TC103: Tech Tools and Skills for Emergency Management

August 26, 2013 - September 20, 2013

Facilitated by Nick Martin

Course Description

This four-week online professional development certificate course will explore how new communication and mapping technologies are being used to respond to disasters, create early warning mechanisms, improve coordination efforts and much more. From the earthquake recovery efforts in Haiti and Japan to the monitoring of election violence in countries like Kenya to the recent floods in the Philippines, this course will consider a variety of real world examples from organizations working in the field and analyze some of the key challenges related to access, implementation, scale, and verification that working with new technology presents. The course is designed to assist professionals in developing concrete strategies and technological skills to work amid this rapidly evolving landscape.

Course Topics and Featured Tech

Mapping the Crisis: New Techniques for Disaster Response and Preparedness
Human Rights Violations and Elections Monitoring
The Power of the Crowd: Citizen Journalism in the era of Crowdsourcing
Information Overload: Verification, Analysis, and Decision Making in Real-Time
Featured Technologies: Ushahidi, FrontlineSMS, Open Street Map, Sahana, Basic GIS and more!

Course Objectives

Participants will be able to…

critically analyze both the opportunities and the pitfalls that emerge when working with technology to respond to crises
connect relevant development, humanitarian and peacebuilding theories to the technological strategies and tools discussed in the course
manage specific software platforms and utilize various technological tools for responding to and managing crisis
design dynamic and effective strategies for using technology platforms and tools to respond to social challenges