Community Mapping for Risk Identification and Communication by HOT

HOT provided OpenStreetMap training as part of the World Bank's Caribbean Open Data Program, which aims to increase the ability of countries to create new businesses and generate more value, as well as improve the delivery of various services. the information is also useful for Disaster Risk Management (DRM).

The Humanitarian OpenSteetMap Team (HOT) has activated to provide geographic base data in areas affected by Hurricane Patricia in Mexico.

HOT supports a community mapping project in the Lower Shire of Malawi, whose two districts, Chikwawa and Nsanje, are the most flood-prone areas of the country.

HOT support magnitude 7.5 Eastern Afghanistan Earthquake.

The 2015 Eastern Afghanistan Earthquake hit remote areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan on Monday the 26th October with a magnitude of 7.5, with a series of tremors, measuring 4.0 or higher striking west of the original epicentre in the following hours. The US Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the earthquake was centred in the mountainous Hindu Kush region, 76km (45 miles) south of Faizabad, in Badakhshan province.

During the West Africa Ebola Epidemic, Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team helped coordinate mapping community activities and deliver maps to field workers.

HOT supports with magnitude 7.3 earthquake in Nepal.

The 2015 Nepal earthquake struck on 25th April with a magnitude of 7.8, followed by many aftershocks including a large magnitude 7.3 quake on 12 May. The quakes have caused widespread damage in the city of Kathmandu and the surrounding region. Thanks to a spectacular volunteer effort, HOT has boosted OpenStreetMap coverage of these areas, building upon detailed maps already created by the local OpenStreetMap community and Kathmandu Living Labs. This allows us to offer to help with aid delivery and reconstruction efforts. See the Maps and Data services in a variety of formats on the 2015 Nepal Earthquake wiki page.

HOT is supporting the Ecuador Earthquake by assisting the local OSM community to engage global volunteers and international responders.

The strongest earthquake to hit Ecuador in decades flattened buildings and buckled highways along its Pacific coast, sending the Andean nation into a state of emergency. HOT is supporting the response by assisting the local OSM community to engage the global volunteer community and interface with international aid organizations and imagery providers.

HOT activated to trace buildings by the Disaster Management Center (DMC) of Sri Lanka in response to the 2016 Sri Lanka floods.

Sri Lanka was affected by heavy flooding in May 2016. HOT was asked to activate and immediately start tracing buildings by the Disaster Management Center (DMC) of Sri Lanka, who work closely with World Bank GFDRR. DMC was in urgent need of detailed housing unit information.

HOT volunteers add 40,000 buildings and 1,700 km of road to support response efforts to Cyclone Enawo in Madagascar.

The global Red Cross network and the Malagasy Red Cross responded to Cyclone Enawo, which made landfall in northeastern Madagascar on March 7th. With wind speeds equivalent to that of a category 4 hurricane, Enawo was the strongest cyclone to impact the country in the last 13 years. Much of the nation’s roads are dirt, and due to rains and flooding, reaching the most heavily impacted areas was made extremely difficult.

The HOT community activated to support mapping efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.

The Humanitarian OpenSteetMap Team (HOT) has activated to provide geographic base data in areas affected by Hurricane Matthew. Category 4 Hurricane Matthew continues to strengthen and is advancing on Haiti and the Bahamas. Hurricane Matthew is expected to cause ‘catastrophic’ damage including extreme flooding and landslides potentially affecting millions in Haiti, Jamaica, and Bahamas.

The past year we have seen disasters and destruction on an unprecedented scale, and the HOT Community has activated to respond. Details on the projects, and how you can get involved are below. This is a critical time in the lives of millions of people worldwide, and we thank the mappers volunteering to support them.

HOT mapped the village of Cirendu, in the province of Banten and the Jatigede sub-district, in the Province of West Java to provide comprehensive data on households and key infrastructure. The resulting exposure data was subsequently used to run scenarios on dam failure using InaSAFE.

HOT deployed OpenAerialMap for use by the Pacific Community (SPC) as part of the Pacific Humanitarian Innovation Challenge.

HOT has partnered with the Global Earthquake Model (GEM) and ImageCat on a Challenge Fund, focused on developing a global exposure database designed for multi-hazard risk analysis.

The DMInnovation (DMI) program is the science and innovation component of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Disaster Risk Management (DRM) program in Indonesia. DMI has two overarching objectives that support DFAT’s DRM program: Support Indonesia to Make Informed Disaster Management Decisions and Build and Maintain Links between People and Institutions in the Field of Disaster Management. Key implementation principles for the program are sustainability, interoperability and supporting an inclusivity agenda.

Since the beginning of May 2018, HOT has been called upon to respond to, or assist, a handful of disasters across the globe. Details on the projects, and how you can get involved are below. Maps can play a critical role in potentially saving the lives of millions of people worldwide, a big thank you to the mappers volunteering to create them.

