As I write this Friday morning, there is some hope that a containment cap has been placed over the well pipe to stop the gushing oil. But I wanted to post an interesting article in the BBC News, “Can Ordinary People Think Of A Way To Stop The Oil,” because it covers both the BP [...]
“Tapping The Public Brain” To Address Difficult Challenges Like The Oil Spill Has Some History
June 4th, 2010 · No Comments
Tags: Volunteering
“Want To Help Report The Oil Spill? There’s An App For That” — CrisisCommons Also Planning “Adopt-A-Beach” Crowdsourcing Initiative To Allow Public To Help In Oil Spill Recovery
May 26th, 2010 · No Comments
Andy Carvin, a senior strategist at NPR’s social media desk, just tweeted an announcement that the volunteer group CrisisCommons has released the Oil Reporter app to help citizens report on the Gulf Coast Oil Spill:
With tar balls and oil sheens beginning to reach the Gulf Coast, government officials and wildlife groups are anxious to document [...]
Tags: Preparedness 2.0 · Volunteer Opportunities
“As We Rush To Protect the Gulf Coast Environment, Are Responders [Incl. Citizen Volunteers] Being Protected?”
May 16th, 2010 · 1 Comment
That’s the excellent question asked in a post by Elizabeth Grossman on The Pump Handle blog. The answer, Grossman finds, is still — like the crisis — evolving. She writes:
As the unprecedented offshore oil drilling disaster in the Gulf of Mexico unfolds and extraordinary measures are being taken to protect vulnerable coastal and marine environments [...]
Tags: Public Health Preparedness · Volunteering
AccuWeather Forecaster Predicts “Top 10″ Hurricane Season — Joins Tennessee Floods, Oklahoma Tornadoes, Gulf Oil Spill And Times Square Bomb Attempt As Reminder To Prepare
May 14th, 2010 · 2 Comments
If the Nashville flood, the Oklahoma tornadoes, the Gulf Coast oil spill and the Times Square attempted bombing haven’t persuaded the public to think about preparing for an emergency, maybe news that Accuweather forecaster Joe Bastardi is predicting this year’s hurricane season will be in the “Top Ten” with 16 to 18 “named” storms will [...]
Tags: Hurricane Preparedness
Volunteers Wanted To Contribute Content To CrisisWiki For Nashville Flood, Gulf Coast Oil Spill
May 6th, 2010 · 1 Comment
An exciting online initiative, the CrisisWiki, is looking for citizen volunteers for help in its response to the Nashville-area flood and the Gulf oil spill.  According to the site, the goal of CrisisWiki:
is to create an editable directory of resources related to disasters and crises around the world. An example of how we’ve done this in the [...]
Tags: Preparedness Resources
“Citizens Monitor Gulf Coast After Oil Spill”
May 6th, 2010 · No Comments
There’s an excellent CNN.com roundup of some of the civilian-driven initiatives responding to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The article, “Citizens Monitor Gulf Coast After Oil Spill,” describes the efforts of groups such as the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, Grassroots Mapping, Crisis Mappers Net and CrisisCommons to engage citizens to assist in the response:
Here is what MIT [...]
Tags: Volunteering
CrisisCommons’ Gulf Oil Spill Response Crowdsourcing Effort Looking For Volunteers
May 4th, 2010 · 1 Comment
Another thing you can do to help in the cleanup of the Gulf Coast oil spill is to participate in CrisisCommons‘ crowdsourcing efforts. A post on the group’s website explains:
CrisisCommons is working hard with a number of other organizations, including NGOs and educational institutions, to develop a common crowdsourced platform for reporting the effects of [...]
Tags: Preparedness 2.0
“10 Things You Can Do To Help The Gulf Coast Clean The Oil Spill”
May 4th, 2010 · 2 Comments
USNews.com’s “10 Things You Can Do To Help The Gulf Coast Clean The Oil Spill” has a good selection of some volunteer/donation/informational opportunities for citizens interested in assisting with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup:
1. Want to lend a hand? Affected states allow you to register to volunteer online. Louisiana and Florida volunteers can register [...]
Tags: Volunteer Opportunities
“Oh Well: Why We’re So Bad At Dealing With Unlikely Disasters Like The Louisiana Oil Spill” & What Can We Do About It
May 4th, 2010 · No Comments
In Slate, Christopher Beam has an interesting piece, “Oh Well: Why We’re So Bad At Dealing With Unlikely Disasters Like The Louisiana Oil Spill,” about how we as a nation think about, prepare for, and ultimately learn from unlikely but disastrous events. His conclusion: not well.
…the real lesson of the oil spill may be how [...]