MANILA – On April 30, Google Philippines will host a two-part crisis response summit that will bring together representatives from various sectors to discuss ways on how to respond to crisis more effectively using collaborative technology.
The first part in the morning will be a technical workshop on the functionality of online tools like Person Finder, which lets users post and check on the status of relatives or friends affected by a disaster; Crisis Maps, which allows viewers to monitor a typhoon and locate critical points like crisis areas and relief goods drop-off zones; and Public Alerts, a Google platform for disseminating emergency messages such as typhoon warnings and evacuation notices for floods. Attendees will be trained on how to put together a crisis page, how to use Google Maps Engine Lite and create custom maps where they can pin shelters, flooded areas, and the like.
The second part in the afternoon will have speakers from the government, private sector, and media who will share ideas and best practices on crisis response. Sen. Loren Legarda, chair of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, is expected to lead the roster of speakers. Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, chair of the United Nations Green Climate Fund board, will join a panel discussion that will zero in on finding solutions to the challenges faced by responding organizations.
“Google believes in the strength of collaboration. We have seen how quickly the communities, the government and private organizations respond to the needs of Filipinos in times of crises and we want to build on that by providing an avenue where they can learn how to use technology to their advantage, and explore ways on how they can work effectively together,” said Gail Tan, Google Philippines Country Communications Manager.
The event will be at SMX MOA and will run from 9 am to 12 noon, and then from 1pm to 5pm. To sign up, fill out the form posted on Google Philippines’ Google+ and Twitter pages. Slots are limited.
