The paper is aimed at humanitarian practitioners and leaders who would like to gain a general kno... more The paper is aimed at humanitarian practitioners and leaders who would like to gain a general knowledge about Generative AI or would like to gain insight on trending strategies for mainstreaming these tools within their organization. By providing main topics of concern and recommendations, the authors laid out the landscape of capabilities and potential pathways for safe and responsible adoption of Generative AI.
A modern framework that can be used to better articulate job descriptions, filter & select candid... more A modern framework that can be used to better articulate job descriptions, filter & select candidates, identify team gaps, identify training needs and facilitate performance reviews all in relations to Humanitarian Information Managers. A few hard decisions and you will be much happier for it!
Have you ever thought about how much it costs when you collect humanitarian data? Are the costs w... more Have you ever thought about how much it costs when you collect humanitarian data? Are the costs worth it? Perhaps we should be estimating those costs upfront. This guidance document helps to unpack that question, outline the constructions/attributes that affect cost and provide a simple template for quickly calculating collection costs.
A paper studying how Artificial Intelligence has been applied to UAVs/drones in the past few year... more A paper studying how Artificial Intelligence has been applied to UAVs/drones in the past few years, how new approaches are being trialled, and what may be on the near-term horizon.
AI systems with prevalent biases, security risks, and consent issues can undermine the role of hu... more AI systems with prevalent biases, security risks, and consent issues can undermine the role of humanitarian actors in disaster contexts by leaving aid recipients at further risk of vulnerability. The report proceeds in five sections: (a) examples of AI systems that are used for vulnerable populations (b) analysis of different forms of bias pertaining to AI systems, (c) evaluation of security risks, (d) examination of issues of consent over data collection, and finally (e) AI principles and recommendations specific to vulnerable people in the humanitarian field.
Exploring the topic of quantum computing to find out what is real, what is hype, what is possible... more Exploring the topic of quantum computing to find out what is real, what is hype, what is possible, and what impacts it may have on the humanitarian sector.
Conversational agents and personal assistants are now more commonplace in a digital citizen’s dai... more Conversational agents and personal assistants are now more commonplace in a digital citizen’s daily life. 2018 had an estimated global population of about 7.7 billion people. Facebook, a prominent social media platform, had 1.47 billion daily users that same year. Users could interact with over 300,000 unique chatbots on Facebook Messenger by May 2018, an increase from the 100,000 chatbots reported by Facebook in April 2017. Twitter estimated 139 million users by the end of June 2019 with 5 per cent of the estimated Twitter population comprised of automated accounts. Advancing technology is making it difficult to label such interactions as with a human or machine.
Organizations would be remiss to ignore the potentials of conversational agents given the increasing number of people accessing mobile devices and the rising global interest in artificial intelligence (AI). Consumer enterprises and local governments have acknowledged the benefits of using conversational agents to interact with their customers and constituents. However, non-profit and non-governmental organizations have not experienced the same chatbot growth as other sectors. This paper does not recommend all organizations embrace this growing trend, but explores why a conversational agent is of interest for humanitarian purposes. It also introduces points of consideration for those interested in implementing this tool.
Will taking cybersecurity seriously become one of the biggest and most important challenges the h... more Will taking cybersecurity seriously become one of the biggest and most important challenges the humanitarian sector faces in the coming decades?
We explored the features, pros & cons and uses cases for three workspace types in the humanitaria... more We explored the features, pros & cons and uses cases for three workspace types in the humanitarian sector: (1) physical / social spaces, (2) online collaboration, and (3) individual workspaces. All three are not always an option, but perhaps we should ensure that providing them is a priority (when appropriate)?
A literature review around the possibility of leveraging blockchain to make technological/data-re... more A literature review around the possibility of leveraging blockchain to make technological/data-related solutions more secure and thus improving data protection in the humanitarian sector.
A detailed research into the various information / information sources, tools and services availa... more A detailed research into the various information / information sources, tools and services available to humanitarians when trying to develop situational awareness.
A look at the longer-term trends in disaster response by comparing two Caribbean earthquakes that... more A look at the longer-term trends in disaster response by comparing two Caribbean earthquakes that occurred in capital cities nearly 100 years apart.
