scholarly journals The Changing Face of Accountability in Humanitarianism: Using Artificial Intelligence for Anticipatory Action

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 456-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc J. C. Van den Homberg ◽  
Caroline M. Gevaert ◽  
Yola Georgiadou
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Development Aid ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
Local Data ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Humanitarian Response ◽  
Algorithmic Accountability ◽  
Anticipatory Action ◽  
Relationship Of

Over the past two decades, humanitarian conduct has been drifting away from the classical paradigm. This drift is caused by the blurring of boundaries between development aid and humanitarianism and the increasing reliance on digital technologies and data. New humanitarianism, especially in the form of disaster risk reduction, involved government authorities in plans to strengthen their capacity to deal with disasters. Digital humanitarianism now enrolls remote data analytics: GIS capacity, local data and information management experts, and digital volunteers. It harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to strengthen humanitarian agencies and governments’ capacity to anticipate and cope better with crises. In this article, we first trace how the meaning of accountability changed from classical to new and finally to digital humanitarianism. We then describe a recent empirical case of anticipatory humanitarian action in the Philippines. The Red Cross Red Crescent movement designed an artificial intelligence algorithm to trigger the release of funds typically used for humanitarian response in advance<em> </em>of an impending typhoon to start up early actions to mitigate its potential impact. We highlight emerging actors and fora in the accountability relationship of anticipatory humanitarian action as well as the consequences arising from actors’ (mis)conduct. Finally, we reflect on the implications of this new form of algorithmic accountability for classical humanitarianism.

Balancing permanent and forecast-based action to lessen wind-induced building damage in the Philippines.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Demi Vonk ◽  
Marc van den Homberg ◽  
Nanette Kingma ◽  
Dinand Alkema ◽  
Aklilu Teklesadik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wind Speed ◽  
Disaster Response ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Building Damage ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
Disaster Prevention ◽  
Anticipatory Action

&lt;p&gt;With a global paradigm shift from post-disaster response aid to anticipatory action, the question on how anticipatory action relates to long-term climate adaptation and often government-led actions towards permanent disaster prevention becomes more relevant. With rising disaster risk, a framework that decision-makers can use to select between preventive and preparedness risk reduction efforts would be most useful. A model originally developed to compare permanent interventions to forecast-based action for floods was applied to wind-induced building damage due to tropical cyclones, focusing on a case study from the Philippines. We made use of a typhoon forecasting model based on the ensemble forecast from EMCWF, and modeled the wind footprint to estimate the wind speed in the case study area. A threshold was defined, similar to how it is done in actual operations by the Philippine Red Cross. If the forecasted typhoon exceeds a pre-set threshold in terms of wind speed, action to strengthen light-weight wooden houses with a Shelter Strengthening Kit (SSK) is taken. SSKs temporarily make these houses more resistant to withstand extreme winds, thereby reducing the impacts. This short term action is compared to a scenario in which lightweight wooden houses are permanently upgraded. Results give actors in humanitarian response, anticipatory action as well as permanent disaster prevention insight into which variables affect this balance. and help policymakers to allocate their scarce budgets in a cost-effective way. The framework, although developed for the Philippines, can also be replicated in other cyclone-prone countries.&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;

Interview with Mr Ma Qiang

2015 ◽  
Vol 97 (897-898) ◽  
pp. 29-44
Keyword(s):  
Disaster Response ◽  
Vice President ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Crises ◽  
Institutional Rules ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Executive Vice President ◽  
Operational Guidance

In this issue, the Review wanted to give a voice to different perspectives on the principles guiding humanitarian action. The Chinese Red Cross is an interesting example of a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement operating according not only to the seven Fundamental Principles of the Movement, but also to three additional values (or “spirits”), namely humanity, fraternity and dedication. Whereas the Fundamental Principles serve as institutional rules and provide operational guidance, the three spirits serve as an ideology for members of the Chinese Red Cross. In addition, over the last few years, the Chinese Red Cross has become more and more involved in disaster response operations abroad (for instance, in the response to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in 2013 and the earthquake in Nepal in 2015), as well as in China. It is expected that Chinese disaster response organizations will be increasingly involved in future international crises. The Review spoke to Mr Ma Qiang, former Executive Vice-President of the Shanghai branch of the Chinese Red Cross, the oldest Red Cross branch in China, to find out more about how he sees the evolution of the humanitarian sector and the challenges to principled humanitarian action in today's world.

