Assessing the potential, application, and implications of volunteered geographic information in disaster risk reduction

Abstract

Through technological advances citizens can now collect, share and map geographic information in unprecedented ways. Volunteered geographic information (VGI) refers to the widespread activity of citizens voluntarily creating geographic information, largely through social media, smartphones and online mapping tools. VGI has implications for applications of geospatial information, including disaster management. Earlier research focussed on disaster response, but there is a global need for greater community engagement in disaster preparation and disaster risk reduction (DRR). This thesis provides insight into how VGI can contribute to DRR, where VGI considered as a social practice has potential to aid in building community connectedness, risk awareness and disaster resilience. Surveys completed with residents of bushfire-risk communities in Tasmania examined usage patterns and limitations of VGI technologies; interviews with emergency management professionals identified opportunities and challenges of VGI in disaster management; and participatory mapping workshops assessed the user-experience of contributing VGI for DRR, and the value of knowledge sharing and collaborative mapping. The thesis develops a multifaceted understanding of VGI in community DRR, and the broader implications of VGI on authoritative systems, social systems, and the disciplines of geography and geographic information science. While VGI provides opportunities for knowledge exchange and increased community connectedness, it also presents important challenges, such as data quality, and the underrepresentation of particular individuals or groups. VGI disrupts the top-down structure of emergency management and reflects a culture shift away from organisational power and control of information. Changes to traditional systems catalysed by VGI involve decentralisation of power and increased empowerment of citizens, with value increasingly recognised in both ‘expert’ and citizen information and practices.