The concept of gathering feedback directly from affected populations about their experiences with... more The concept of gathering feedback directly from affected populations about their experiences with aid agencies has been around for several years. As has the concept of using a technical platform in order to scale this feedback to as many affected as possible.
This paper outlines research findings, potential challenges, and potential solutions for such a solution. Two main areas were considered: Artificial Intelligence and Customer Reaction Buttons.
Blockchain for the Humanitarian Sector: Future opportunities explores blockchain technology and i... more Blockchain for the Humanitarian Sector: Future opportunities explores blockchain technology and its potential application to the humanitarian sector. It provides a primer on blockchain technology, and it highlights applications in the humanitarian sector, potential use cases and recommendations for implementation. This is meant to serve as guidance for potential use within the humanitarian community, and it outlines future areas of research and exploration.
Failure is very much a taboo topic, but is critical for learning purposes. Few are willing to ta... more Failure is very much a taboo topic, but is critical for learning purposes. Few are willing to talk or share. This report aimed to study why people failure, how they handle failure, how their organization perceives failure, and how failure could be more accepted.
As the widespread proliferation of technology changes how communities engage and respond to crisi... more As the widespread proliferation of technology changes how communities engage and respond to crisis, new mechanisms, such as Digital Response Networks (DRNs), emerge with the potential to facilitate collaboration and situational awareness between responders and local communities. DRNs are social networks of physical responders (e.g. local government, authorities, emergency responders, communities) and digital responders i.e. Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs) 1 connected through a central hub. They are often considered a network-of-networks. This guide will step you through creating a localized DRN by describing a) the purpose and required capability of a DRN, b) considerations before creating a DRN, and c) how to setup and sustain the DRN hub and larger network.
This paper aims to explore the idea of humanitarian organisations creating an innovation space. I... more This paper aims to explore the idea of humanitarian organisations creating an innovation space. It will discuss the role of social innovation within the context of humanitarian response as well as how organisations can build a positive ecosystem for entrepreneurs. It should serve as a guidance document for humanitarian organisations to set up their own version of an entrepreneurial innovation space to enable innovative collaborations.
This paper provides an overview of the concept and is in no means comprehensive and one-size-fitsall. Each organisation must decide how to adapt this concept to its own organisation and continue to do further research and analysis on each part of the implementation. The proposed model of the Humanitarian Entrepreneurial Incubator (HEI) is a partnership between humanitarian organisations and humanitarian entrepreneurs where organisations host entrepreneurs within their office and provide resources and insight to them as they develop an innovative product or service related to humanitarian response. The HEI is just one model and approach, but there are alternatives that are outlined in this paper.
This document is for formal humanitarian entities that
are interested in collaborating with Volun... more This document is for formal humanitarian entities that are interested in collaborating with Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs). It will best fit the needs of organizations that have had exposure to V&TCs and their work, and now seek practical advice on proceeding with a deployment. The guidance aims to ensure that actors understand the dynamics of working with V&TCs, better formulate requests and maximize the benefits of such collaboration.
This guidance is intended for Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs) and tech groups that ha... more This guidance is intended for Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs) and tech groups that have a desire to collaborate with Formal Humanitarian Organizations. We hope that it best fits the needs of V&TCs and tech groups that currently seek practical advice on how to develop projects with formal humanitarian organizations or how to further strengthen pre-existing collaborative relationships. We hope that this Guidance helps V&TCs better understand the modus operandi of humanitarian organizations so that they may better formulate requests for partnerships and maximize the benefits of collaborative relationships.
This is a report about what we need to know in the first weeks of a disaster. Ta... more This is a report about what we need to know in the first weeks of a disaster. Taking into account how fundamental this issue is to all our efforts within information management in crisis situations, it is surprising how little attention the issue has received to date.
Decision-‐‐making experts have been conducting years of research on how people make decisions in a variety of environments and what information, cues and biases people use when making a decision. But within the humanitarian community only limited attention has been given to this issue.
The report is descriptive rather than analytical and by providing a lot of details on how different groups organized and prioritized their information needs and typical decisions, we hope that others will continue to develop several additional layers of analysis on top and move research on this essential issue forward.
The paper is aimed at humanitarian practitioners and leaders who would like to gain a general kno... more The paper is aimed at humanitarian practitioners and leaders who would like to gain a general knowledge about Generative AI or would like to gain insight on trending strategies for mainstreaming these tools within their organization. By providing main topics of concern and recommendations, the authors laid out the landscape of capabilities and potential pathways for safe and responsible adoption of Generative AI.
