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At the ISCRAM 2013 in Baden-Baden, from 12 to 15 May, scientists, practitioners, and representatives of relief and crisis management organizations will discuss new approaches and solutions for holistic crisis management. An important basis for the line of actions required in case of extensive disasters and crisis situations is the development of interdisciplinary integrated information systems for emergency management.
The conference will be co-hosted by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the Fraunhofer Institute of Optronics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation, IOSB.
»We have been successful in hosting this internationally important conference at Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden on the occasion of its 10th anniversary, thus having the chance to discuss current needs and solution approaches with renowned scientists working in the field of crisis management as well as with representatives of emergency organizations«, Prof. Dr. Jürgen Beyerer, chair of the ISCRAM 2013, is pleased to say.
Besides more than 200 scientists and users from all over the world, the ISCRAM 2013 will welcome as keynote speakers: Prof. Dr. Dr. Ortwin Renn, scientist in the field of crisis preparedness and risk perception, Prof. Hirokazu Tatano of the University of Kyoto with his presentation on the experiences of crisis management after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and Dr. Kimberly Roberson, member of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Modern information technology systems can make substantial contributions towards supporting decision-makers during all phases of crisis and emergency management, supplying information on the current situation in the affected area, installing early-warning systems, monitoring infrastructures, and developing emergency plans. Since the disastrous floods in Asia and Japan numerous new sensors have been installed to collect and edit data, and new systems for environmental monitoring, early warning and crisis management have been designed and tested.
Disasters do not care about state borders! It is therefore all the more important to enhance global cooperation and exchange of experience with and between all parties involved of any topic areas and nations. Here, networked communication, technical solutions, medical care, traffic, food supply, as well as social issues and involvement of the local population do play an important part.
How can social media, mobile internet, crowdsourcing and new decision-support systems facilitate and improve the coordination and communication of the organizations involved? How can the population be informed in time by efficient early warning systems? How can critical infrastructures, like our drinking-water and energy-supply systems for example, be protected more effectively? How can people get reasonable help for the reconstruction of their region in the time following the acute phase of disaster? How can mobile technologies be integrated and how good are they? What are the social effects and health implications arising from crises and disasters? These are, inter alia, some of the questions that will be addressed by the lectures, tutorials and workshops on the agenda.
Simulations of a possible crisis help with the development of emergency plans and with impact assessment, but they also help with the training and further development of disaster relief forces. New sensors provide important environmental information that may be intelligently linked and processed and integrated in Emergency Management Information Systems (EMIS). Thus, data analysis and data fusion of the information gathered is an object of current research.
However, the conference offers even more. Besides lectures, discussion forums and presentations it offers practical workshops. The workshop »Save the ISCRAM from a hurricane« will be particularly fascinating, Dr. Martina Comes, Programme Chair of the KIT indicates. »During the entire course of the conference, in this workshop we will keep on testing, analyzing and assessing new mobile technologies, such as Twitter Feeds, ushahidi and geo-targeting instruments in a simulated hurricane scenario.«
In the evening of 13 May, a live demo of Fraunhofer IOSB’s new mobile situation center, installed in a 7.5-tonner, will be presented.
Furthermore, the German Red Cross and the Federal Agency for Technical Relief will be involved in the forum »Practitioners«.
You may find more information and pictures at http://iscram2013.org/ and at www.iosb.fraunhofer.de/?35401
The Fraunhofer Institute for Optronics, System Technology and Image Exploitation IOSB is an institution legally affiliated with the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. (Fraunhofer society for promoting applied re-search), Hansastraße 27 c, 80686 München.
Being “The Research University in the Helmholtz Association”, KIT creates and imparts knowledge for the society and the environment. It is the objective to make significant contributions to the global challenges in the fields of energy, mobility, and information. For this, about 10,000 employees cooperate in a broad range of disciplines in natural sciences, engineering sciences, economics, and the humanities and social sciences. KIT prepares its 22,800 students for responsible tasks in society, industry, and science by offering research-based study programs. Innovation efforts at KIT build a bridge between important scientific findings and their application for the benefit of society, economic prosperity, and the preservation of our natural basis of life. KIT is one of the German universities of excellence.