortcomings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 57 ◽  
pp. 102289
Author(s):  
Faxi Yuan ◽  
Min Li ◽  
Rui Liu ◽  
Wei Zhai ◽  
Bing Qi

AMBIO ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl C. Anderson ◽  
Fabrice G. Renaud

AbstractNature-based solutions (NbS) are increasingly recognized as sustainable approaches to address societal challenges. Disaster risk reduction (DRR) has benefited by moving away from purely ‘grey’ infrastructure measures towards NbS. However, this shift also furthers an increasing trend of reliance on public acceptance to plan, implement and manage DRR measures. In this review, we examine how unique NbS characteristics relate to public acceptance through a comparison with grey measures, and we identify influential acceptance factors related to individuals, society, and DRR measures. Based on the review, we introduce the PA-NbS model that highlights the role of risk perception, trust, competing societal interests, and ecosystem services. Efforts to increase acceptance should focus on providing and promoting awareness of benefits combined with effective communication and collaboration. Further research is required to understand interconnections among identified factors and how they can be leveraged for the success and further uptake of NbS.


Author(s):  
Kaijing Xue ◽  
Shili Guo ◽  
Yi Liu ◽  
Shaoquan Liu ◽  
Dingde Xu

Individual perception of disaster risk is not only the product of individual factors, but also the product of social interactions. However, few studies have empirically explored the correlations between rural residents’ flat social networks, trust in pyramidal channels, and disaster-risk perceptions. Taking Sichuan Province—a typical disaster-prone province in China—as an example and using data from 327 rural households in mountainous areas threatened by multiple disasters, this paper measured the level of participants’ disaster-risk perception in the four dimensions of possibility, threat, self-efficacy, and response efficacy. Then, the ordinary least squares method was applied to probe the correlations between social networks, trust, and residents’ disaster-risk perception. The results revealed four main findings. (1) Compared with scores relating to comprehensive disaster-risk perception, participants had lower perception scores relating to possibility and threat, and higher perception scores relating to self-efficacy and response efficacy. (2) The carrier characteristics of their social networks significantly affected rural residents’ perceived levels of disaster risk, while the background characteristics did not. (3) Different dimensions of trust had distinct effects on rural residents’ disaster-risk perceptions. (4) Compared with social network variables, trust was more closely related to the perceived level of disaster risks, which was especially reflected in the impact on self-efficacy, response efficacy, and comprehensive perception. The findings of this study deepen understanding of the relationship between social networks, trust, and disaster-risk perceptions of rural residents in mountainous areas threatened by multiple disasters, providing enlightenment for building resilient disaster-prevention systems in the community.


Author(s):  
Abinet Arega Sadore ◽  
Demelash Woldeyohannes Handiso ◽  
Tekle Ejajo Wontamo ◽  
Dejene Ermias Mekango ◽  
Sisay Moges

Abstract Background: Infection with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has become a severe public health issue worldwide. A broad amount of information related to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was disseminated by social media in Ethiopia. To date, there is limited evidence on the influence of social media use for covid-19 related information on covid-19 preventive practice. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the influence of social media use on the practice of COVID-19 preventive measures in Ethiopia. Methods: This study employed an anonymous internet-based online cross-sectional survey using Google forms to collects the data from the respondents from 15 May to 17 June 2020 in Ethiopia. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between social media usage as a predictor and COVID-19 preventive practice, after adjusting for socio-demographic and risk perception of COVID-19 variables. The data were analysed using SPSS version 21. Results: A total of 372 respondents have participated in the study. From 372, 208(55.9%) respondents in this study were male. Study participants who had good utilization of social media to get COVID-19 related information were 9.5 times engaged in COVID-19 preventive practices compared to study participants who had poor utilization of social media to get covid-19 related information (AOR= 9.59, 95% CI = 5.70 - 16.13). Also, study participants who had a high-risk perception of COVID-19 were 2.6 times engaged in COVID-19 practices compared to study participants who had a low-risk perception of covid-19 (AOR = 2.63, 95% CI = 1.58 - 4.38). Study participants who were students at the time of this study were four times more likely to show adequate COVID-19 preventive practice score compared to those who had another occupational status (AOR= 4.07, 95% CI= 1.66 - 9.98) Conclusions: Our results show that the usage of social media networks can have a positive effect on the practice of preventive measures and public safety against COVID-19; high-risk perception contributed to preventive activities against COVID-19. Social networking platforms can be used by public health agencies as an important method to raise public health understanding by disseminating concise messages to targeted audiences.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Nardini ◽  
Sara Bonati ◽  
Stefano Morelli ◽  
Veronica Pazzi

<p>Very few research studies have been dedicated to understanding the role of social media, diversity and vulnerability during a highly impacting event for a society. Social media are very important nowadays as a way to be in "connection to" and "link between" individuals. Thanks to technological support it is possible to create new virtual and real social relationships and networks and to be always up to date about what happen in the world. The role that virtual space plays "reducing distances", connecting people and places and facilitating the provision of support to people in need, has been receiving increasing interest in disaster studies in last years. In particular, connectivity has assumed an increasing role in relation to the diffusion of means to reach people and places in virtual mode. Furthermore, the use of social media as a means of providing information on disasters and risks could help to reduce exposure in disasters. However, several knowledge gaps are still opened, and in particular which are the potential repercussions of a high connected disaster management process on vulnerability? How can the weight of diversity change into the virtual space? The premise is that not everyone has the same possibility of accessing social media (e.g. to be informed, to know what is happening and to link with rescuers). The difficulty of accessing social media can make people invisible into the disaster management process with the risk that someone could be left behind. Thus, this presentation aims to discuss the challenges that derive from an increasing use of social platform in providing and receiving information during disasters. A second relevant point, that this presentation aims to discuss, is linked to the way citizens perceive communication platforms and how the flow of information significantly impacts on the interpretation and on the management of risk. Conclusions of this work suggest that communication should take into account the risk perception models by the public and therefore the peculiarities of each vulnerable group, to provide "targeted" communications in relation to the cultural context with the aim of reducing vulnerability growing up citizens’ awareness and knowledge. This presentation is the result of the work provided as part of the EU H2020 founded project LINKS (http://links-project.eu).<span> </span></p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
Samiha Sayed ◽  
Ebtesam Elsayed ◽  
Haya Zedan ◽  
Afaf Mossad

Author(s):  
Tigere Chagutah

Southern Africa has frequently been struck by damaging climate hazards which increasingly continue to threaten sustainable development efforts. Ominously, climate models predict that the incidence of major ‘wet’ events, such as floods and cyclones will increase in frequency against the background of a changing climate. Unfortunately, local mechanisms for communicating and raising public awareness of the consequent risks and appropriate risk reduction options remain weak. At the core of policy responses to the threat posed by climate related hazards, the South African government has adopted a disaster risk reduction approach to disaster management. This article details how, among many other measures to limit the adverse impacts of natural hazards, South Africa’s National Disaster Management Framework calls for the implementation of effective public awareness activities to increase the knowledge among communities of the risks they face and what risk-minimising actions they can take. Emphasis is laid on the importance of information provision and knowledge building among at-risk communities. Citing established theories and strategies, the author proposes a participatory development communication approach through Development Support Communication strategies for the provision of disaster risk reduction public awareness activities by government and other disaster risk reduction role-players in South Africa. By way of a review of completed studies and literature, the article provides guidance on the planning and execution of successful public communication campaigns and also discusses the constraints of communication campaigns as an intervention for comprehensive disaster risk reduction.


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