A modern framework that can be used to better articulate job descriptions, filter & select candid... more A modern framework that can be used to better articulate job descriptions, filter & select candidates, identify team gaps, identify training needs and facilitate performance reviews all in relations to Humanitarian Information Managers. A few hard decisions and you will be much happier for it!
Have you ever thought about how much it costs when you collect humanitarian data? Are the costs w... more Have you ever thought about how much it costs when you collect humanitarian data? Are the costs worth it? Perhaps we should be estimating those costs upfront. This guidance document helps to unpack that question, outline the constructions/attributes that affect cost and provide a simple template for quickly calculating collection costs.
A paper studying how Artificial Intelligence has been applied to UAVs/drones in the past few year... more A paper studying how Artificial Intelligence has been applied to UAVs/drones in the past few years, how new approaches are being trialled, and what may be on the near-term horizon.
AI systems with prevalent biases, security risks, and consent issues can undermine the role of hu... more AI systems with prevalent biases, security risks, and consent issues can undermine the role of humanitarian actors in disaster contexts by leaving aid recipients at further risk of vulnerability. The report proceeds in five sections: (a) examples of AI systems that are used for vulnerable populations (b) analysis of different forms of bias pertaining to AI systems, (c) evaluation of security risks, (d) examination of issues of consent over data collection, and finally (e) AI principles and recommendations specific to vulnerable people in the humanitarian field.
Exploring the topic of quantum computing to find out what is real, what is hype, what is possible... more Exploring the topic of quantum computing to find out what is real, what is hype, what is possible, and what impacts it may have on the humanitarian sector.
Conversational agents and personal assistants are now more commonplace in a digital citizen’s dai... more Conversational agents and personal assistants are now more commonplace in a digital citizen’s daily life. 2018 had an estimated global population of about 7.7 billion people. Facebook, a prominent social media platform, had 1.47 billion daily users that same year. Users could interact with over 300,000 unique chatbots on Facebook Messenger by May 2018, an increase from the 100,000 chatbots reported by Facebook in April 2017. Twitter estimated 139 million users by the end of June 2019 with 5 per cent of the estimated Twitter population comprised of automated accounts. Advancing technology is making it difficult to label such interactions as with a human or machine.
Organizations would be remiss to ignore the potentials of conversational agents given the increasing number of people accessing mobile devices and the rising global interest in artificial intelligence (AI). Consumer enterprises and local governments have acknowledged the benefits of using conversational agents to interact with their customers and constituents. However, non-profit and non-governmental organizations have not experienced the same chatbot growth as other sectors. This paper does not recommend all organizations embrace this growing trend, but explores why a conversational agent is of interest for humanitarian purposes. It also introduces points of consideration for those interested in implementing this tool.
Will taking cybersecurity seriously become one of the biggest and most important challenges the h... more Will taking cybersecurity seriously become one of the biggest and most important challenges the humanitarian sector faces in the coming decades?
We explored the features, pros & cons and uses cases for three workspace types in the humanitaria... more We explored the features, pros & cons and uses cases for three workspace types in the humanitarian sector: (1) physical / social spaces, (2) online collaboration, and (3) individual workspaces. All three are not always an option, but perhaps we should ensure that providing them is a priority (when appropriate)?
A literature review around the possibility of leveraging blockchain to make technological/data-re... more A literature review around the possibility of leveraging blockchain to make technological/data-related solutions more secure and thus improving data protection in the humanitarian sector.
A detailed research into the various information / information sources, tools and services availa... more A detailed research into the various information / information sources, tools and services available to humanitarians when trying to develop situational awareness.
A look at the longer-term trends in disaster response by comparing two Caribbean earthquakes that... more A look at the longer-term trends in disaster response by comparing two Caribbean earthquakes that occurred in capital cities nearly 100 years apart.
The concept of gathering feedback directly from affected populations about their experiences with... more The concept of gathering feedback directly from affected populations about their experiences with aid agencies has been around for several years. As has the concept of using a technical platform in order to scale this feedback to as many affected as possible.