HOT is supporting the development of InAWARE, a disaster management tool, aimed at improving risk assessment, early-warning, and disaster-management decision making in Indonesia.

In 2018, the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) responded to more incidents than any year ever before; 24 disaster responses. Many have been reported on before, so here we will look at just the last half of the year.

The Open Cities Africa, Accra project sought to make Alogboshie and its environs resilient to natural disasters, especially flooding.

The Open Cities Accra Project was led by Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) in partnership with Mobile Web Ghana and OSM Ghana. The OCA project was carried out in 11 cities across 10 countries in sub-saharan Africa: Accra, Antananarivo, Brazzaville, Kampala, Kinshasa, Monrovia, Ngaoundéré, Pointe-Noire, Saint-Louis, Seychelles and Zanzibar City. In June 2018, delegates from these various cities convened at the Makerere University, Kampala for the official Open Cities Africa kick-off and training event.

Open Cities Monrovia project activities were centered on addressing flooding and challenges relating to flooding through the provision of up-to-date data of Zone 300, the area of interest. Flooding in Monrovia is cyclical and occurs during the rainy season every year (April - October).

HOT is working with UNDP and Uganda’s Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) to provide additional data and mapping inputs to hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and risk profiling in support of the development of the “Refugee hosting district Risk profiles” and Risk Atlas, based on the methodology developed by the OPM.

To better understand community-level risk, vulnerability and exposure associated with frequent flooding of the Nakamiro Channel in central Kampala, HOT with support from KCCA collected data on the Nakamiro Channel area covering: critical infrastructure, building flood risk and condition, community awareness, waste and drainage infrastructure.

Cyclone Idai caused widespread damage across Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. HOT and partners have been busy creating a basemap critical for first responders and aid organizations providing relief efforts in the region.

HOT partnered with Microsoft Philanthropies and Bing Maps to produce AI-detected open building datasets for Tanzania and Uganda and to pilot Machine Learning assisted workflows in the Tasking Manager application in order to enhance mapper experience.

Since the community’s creation in 2016, OSM Sierra Leone has worked to create university mapping chapters, partner with the Red Cross and other organizations, to increase the quality of maps across the country. The community is seeking to expand its impact, training more individuals and increasing the diversity of their community, particularly with female mappers.

In a country that suffers from floods and even epidemics – the Ebola outbreak in 2014 devastated the country – putting places and people on the map means communities can demand the humanitarian and development assistance they need to thrive. OSM Sierra Leone has even been using mapping to fight female genital mutilation in the country, holding mapathons with the Red Cross to map at-risk areas.

Practical Action in Bolivia aims to train individuals to identify and map their needs, making geospatial data available to NGOs and government agencies providing aid.

HOT is working with the Netherlands Red Cross to have an evidence-based look at current AI-supported mapping flows and to take the next step towards using OSM data for training machine learning models.

What did we learn from the disaster activations of 2020? We explore that question in the context of five of the largest disaster activations of 2020 in this new graphic, and we share ways you can take part in disaster mapping efforts.

Shared knowledge and datasets are critical for Caribbean nations to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters. HOT is supporting the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) and the World Bank on integrating OpenStreetMap into a collaborative geospatial data platform to increase knowledge share and use of open geospatial data across CDEMA countries.

Increasing the resilience of countries to natural hazards through the integration of open exposure data derived through satellite imagery and open protocols.

The Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) and Facebook are partnering on Open Data mapping, as well as Free Software projects.

Facebook has been an active participant and supporter in OpenStreetMap (OSM) and State of the Map conferences since 2015. It started gradually initiating to use OSM in their products’ maps, with a full switch in 2018 to rely on the most relevant open geo-data source globally. Since then, Facebook is contributing to the mapping and technology ecosystem, by improving the quality and coverage of data in OSM and supporting the development of Free Software tools around it.

HOT and OMDTZ are leading a series of short urban mapping campaigns over a 6-month period (starting in July 2020) that include verification and update of OpenStreetMap (OSM) data for COVID-10 hotspot analysis, remote digitization of buildings, and community flood history mapping.

Cuerpo Consultivo para el Desarrollo de Río Piedras (CCDRP) aims to develop the first community-driven disaster preparedness and recovery mapping inventory in Puerto Rico. Mapping activities will be completed across the eight communities that form Río Piedras to understand what unmet needs still exist from past disaster events, to identify critical infrastructure needed to support disaster relief efforts, and to identify organizations and individuals who can support future relief efforts.

Community Mapping of Urban Risks in Mwanza aims to produce high-quality, ground-truth spatial information and urban risks data for selected wards in Ilemela and Nyamagana municipalities.

