Disasters are inevitable, and disruption is imminent. The devastating impact of natural disaster events is evident in that 50 per cent of global disasters happened in Asia between 2010 to 2019; 800,000 lives have been lost since 2000; +3.2 billion were affected since 2000; and an estimated US$1.1 trillion in economic losses across Asia.
Just recently, COVID-19 has spread across the world, with more than 640 million people infected and resulting in over 6.6 million deaths.
More than numbers, lives and livelihoods are affected and uprooted during these unprecedented times. This situation creates a long-term impact on society as a whole, especially if there are no clear preparations being made to alleviate the impact.
When a disaster happens, people on the ground, rescue teams and aid agencies often rely on technology and data to conduct rescue missions and help those who have been affected. Over the years, new technologies have been developed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of first responders, further deepening the role played by technology in disaster aid relief.
However, as technology is changing and disrupting how we live today, it can make a big difference in changing the outcome of disasters by predicting and preventing, warning and preparing, as well as responding and recovering.
With the increased intensity and frequency of climate-related disasters such as floods, storms, heat, and droughts experienced in recent years, government agencies and NGOs have been lobbying for policy reform and understanding how different stakeholders work together to create a better strategy around disaster preparedness and resilience.
This is where technology companies bring in the missing piece. Venture builders, startups, and enterprises bring innovation into disaster space and provide solutions for disaster preparedness and resilience. Fortunately, there is an increasing level of support available.
Last December 7th, Prudence Foundation together with e27, hosted a roundtable discussion to specifically discuss the strategy of these organisations and the resources needed as well as shed light on disaster technology with the theme: The Opportunities and Future of disaster tech in Southeast Asia. The goal of the discussion is to gain greater insights into unlocking private sector participation and create a platform that would give support to technologies that could save lives.
In attendance we had Andre Stolz, Co-Founder and CEO of EcoWorth Tech; Bert Grobben, Chairman of the Board for Budding Innovation; Brigitte Balthasar, CGeog, Senior Disaster and Climate Risk Financing Specialist of Asian Development Bank; Marc Fancy, Executive Director of Prudence Foundation; Matthew Cua, Director of Innovation for HelpNGO; Myles Delfin, Founder of Bike Scouts Philippines; Nicole Ngeow, Director of Prudence Foundation; and Zhunan Jia, PhD, Founder and CEO of Breathonix. Here are some key takeaways from the roundtable session.
What is disaster tech?
Disaster tech or D-Tech refers to technology solutions that can protect lives and livelihoods before, during and after disasters caused by natural hazards. It presents an opportunity to invest resources better and more strategically by backing up technological tools that save lives through disaster prevention, disaster resilience, or disaster preparedness.
According to Matthew Cua, Director of Innovation for HelpNGO, “It’s very clear to everyone here that [from past disaster response experiences], there’s a lot of waste when it comes to disaster response, disaster relief, and in disaster resiliency. Tech comes in to reduce those waste. For us, disaster tech presents an opportunity to save more money and time to deliver more aid.”
Bert Grobben, Chairman of Budding Innovation adds, “When it comes to disaster tech, there’s a common attitude for companies and individuals to respond once a pain point has occurred, and people tend to pour money in when something is already happening. Part of what we need to focus on is making these investments before the actual disaster occurs, and that is still disaster tech. Averting, minimising the effect of making sure when it happens that we can adjust for the consequences much better.”
The biggest opportunity for disaster technology is in preparedness, prediction, and averting factors to alleviate the impact of actual disaster points, and the adoption of the technology that follows through is where real disruption happens.
Also Read: How 9/11 and the Fukushima disaster fueled Uber and WeWork’s growth in Japan
This article can be summarised in three key insights:
- Partners and available resources would enter in the form of expansion and on-the-ground support.
- Apart from funding as a resource, there is also a need for available real-time data, infrastructure, and community activation.
- The goal is not to become disaster free in its prevention, as this is impossible, but to lessen the impact of disasters on the overall economy and well-being.
Partners and available resources would enter in the form of expansion and on-the-ground support
Collaboration is key in preventing and alleviating the impact of disasters, and finding the right partners is crucial to making it efficient and scalable. To get it up to scalability during disasters, the technology has to be tested, and plans for deployment have to be solidified in spite of the absence of disasters.
Andre Stolz, Cofounder and CEO of EcoWorth Tech adds “There are a lot of technologies out there surrounding the disaster, but the challenge with these technologies is that they have to be mature to be deployed at a large scale. Bringing such technologies to such a level of maturity takes a lot of resources, including money and people.”
