Paper details

Paper authors	Cornelia Scholz
In panel on	From Reaction to Anticipation: How to Expand and Finance Anticipatory Humanitarian Action
Paper presenter(s) will be presenting	In-Person / Online

Abstract

This case study provides insights into an ongoing project investigating the use of OpenStreetMap mapping in enabling early actions for disasters in conflict settings in Sudan. The need for this research is created by the extensive lack of geospatial data in conflict-affected areas, hindering the planning and conduction of humanitarian actions like forecast-based-actions (FbA) in those areas. FbA is a form of anticipatory action, an innovative approach of acting before a disaster hits to mitigate its impacts early ahead. To reach those most affected, innovative humanitarian approaches like anticipatory action need to be expanded to new settings. Meanwhile, extensive data gaps, especially in conflict-settings are hindering the planning and implementation of early actions. Sudan appears widely unmapped in OpenStreetMap and geospatial data is overall scarce. To work into this gap, this study explores ways to identify and prioritize high-risk and unmapped areas in Sudan. The analysis focuses on areas in Sudan that historically have been affected by floods, drought and high vulnerabilities exacerbated through a history of being affected by conflict. The aim is to identify and prioritize unmapped, high-risk areas and guide volunteer mapping efforts to map the gaps in these areas. The created mapping material will render invisible lives visible on the maps of our world and help enable the expansion of anticipatory action to areas which so far had been left out. Storymap link: https://arcg.is/1eqOXj

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