Management of Economics and State "Bottom"

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 76-91
Author(s):  
E. D. Solozhentsev
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Probabilistic Models ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Special Software ◽  
Human Quality ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

The scientific problem of economics “Managing the quality of human life” is formulated on the basis of artificial intelligence, algebra of logic and logical-probabilistic calculus. Managing the quality of human life is represented by managing the processes of his treatment, training and decision making. Events in these processes and the corresponding logical variables relate to the behavior of a person, other persons and infrastructure. The processes of the quality of human life are modeled, analyzed and managed with the participation of the person himself. Scenarios and structural, logical and probabilistic models of managing the quality of human life are given. Special software for quality management is described. The relationship of human quality of life and the digital economy is examined. We consider the role of public opinion in the management of the “bottom” based on the synthesis of many studies on the management of the economics and the state. The bottom management is also feedback from the top management.

The ICRC Library goes digital

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Keyword(s):  
International Committee ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Reference Library ◽  
Parallel Development ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Past

The ICRC Library is home to unique collections retracing the parallel development of humanitarian action and law during the past 150+ years. With the core of these collections now digitized, this reference library on international humanitarian law (IHL) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a resource available to all, anytime, anywhere.

Hacking humanitarians: Defining the cyber perimeter and developing a cyber security strategy for international humanitarian organizations in digital transformation

2020 ◽  
Vol 102 (913) ◽  
pp. 367-387
Author(s):  
Massimo Marelli
Keyword(s):  
Cyber Security ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
International Committee ◽  
Digital Transformation ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
Digital Environment ◽  
Security Strategy ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Humanitarian Organizations

AbstractDigitalization and new technologies have an increasingly important role in today's humanitarian activities. As humanitarian organizations become more active in and reliant on new and digital technologies, they evolve from being simple bystanders to being fully fledged stakeholders in cyberspace, vulnerable to adverse cyber operations that could impact on their capacity to protect and assist people affected by armed conflict or other situations of violence.This shift makes it essential for humanitarian organizations to understand and properly map their resulting cyber perimeter. Humanitarian organizations can protect themselves and their activities by devising appropriate cyber strategies for the digital environment. Clearly defining the digital boundaries within which they carry out operations lays the groundwork for humanitarian organizations to develop a strategy to support and protect humanitarian action in the digital environment, channel available resources to where they are most needed, and understand the areas in which their operational dialogue and working modalities need to be adapted for cyberspace.The purpose of this article is to identify the unique problems facing international humanitarian organizations operating in cyberspace and to suggest ways to address them. More specifically, the article identifies the key elements that an international humanitarian organization should consider in developing a cyber security strategy. Throughout, the International Committee of the Red Cross and its specificities are used as an example to illustrate the problems identified and the possible ways to address them.

Artificial intelligence based prediction models: sales forecasting application in automotive aftermarket

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Mert Girayhan Türkbayrağí ◽  
Elif Dogu ◽  
Y. Esra Albayrak
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Computational Intelligence ◽  
Prediction Models ◽  
Predictive Analytics ◽  
Demand Characteristic ◽  
Product Portfolio ◽  
Ann Model ◽  
Nonlinear Relationships ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Automotive Aftermarket

