A crash course in changing the world.
Here in the Philippines, I can see a lot of ways Ushahidi can help our country mainly because almost everyone here owns a mobile phone. The power of crowdsourced information is really applicable especially when resources are limited and it allows evidence based interventions.
I have a lot of ideas mixing in my head right now...so I'll just focus on the ones I can explain the most.
1. For Environmental Watch. Recently, a "rape of the ocean" occurred in my country. More than 150 turtles and 21,000 black corals were killed illegally for jewelry and/or ornaments. This was reported...but the crime was already committed. More and more 'environmental murders' will occur for sure. One way to combat this is to report any illegal activity people may find - poaching, deforestation, dynamite fishing. If the public can submit evidence, catching people in the act, environmental crimes such as these can be easily prevented primarily because these things don't happen overnight. These crimes are preventable from escalating into bigger disasters. The more people sending the same information, the more reliable it will become, forcing the gov't to react.
2. For determining Dengue Hotspots. Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever affects our country all year long. This is brought about by a bite from a mosquito, which usually breeds in stagnant waters like pools, puddles, containers, etc. Determining which public areas like parks, schools, etc are susceptible, and/or which cases of dengue outbreaks are usually occuring, the gov't can do coordinated efforts on which areas they need to focus on.
3. For Waste Management. This is particularly easy. Garbage collection in my country is very inefficient. A lot of times people just throw their garbage to a vacant lot, the sidewalk, or even in the rivers. If the gov't can spot which areas are usually being used as garbage dumps, a more strict implementation in the said area can be done.
A common denominator in all these areas w/c Ushahidi can be used is that these problems are preventable and don't happen overnight (unlike disasters). Coordinated efforts can be done beyond disasters and into chronic problems of society
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