Training women as drone pilots to map Makoko, one of Africa's largest slums, to improve service delivery for residents.

Since land mapping proves difficult in this area, Code for Africa (CfAfrica) will be using fixed-wing drones to photograph and algorithmically map the community, training 5-7 women as drone pilots. Land-based data collectors will then help annotate the aerial maps with key buildings and infrastructure, and how they are used. The resulting open geodata will for the first time give community leaders, residents, planners, and development agencies exact intel on everything from schools and clinics, to waters sources, sewers, roads, markets and homes in Makoko. CfAfrica will make the data available in community gathering points to help residents use it for better planning or campaigns.

Supporting the 2017 South Asian Floods in Bangladesh

To support response to the devastating after-effects of the 2017 Bangladesh floods, HOT initiated the “South Asian Flood Activation” to support aid agencies working in the region. Led by the Bangladesh Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Operation Team (BHOOT), the OSM Bangladesh community started mapping residential areas and connecting roads of flooded areas to enable aid agencies to support affected populations and improve future response mechanisms.

In Peru, GAL (Global Active Learning) School is empowering 11-16 year olds to develop their own projects for social good using OpenStreetMap, Open Data and 360 imagery.

The project has multiple objectives: firstly, to encourage and empower youth to engage in improving the societies they live through responding to challenges they themselves identify. Secondly to improve awareness of open source, digital technologies and platforms amongst children and all stakeholders in the area through peer learning. Finally, to encourage sharing of experiences, specifically in the exchange of cultures through the global OSM network and other schools nationally and globally. Students from different schools in the Cusco region are currently developing mapping projects in four main areas of focus:
– Disaster preparedness
– Cultural heritage
– Transportation
– Gender awareness

Improving maps for emergency responders.

The Ger Community Map Center has trained the Emergency Management Department in Arkhangai province on OpenStreetMap data to provide people with updated information of settlement areas, natural resources and hazards such as forest fires, dzuds and floods. Previously, the Emergency Management Department responders did not have an open map platform to navigate the fastest accessible route to reach areas in need of help during natural disasters and the spread of animal diseases. The data on OpenStreetMap will support effective disaster relief in the future, and help identify appropriate new locations for outreach branches of the Emergency Management Department.

As the world grapples with the global pandemic of COVID-19, at HOT we are concerned for vulnerable groups worldwide.

Multiple, ongoing crises will be exacerbated by COVID-19. These crises include those trapped or displaced by conflict and living in close quarters like refugee camps and informal settlements for whom social distancing may not be possible, as well as populations with additional vulnerability, e.g. people living with TB or HIV/AIDs.

Mapping for flood prevention in Mozambique.

Building resilience of agricultural communities to disasters.

Supporting the 2018 Ebola outbreak in DRC.

In 2017 OSM DRC achieved legal status in order to scale their mapping activities and increase training provision to new and existing members. In the last year they have established strong relationships with local NGOs and health partners such as the Red Cross and have been collaborating on risk reduction projects. The OSM DRC has grown from 200 to 300 members and female participation has increased from 10% to 20%. Currently, OSM DRC are supporting the Ebola outbreak. A major problem for emergency teams has been locating Ebola victims since many roads are unmapped. The OSM DRC team are mapping buildings, road details and key landmarks, to improve the accuracy and quality of the basemaps being used by emergency responders. Volunteers are using GPS trackers or open source data collection tools on android phones to add precise building positions and feature labels to the map.

Improving emergency response in Peru.

In Peru, rural agricultural communities are heavily affected by natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods. OSM Peru are providing detailed maps of these rural spaces and are working in collaboration with ANPE (Asociación Nacional de Productores Ecológicos del Perú) and the Peruvian Ecological Farmers of Perú to improve rural maps and aid disaster response.

OSM South Sudan will become the first OpenStreetMap community in the country, training individuals both in South Sudan, and South Sudanese refugees in Uganda, to map settlements affected by flooding.

Building detailed maps of Sri Lanka for emergency response during natural disasters.

Palang Merah Indonesia is working on a project to create a detailed base map of the infrastructure, land use, amenities, and other key community assets such as schools and community centres in the country for community disaster planning.

Haiti regularly suffers from crises such as earthquakes and cyclones. The Potential 3.0 team are organizing mapping parties to train and expand the OSM Haiti community in preparation for future disasters, and updating the map after the devastating effects of Hurricane Matthew.

Mapping coastal wetlands for climate change resilience.

Mapping social services and flood risk areas in The Gambia.

UMT YouthMappers improve gender balance in the Nigerian mapping community, and create OpenStreetMap data support communities vulnerable to disasters and health crises in Nigeria.

Ramani Huria, "Open Map" in Swahili, is a HOT Tanzania project focused on mapping Dar es Salaam to inform flood prevention plans.