This paper outlines research findings, potential challenges, and potential solutions for such a solution. Two main areas were considered: Artificial Intelligence and Customer Reaction Buttons.
Blockchain for the Humanitarian Sector: Future opportunities explores blockchain technology and i... more Blockchain for the Humanitarian Sector: Future opportunities explores blockchain technology and its potential application to the humanitarian sector. It provides a primer on blockchain technology, and it highlights applications in the humanitarian sector, potential use cases and recommendations for implementation. This is meant to serve as guidance for potential use within the humanitarian community, and it outlines future areas of research and exploration.
Failure is very much a taboo topic, but is critical for learning purposes. Few are willing to ta... more Failure is very much a taboo topic, but is critical for learning purposes. Few are willing to talk or share. This report aimed to study why people failure, how they handle failure, how their organization perceives failure, and how failure could be more accepted.
As the widespread proliferation of technology changes how communities engage and respond to crisi... more As the widespread proliferation of technology changes how communities engage and respond to crisis, new mechanisms, such as Digital Response Networks (DRNs), emerge with the potential to facilitate collaboration and situational awareness between responders and local communities. DRNs are social networks of physical responders (e.g. local government, authorities, emergency responders, communities) and digital responders i.e. Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs) 1 connected through a central hub. They are often considered a network-of-networks. This guide will step you through creating a localized DRN by describing a) the purpose and required capability of a DRN, b) considerations before creating a DRN, and c) how to setup and sustain the DRN hub and larger network.
This paper aims to explore the idea of humanitarian organisations creating an innovation space. I... more This paper aims to explore the idea of humanitarian organisations creating an innovation space. It will discuss the role of social innovation within the context of humanitarian response as well as how organisations can build a positive ecosystem for entrepreneurs. It should serve as a guidance document for humanitarian organisations to set up their own version of an entrepreneurial innovation space to enable innovative collaborations.
This paper provides an overview of the concept and is in no means comprehensive and one-size-fitsall. Each organisation must decide how to adapt this concept to its own organisation and continue to do further research and analysis on each part of the implementation. The proposed model of the Humanitarian Entrepreneurial Incubator (HEI) is a partnership between humanitarian organisations and humanitarian entrepreneurs where organisations host entrepreneurs within their office and provide resources and insight to them as they develop an innovative product or service related to humanitarian response. The HEI is just one model and approach, but there are alternatives that are outlined in this paper.
This document is for formal humanitarian entities that
are interested in collaborating with Volun... more This document is for formal humanitarian entities that are interested in collaborating with Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs). It will best fit the needs of organizations that have had exposure to V&TCs and their work, and now seek practical advice on proceeding with a deployment. The guidance aims to ensure that actors understand the dynamics of working with V&TCs, better formulate requests and maximize the benefits of such collaboration.
This guidance is intended for Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs) and tech groups that ha... more This guidance is intended for Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs) and tech groups that have a desire to collaborate with Formal Humanitarian Organizations. We hope that it best fits the needs of V&TCs and tech groups that currently seek practical advice on how to develop projects with formal humanitarian organizations or how to further strengthen pre-existing collaborative relationships. We hope that this Guidance helps V&TCs better understand the modus operandi of humanitarian organizations so that they may better formulate requests for partnerships and maximize the benefits of collaborative relationships.
This is a report about what we need to know in the first weeks of a disaster. Ta... more This is a report about what we need to know in the first weeks of a disaster. Taking into account how fundamental this issue is to all our efforts within information management in crisis situations, it is surprising how little attention the issue has received to date.
Decision-‐‐making experts have been conducting years of research on how people make decisions in a variety of environments and what information, cues and biases people use when making a decision. But within the humanitarian community only limited attention has been given to this issue.
The report is descriptive rather than analytical and by providing a lot of details on how different groups organized and prioritized their information needs and typical decisions, we hope that others will continue to develop several additional layers of analysis on top and move research on this essential issue forward.
