Transcript Adam Bumpus ICTs and Climate Projects PCCR Talk no pictures.pps

USING MOBILE PHONES TO
IMPROVE UNDERSTANDING
OF CLIMATE CHANGE
PROJECTS IN THE PACIFIC
Dr. Adam Bumpus
Assistant Professor, University of
Melbourne
Co-Founder, Apidae
Tw: @adambumpus
• The story
• Cases
• Key issues
• Explanations
• Conclusions
Funded by:
Early Career Researcher Grant at the University of Melbourne
In collaboration with Government of Fiji, UNDP,
UNESCO, Apidae
What are the barriers and opportunities for using ICTs,
such as mobile phones, to source data from communities
to improve the effectiveness and accountability of climate
change projects?
Conclusions:
1. Technology must be social
2. Perceptions matter
3. Coordination is key
ICT4D ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES
ISSUES
OPPORTUNITIES
• Preferential spending on
ICTs
• Estimated by 2013, 90% of
Africa to be covered by
mobile
• Money going back to
developed countries
• Inequities in location, age,
gender, education and
income
• Need to consider all
aspects on the trend line
(i.e. digital divide still
present)
• Women report more
empowerment after ICT
training
• Sen’s capabilities and
choice approach: to what
extent are ICTs opening
this up?
ICT4D exists, but limited on climate change and
development
Centre to periphery (e.g. cyclone alerts) exists the most
Users
Users
Users
Users
Users
Core
message
centre e.g.
Met Office
Users
Users
Users
Users
Less of this at the moment: crowdsourcing data back in
(although peer to peer is happening)
Users
Users
Users
Users
Users
Core
message
centre e.g.
Met Office
Users
Users
Users
Users
Peer-to-peer exists: Public-Private Partnerships
UN
Finance for
transactions
Local
Telcos
Infrastructure
for
transactions
User
s
User
s
User
s
User
s
User
s
Core
message
centre e.g.
Met Office
Secure
existing
markets,
explore new
Gain data /
outreach /
development
User
s
User
s
User
s
User
s
User 1
$
User 2
MOBILE PHONE USE HIGH, INTERNET CATCHING
Potential:
• Information communication technologies (ICTs) have the potential to be a useful
tool assisting the monitoring and evaluation of low-emission
climate resilient development, scaling up awareness and
participation of communities, assisting in the implementation of
national priorities within emerging international climate finance
architectures.
CASES: ACTION RESEARCH
UNDP: Pacific Solutions Exchange
Pacific wide virtual conversation with practitioners
Lots happening in the space, but most is core to periphery
(e.g. disaster warning) and less on crowdsourcing data for
effectiveness
UNESCO: Mobile survey with communities, media and
teachers in Samoa, Fiji and Vanuatu
People like the mobiles, “its like a game”, but awareness
raising is key to improving adoption
Key Issues
KEY ISSUES: SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ISSUES ARE CRUCIAL
Some infrastructure barriers exist, but mostly
technically feasible
KEY ISSUES
1. ITS STILL SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
• Some infrastructure barriers exist, but mostly
technically feasible
• The need for good social and cultural interaction
• Understanding of the goals and benefits of the project,
incentives are needed but can skew results
KEY ISSUES
1. ITS STILL SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
Community preferences for information transfer:
1. Face-to-face discussion with project implementers
2. Mobile text messages
3. Internet
KEY ISSUES
1. ITS STILL SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
• Some infrastructure barriers exist, but mostly
technically feasible
• The need for good social and cultural interaction
• Understanding of the goals and benefits of the project,
incentives are needed but can skew results
• Need to understand
• The demand side for the project
• How it can fit within local governance structures (i.e.
local hierarchy and traditional power)
Potential lack of interest in subject matter of climate change, or need
different business model
But there is interest in using mobiles for the game
BUT:
Democratisation and local governance structures
Access differentiated by vulnerability, gender, age? Needs more work
2. Perceptions Matter
KEY ISSUES
2. INSTITUTIONAL PERCEPTIONS: ICT IS A DESKTOP PC
“But most
“ICT people
is not about
are not
a computer;
connectedit’s
to
about a tool tomobile
assist your
phone
work.
networks”
Its not
a threat,
butdonor
an opportunity.”
- Regional
representative
- Regional IGO Official
3: Coordination is Key
KEY ISSUES
3. POLICY AND DATA COORDINATION
• Need coordination vertically (informational governance up and down
between communities, projects, donors, markets)
• Need coordination and sharing horizontally (between communities,
projects)
• Data management and sharing is key barrier at the moment
• Capacity for data collection hindered by cash allocation,
capabilities and continuity
• But:
• Data ≠ knowledge
• there needs to be structure, shaping, sharing and ongoing resourcing to
harness use of mobiles for climate change
How can we explain some of this?
Opportunities for spaces and scales of
innovation
Gaps and disjunct in vertical
finance and data flows
Scales of innovation
Climate finance
Policy
accountability
Data forinnovation
Global
Local
Donors / IGOs
SPC
AusAID
PIFS
UNDP
SPREP
Policy innovation
National Govm’t
MNRE
ICTs as a tool to integrate
useful data
ICTs and climate change
as mutually supportive
Min Comms and IT
Min Health
cross-cutting policy
issues
Competition and piggybacking
Telco 1
Telco 2
business models
Effective interaction with communities
Local participation and
innovation on
communication
Horizontal coordination in policy and practice
OPPORTUNITY FOR ICTS IN IMPROVING CLIMATE
CHANGE PROJECTS
ENABLERS
INHIBITORS
• Economics: growth in
mobile market
• Economics:
Infrastructure and
cost of internet
• Policy and scale
dimensions: Lack of
policy and data
coordination
• Experience: small
(but growing) baseline
of knowledge on what
ICT solutions work
• Vulnerably groups
may have difficulty in
participation
• Governance: climate
change increasingly
multi-actor, scalar
• Technology: Cheap
SMS and growing
mobile internet
• Culture: enthusiasm
of youth and growth
in peer-to-peer ICT
CONCLUSIONS
• Pacific is a small place, specific but opportunities exist
• ICT is seen as a possible and popular tool for impact
• Local dynamics of access
• Normative ideals vs. local need (supply vs. demand)
• ICT as progressive, transformative or regressive?
• Possibilities to link to other areas of focus e.g. World Bank
work in Africa on this
NEXT STEPS
• New research on human-computer interfaces for
reporting on climate change project effectiveness using
mobile devices: mobile, smart, tablet
• Funding proposals in for collaboration with UNDP MCO,
Fiji Ministry of Local Government, Urban Development,
housing and Environment, Vodafone Fiji, Apidae
Development Innovations
• Scalable innovation using mobile tech for climate
development
Thank you!
[email protected]
T: @adambumpus