CrisisCamp is June 12-14th in Washington, DC

by Jesse Robbins | @jesserobbins | comments: 0

CrisisCamp is an unconference to bring together domain experts, hackers, makers, developers, and first responders to improve technology and practice for humanitarian crisis management and disaster relief. This is the first event in what I hope will become a movement, and it's happening on June 12 - 14, 2009 in Washington, DC.

Across the world, everyday people can find themselves in crisis. Whether for a day, a month or a continued state of social distress, citizens across the world have common needs for communication. We want to connect with our loved ones to let them know that we are okay (or that we need help) and we crave information by which we make decisions within that time or place of crisis. We want to let people know they they are not alone, that people across the world care and seek to act act altruistically to provide resources to aid in the crisis recovery.

CrisisCamp seeks to break down the bifurcation between international and domestic humanitarian relief agencies and unite their efforts to share lessons learned, response tools, and expertise to encourage citizen engagement and use of information communications technologies (ICTs) to aid in crisis recovery, wherever people need help. We have great hopes that with a successful CrisisCamp, we can inspire a global effort to mitigate the potential impact of times or places of crisis on the human condition.

Crisis Camp seeks participation by anyone who wishes to help. We are especially interested in the use of ICTs in developing countries, especially in the areas of access, usability, and innovation. We seek to learn from academic findings on citizen participation, needs and problem solving efforts. In addition, we seek to understand global information needs through a consumer approach, because people will use what is available and familiar if a crisis event occurs. And finally, we want to know how ICTs, in all their uses, can help citizens of all abilities, recover during a time or place of crisis.

CrisisCamp Ignite! Session Kick Off

Time: Friday, June 12, 2009 from 7:30-9PM
Location: The World Bank,1818 H St., NW Washington D.C.
Participate: Sign up at CrisisCampIgnite (separate registration required for World Bank entry)

CrisisCamp - Saturday, June 13 & Sunday, June 14th

Start Time: 9:00am both days
Location: The Institute for Politics Democracy & the Internet @ George Washington University Participate: Sign up at CrisisCamp