Project description
Climate change and urbanization, combined with other natural and man-made causes, are leading to more frequent, unpredictable, and devastating disasters. As such events are inherently spatial phenomena, the use of geospatial information and communication technologies (GeoICTs) is crucial for effective disaster management. At the same time, despite the growing diversity and accessibility of GeoICTs, in some cases, their implementation remains rather limited or not as successful. A mismatch can be noticed between the availability and potential benefits of modern GeoICTs and their practical application.
This project explores existing challenges in the application of geospatial technologies, particularly space-based, for disaster risk reduction (DRR) and management. The overall aim is to contribute to strengthening the disaster resilience of countries by analyzing the current state of the use of space-based information and technologies by national authorities across the world. The project is exploring obstacles that prevent wider diffusion and implementation of GeoICTs, identifying existing issues in the adoption, adaptation, and application of such technologies, and proposing potential recommendations to tackle these challenges.
The absence of a common interpretation, moreover, the gap in our understanding of how GeoICTs should be developed, how they should be used, and how we can assess the results of the technology application, is recognized as a serious issue in the field of disaster management. In order to ensure deliberate data-driven decision-making in securing community resilience, there is a need to establish a connection between the technology developers and actual end-users, to help them make better-informed decisions, knowing each other’s actual demands and issues.
Presentations
Disaster Research Days 2020, Disaster Competence Network Austria (13-22 Oct 2020).
United Nations / Pakistan / Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water - 4th International Conference on the Use of Space Technology for Water Management (26 Feb - 2 Mar 2018, Islamabad, Pakistan).
6th International Disaster and Risk Conference (IDRC) "Integrative Risk Management – towards resilient cities" (28 Aug - 1 Sep 2016, Davos, Switzerland).
Climate Change Adaptation Training, organized by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) (6-10 Jun 2016, Budapest, Hungary).
Innovations in Disaster Risk Reduction, CEU Summer University (11-15 Jul 2016, Budapest, Hungary).
Geospatial Technologies and Remote Sensing for Monitoring SDGs, CEU Summer University (4-8 Jul 2016, Budapest, Hungary).