Toward a Balkans' Data for Disaster Management Collaborative?

摘要

Climate change adaptation and disaster risk management in the Balkans require strong regional cooperation, given that disasters in the Balkans are often cross-border. However, currently information and collaboration gaps occur. This paper proposes to harness the potential of information management, geoinformat-ics, and big data to bridge these gaps and to create data preparedness as follows. First of all, map regularly regional, national, and local data sets on multi-institutional information needs. Secondly, use new digital and collaborative tools, including geo-spatial sharing platforms and OpenStreetMap volunteers for sharing, collecting, and using data. Thirdly, build capacity through, for example, courses, exercises, and regional demonstrations. Overall, it is about creating a Data Collaborative for the Balkans, a lightweight way of institutionalizing regional information sharing and creating trust. The NATO Crisis Management and Disaster Response Centre of Excellence can play a pivotal role by convening stakeholders, leveraging military capabilities, and offering an advanced curriculum.