Stolz (EcoWorth) continues, “What is helpful is to find a way on how these technologies can be brought forward and tested at a smaller scale in the field without waiting for a disaster to happen as it is too late for us if a disaster is already happening.”
Support from key players in the ecosystem is critical for expansion. When discussing resources, funding is often brought up as one of the biggest challenges. According to Brigitte Balthasar, CGeog, Senior Disaster, and Climate Risk Financing Specialist of Asian Development Bank, “It is not only in the preparedness, but we also tend to focus on disaster management on a holistic view to manage disaster risk. [This includes] increasing the availability and affordability of financial protection tools to use in D-tech, as it is one of the biggest hurdles we have.”
Zhunan Jia, PhD, Founder and CEO of Breathonix, equips, “Our biggest challenge throughout this journey is funding as a critical element for mass adoption [to be spent on] clinical trials and meeting the requirements of different regulatory bodies. We do need funding support from key leaders in this space.” This perspective from a founder is relevant, given that as impact grows, so does the need for reserved funds.
Apart from funding, there is also a need for available real-time data, infrastructure, and community activation
The role of D-tech for disruption needs to be supported by a full ecosystem of policies and regulations, the availability of real-time data and the infrastructure to support this, and the presence of community on the ground.
While funding is one of the greatest challenges, data availability on the ground is also a key focus that needs continuous improvement. Balthasar further explains, “We also see mainly as a challenge is an access to data, whether in [the context of] its availability or cost, and also processability. This also links back to the IT infrastructure as a hurdle. Data security is also a problem with private data, and the IT infrastructure needs to comply.”
To be used properly, data has to be tangible, usable, accurate, and real-time. This is where the right infrastructure plays a role.
Also Read: D-Tech Awards unveils 4 Southeast Asian startups aiming to build disaster resilient communities
Cua (HelpNGO) adds, “With D-Tech it can be something conceptual or tangible. In HelpNGO we are building infrastructure that can update real-time data fast and accurately.” With the right infrastructure, data is made more accessible and updated to first responders, who, for example, would need an accurate layout of the land with the help of reliable data from drones. Technology is the crux of building this foundation for the ecosystem.
At the heart of the whole process is community activation driving the strategy and operations during disasters. The involvement of the public is key in gaining significant traction when it comes to disaster resilience. People are important when it comes to swift implementation on the ground, and coming up with a new way of engaging people is crucial to scale adoption.
Myles Delfin, Founder of Bike Scouts Philippines, said on community activation: “One thing that also needs some investments in is a new way of engaging people. Social media is a very powerful tool [that could also be used] for safety and resilience. We are testing and prototyping how to engage with people and if we can actually get people involved.”
The goal is not to become disaster free in its prevention but to lessen the impact of disasters on the overall economy, people’s lives and wellbeing
“Resilience isn’t something that you just come up with on the whim. Resilience has to be practised every day, in a convenient way. People need to be participating in the ideas and be actually genuinely involved”, Delfin (Bike Scouts PH) remarks. With disaster tech prevention, it is impossible to completely eradicate the presence of natural disasters. However, we lessen the impact on the public by being prepared with the right data and technology for deployment.
This should be the goal of different bodies when it comes to investing resources. Prior to the adoption of D-tech, millions of dollars are spent on the aftermath of disasters. Now, there is a call to action to reallocate these resources into taking action before the pain point occurs. This has to be done on a collective and global level, and fortunately, there is holistic support available for companies and startups with technologies applicable to D-tech use cases.
What is SAFE STEPS D-Tech?
The SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards — created by Prudence Foundation and supported by Humanitarian Partner IFRC and others — aim to find, fund and support technology solutions that can reduce the unnecessary loss of human lives and limit the social and economic impacts of disaster events.
“At Prudence Foundation, we aim to create a better future for our communities by making them safer and more resilient to life risks. Through the SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards, we aim to shine a light on technologies and companies that save lives by giving them a platform to highlight innovations and solutions to reach a broader audience. We hope to catalyze more investment into the D-Tech space to support widespread adoption and scale of the solution or tools that bring positive impact to both the D-Tech companies and communities at large.” Marc Fancy, Executive Director of Prudence Foundation, adds.
What’s next for D-Tech support?
If you are an individual or organization with existing or new technology that is able to contribute to natural disaster-related relief, prevention and preparedness efforts, now is the time for you to connect and gain chances to grow and be a part of an inspiring group of ecosystem players that are working to reduce the impact of the disaster in APAC.
Find out more about the Awards and the kinds of support available here. SAFE STEPS D-Tech Awards is reopening applications for its 2023 edition; if you wish to be part of the open call and are interested to know more, make sure to register here.
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