Automotive aftermarket industry is possessed of a wide product portfolio range which is in the 4th rank by its worldwide trade volume. The demand characteristic of automotive aftermarket parts is volatile and uncertain. Nevertheless, the cause-and-effect relationship of automotive aftermarket industry has not been defined obviously heretofore. These conditions bring automotive aftermarket sales forecasting into a challenging process. This paper is composed to determine the relevant external factors for automotive aftermarket sales based on expert reviews and to propose a sales forecasting model for automotive aftermarket industry. Since computational intelligence techniques yield a framework to focus on predictive analytics and prescriptive analytics, an artificial neural network model constructed for Turkey automotive aftermarket industry. Artificial intelligence is a subset of computational intelligence that focused on problems which have complex and nonlinear relationships. The data which have complex and nonlinear relationships could be modelled successfully even though incomplete data in case of implementation of appropriate model. The proposed ANN model for sales forecast is compared with multiple linear regression and revealed a higher prediction performance.

scholarly journals Methodologies in Identification, Analysis, and Measurement of Visual Pollution: The Case Study of Intramuros

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-26
Author(s):  
Stanley Don Barroga ◽  
Nappy L. Navarra ◽  
Honorio T. Palarca
Keyword(s):  
Direct Method ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Weighted Average ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
City Image ◽  
Image Rating ◽  
Visual Landscape ◽  
Modern Landscape ◽  
Identification Analysis ◽  
Relationship Of

The problem of visual pollution in the Philippines has been increasingly evident, and people are becoming aware of it. But to create effective solutions, a deep understanding of the problem should first be established. This paper was aimed to identify, analyze, and measure the visual pollution present in Intramuros, a heritage city in the Philippines that encapsulates the Philippine colonial architecture in the 1890s. The site is known for its preservation of its city image but also modern landscape changes. To achieve the goal, the application of the Indirect and Direct Method of Landscape Evaluation was executed. These methods led to two results: (1) the identification of components— which are landscape attributes and indicators, that make up a visual landscape; and (2) the understanding of how it is perceived by the observer through a survey and interviews, which are quantified by ratings. To further understand the relationship of indicators and ratings with each other, a series of correlational studies was done. This resulted to the establishment of Disturbance, Stewardship, and Image Rating as the primary descriptors of visual pollution. A weighted average formula was then established, which quantified the visual pollution of Intramuros through indicator values and response ratings. It was concluded that visual pollution in Intramuros, through research-based methodology, can be identified, analyzed, and measured. Specific viewpoints in the district were identified as unacceptably visually-polluted. Magallanes St. cor. Victoria St. in Intramuros had the highest VP Score at -4.886. Elements that contributed to visual pollution were also identified.

scholarly journals Church Networks and Localisation Practice in the Pacific

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda Lauria ◽  
Aloysius Canete ◽  
Rebekah Cochrane
Keyword(s):  
International Development ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Local Staff ◽  
The Road ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Humanitarian Response ◽  
Faith Leaders ◽  
The Pacific

The localisation agenda is the largest humanitarian reform in decades. Global research, advocacy and adaptations of localised approaches continue to mature following the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016. The Summit produced The Charter for Faith-based Humanitarian Action, recognising the unique position and comparative advantage of local faith actors (LFAs) in humanitarian settings, owing to their presence in communities before, during, and after crises. More than 80% of the world’s population professes a religious faith, and international development and humanitarian work takes place within communities deeply influenced by faith, with local staff often themselves people of faith (cited in Fletcher 2018, p. 4). LFAs have consistently been among the top implementing partners of UN Agencies in undertaking humanitarian response (UNHCR Partnership Note on faith-based organizations, local faith communities and faith leaders 2014, p.8). Despite this recognition, little has promulgated on the role of LFAs in the localisation agenda and the primacy of LFAs' voices in contextualising the agenda for their communities. Accordingly, CAN DO (Church Agencies Network Disaster Operations) a network of Australian churchbased agencies with established relationships in the Pacific, is building an evidence base to inform international actors and affirm the significance of LFAs in localised humanitarian response within the Pacific region, thereby contributing towards the Charter for Faith-Based Humanitarian Action commitments. This paper is a critical reflection of the 2017-2018 localised response to the Monaro Volcano eruption in Vanuatu. Key learnings frame future collaborations with Pacific churches and pave the road ahead in shifting power differentials, including the advancement of LFAs' role within policy and decision-making at all levels of humanitarian response (Charter for Faith-Based Humanitarian Action 2016, p.2).

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