[Dear Environnment-Disaster Colleagues

A couple weeks ago --- before ever I knew Environment-Disaster
existed --- I circulated  the query below to several related groups
about examples or models of comprehensive information needs
assessment processes for disaster management programmes [or
programs!].

The answers I got tended to reinforce the assumption going in ---
that there are precious few such cases --- that disaster managers
tends to view their information management needs piece meal . .

An e-mail acquaintance now in New Zealand, while agreeing with the
premise, did come up with some general (and some island-specific)
references to program assessment strategies for disaster management,
from which one could begin to knit together an information strategy,
which was perhaps the most helpful suggestion. Just for your
information, his short list of possible assessment model sites was:

>At 7:27 AM -0500 2/26/04, Island Vulnerability
><[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>Bruce asked for good examples.  I have not looked at
>>these in detail so I hope that you would you would
>>permit me to leave the reader to judge!  Some are
>>small island related, though.
>>
>>http://www.disaster-info.net/carib/rna.htm
>>
>>http://www.proventionconsortium.org/toolkit.htm
>>
>>http://dmc.engr.wisc.edu/courses/assessment/BB06-intro.html
>>
>>http://www.interworksmadison.com/distance.html#assessment
>>
>>http://aidworkers.net/exchange/20020821.html
>>
>>Note how often a needs assessment is assumed to be
>>part of a damage assessment, i.e. post-event, a result
>>of the term "disaster management".  Nonetheless,
>>post-event methods and case studies do yield lessons
>>for pre-event disaster management work.  The extensive
>>examples of needs assessments for development and
>>environmental management work might be more
>>appropriate for needs assessments for disaster
>>prevention/mitigation, since those activities must be
>>an essential component of development work anyway.


All of that said, I would pose the same question to this group:

>Are any members of this group familiar with either information needs
>assessment methodologies for Disaster Management, or with good
>examples of such assessments --- preferably in a small island
>context with our special problems of isolation and a limited
>technology base?

I think a response to the group would be of interest to many members,
but am always willing to deal with a direct response to
<[log in to unmask]>

bruce potter
Island Resources Foundation]


>Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2004 08:30:39 -0500
>To:  Info for Sus Dev in Islands <[log in to unmask]>,
>Pacific Internet Users Group Mailing
>
>Dear members of the Pacific Islands Internet Society, the Caribbean
>project for Information for Sustainable Development, and the Global
>Islands Network
>
>As you all know, Disaster Management is a broad concept, including
>all phases of disaster prevention, planning, mitigation, response
>and restoration. (Information for Disaster Management is one of the
>four themes for the Information for Decision Making for Sustainable
>Development project http://www.oas.org/usde/idsd/, which birthed one
>of these e-mail groups.)
>
>Notwithstanding the stage-setting materials that are presented on
>the web site at http://www.oas.org/usde/idsd/, and the several
>reports for various elements of  Disaster Management programmes
>(e.g., the assessment of GIS for vulnerability assessment and hazard
>mitigation recently submitted to CDERA by Jacob Opadeyi), I have not
>seen materials which systematically review ALL of the information
>and knowledge management needs of disaster management systems, from
>communication devices and networks, to databases and data management
>systems, to technologies and staffing, to security, redundancy,
>portability and replaceability.
>       Are any members of these groups familiar with either
>information needs assessment methodologies for Disaster Management,
>or with good examples of such assessments --- preferably in a small
>island context with our special problems of isolation and a limited
>technology base?
>
>I'll be happy to post a summary of the results back to the three groups.
>
>thanks ---
>
>bruce potter
>
>
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To reduce e-mail viruses
        1) DO NOT OPEN attachments,
        2) DO NOT SEND attachments unless absolutely necessary,
        3) NEVER SEND attachments through e-mail groups
For subscription information to some of  our 30+ e-mail groups:
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202-265-9712; fax 202-232-0748; cell 410-271-6970