IN AN effort to assist citizens and promote nationwide cooperation amid disasters, the Ateneo Social Computing Science (ASCS) Laboratory formally launched Project eBayanihan at Escaler Hall, Science Education Complex on June 9.
The launch was in partnership with the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (PCIEERD-DOST).
ASCS is a research arm of the Department of Information Systems and Computer Science (Discs) that aims to initiate scientific probes as well as garner international recognition and partnerships through its published papers.
According to official press materials released by the eBayanihan working team, eBayanihan is an “SMS-, mobile-, and web-based participatory disaster management system” that posts, models, visualizes and curates information for faster and more efficient dissemination, analysis and response.
“It also connects users to a wider community which can aid in building more resilient communities and can help them become more prepared in facing disasters,” the press release stated.
Speakers at the launch included School of Science and Engineering Dean Evangeline Bautista, PhD, Undersecretary for Science and Technology Services of the DOST Rowena Cristina Guevara, PhD, Project Leader of eBayanihan and Discs Associate Professor Maria Regina Estuar, PhD and University President Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ.
A brainchild of crowdsourcing
During the launch, Estuar said that eBayanihan “hopes to provide a human dimension to disaster response by using crowdsourced data lifted from reports posted by its users.”
Crowdsourcing refers to the deliberate process of collating information coming from a large group of people, usually through online media.
“[Information generated by the system is] then processed, modeled, analyzed, visualized, and curated to create layers of information for the use of first responders, local government units and relevant agencies,” she said.
Users can submit reports by registering for an account at the eBayanihan web application which contains all reporting and visualization modules. The said web app can be accessed at ebayanihan.ateneo.edu.
Similarly, users can also register through the official eBayanihan mobile application which is downloadable for free on both Apple iOS and Android mobile platforms.
As for users who do not have access to computers or smartphones, they may register by texting REG [SPACE] <Your Name> [COMMA] <Barangay> [SPACE] <City/Municipality> and sending it to 29290911.
To report an incident on eBayanihan, users may text the following to the same number: POST [SPACE] <Keyword (ex. flood)> [COMMA] <Urgency (ex. urgent)> [COMMA] <Barangay> [SPACE] <City/Municipality> [COMMA] <details of the incident (ex. hanggang tuhod)>.