يهدف هذا الدليل الارشادي الى مساعدة المنظمات الانسانية والمعنيين بالشأن الاغاثي على فهم التنوع في... more يهدف هذا الدليل الارشادي الى مساعدة المنظمات الانسانية والمعنيين بالشأن الاغاثي على فهم التنوع في البيانات الضخمة وكيفية توظيفها في عملياتهم الانسانية. يعرض الدليل مجموعة جديدة من الوسائل والتقنيات الحديثة التي شكلت ثورة في مجال العمليات الاغاثية منذ استخدامها في زلزال هايتي 2010. ونظرا لما تشكله البيانات الضخمة من اهمية كبرى وافتقار المراجع العربية لمثل هذا النوع من المواضيع وايضا كونه مجالا جديدا، فقد راينا ان نقدم هذا الدليل باللغة العربية آملين ان يشكل مفهوما جديدا لمساعدة مجتمعاتنا المتضررة من الكوارث والازمات الانسانية.
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Organizations would be remiss to ignore the potentials of conversational agents given the increasing number of people accessing mobile devices and the rising global interest in artificial intelligence (AI). Consumer enterprises and local governments have acknowledged the benefits of using conversational agents to interact with their customers and constituents. However, non-profit and non-governmental organizations have not experienced the same chatbot growth as other sectors. This paper does not recommend all organizations embrace this growing trend, but explores why a conversational agent is of interest for humanitarian purposes. It also introduces points of consideration for those interested in implementing this tool.
This paper outlines research findings, potential challenges, and potential solutions for such a solution. Two main areas were considered: Artificial Intelligence and Customer Reaction Buttons.
This paper provides an overview of the concept and is in no means comprehensive and one-size-fitsall. Each organisation must decide how to adapt this concept to its own organisation and continue to do further research and analysis on each part of the implementation. The proposed model of the Humanitarian Entrepreneurial Incubator (HEI) is a partnership between humanitarian organisations and humanitarian entrepreneurs where organisations host entrepreneurs within their office and provide resources and insight to them as they develop an innovative product or service related to humanitarian response. The HEI is just one model and approach, but there are alternatives that are outlined in this
paper.
are interested in collaborating with Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs). It will best fit the needs of organizations that have had exposure to V&TCs and their work, and now seek practical advice on proceeding with a deployment. The guidance aims to ensure that actors understand the dynamics of working with V&TCs, better formulate requests and maximize the benefits of such collaboration.
Decision-‐‐making experts have been conducting years of research on how people make decisions in a variety of environments and what information, cues and biases people use when making a decision. But within the humanitarian community only limited attention has been given to this issue.
The report is descriptive rather than analytical and by providing a lot of details on how different groups organized and prioritized their information needs and typical decisions, we hope that others will continue to develop several additional layers of analysis on top and move research on this essential issue forward.
Organizations would be remiss to ignore the potentials of conversational agents given the increasing number of people accessing mobile devices and the rising global interest in artificial intelligence (AI). Consumer enterprises and local governments have acknowledged the benefits of using conversational agents to interact with their customers and constituents. However, non-profit and non-governmental organizations have not experienced the same chatbot growth as other sectors. This paper does not recommend all organizations embrace this growing trend, but explores why a conversational agent is of interest for humanitarian purposes. It also introduces points of consideration for those interested in implementing this tool.
This paper outlines research findings, potential challenges, and potential solutions for such a solution. Two main areas were considered: Artificial Intelligence and Customer Reaction Buttons.
This paper provides an overview of the concept and is in no means comprehensive and one-size-fitsall. Each organisation must decide how to adapt this concept to its own organisation and continue to do further research and analysis on each part of the implementation. The proposed model of the Humanitarian Entrepreneurial Incubator (HEI) is a partnership between humanitarian organisations and humanitarian entrepreneurs where organisations host entrepreneurs within their office and provide resources and insight to them as they develop an innovative product or service related to humanitarian response. The HEI is just one model and approach, but there are alternatives that are outlined in this
paper.
are interested in collaborating with Volunteer & Technical Communities (V&TCs). It will best fit the needs of organizations that have had exposure to V&TCs and their work, and now seek practical advice on proceeding with a deployment. The guidance aims to ensure that actors understand the dynamics of working with V&TCs, better formulate requests and maximize the benefits of such collaboration.
Decision-‐‐making experts have been conducting years of research on how people make decisions in a variety of environments and what information, cues and biases people use when making a decision. But within the humanitarian community only limited attention has been given to this issue.
The report is descriptive rather than analytical and by providing a lot of details on how different groups organized and prioritized their information needs and typical decisions, we hope that others will continue to develop several additional layers of analysis on top and move research on this essential issue forward.