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Using mobile phones to improve understanding of climate change projects in the Pacific

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:

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Using mobile phones to improve understanding of climate change projects in the Pacific

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  1. 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

  2. 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

  3. 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: Technology must be social Perceptions matter Coordination is key

  4. ICT4d issues and opportunities Issues Opportunities Estimated by 2013, 90% of Africa to be covered by mobile Women report more empowerment after ICT training Sen’s capabilities and choice approach: to what extent are ICTs opening this up? • Preferential spending on ICTs • 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)

  5. ICT4D exists, but limited on climate change and development

  6. Centre to periphery (e.g. cyclone alerts) exists the most

  7. Less of this at the moment: crowdsourcing data back in (although peer to peer is happening)

  8. Peer-to-peer exists: Public-Private Partnerships $

  9. 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.

  10. 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

  11. Key Issues

  12. Key issues: social and cultural issues are crucial Some infrastructure barriers exist, but mostly technically feasible

  13. Key issues1. 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

  14. Key issues1. Its still social and cultural Community preferences for information transfer: • Face-to-face discussion with project implementers • Mobile text messages • Internet

  15. Key issues1. 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)

  16. 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

  17. 2. Perceptions Matter

  18. Key issues2. institutional Perceptions: Ict is a desktop pc “But most people are not connected to mobile phone networks” - Regional donor representative “ICT is not about a computer; it’s about a tool to assist your work. Its not a threat, but an opportunity.” - Regional IGO Official

  19. 3: Coordination is Key

  20. Key issues3. 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

  21. How can we explain some of this?

  22. Opportunities for spaces and scales of innovation Gaps and disjunct in vertical finance and data flows Scales of innovation Global Donors / IGOs ICTs as a tool to integrate useful data SPREP UNDP SPC PIFS AusAID Policy innovation ICTs and climate change as mutually supportive cross-cutting policy issues National Govm’t MNRE Min Comms and IT Min Health Policy innovation Climate finance Public-private innovation Data for accountability Competition and piggybacking business models Telco 1 Telco 2 Local interests Local participation and innovation on communication Effective interaction with communities Local Horizontal coordination in policy and practice

  23. Opportunity for ICTs in improving climate change projects Enablers inhibitors 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 • Economics: growth in mobile market • 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

  24. 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

  25. 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

  26. Thank you! abumpus@unimelb.edu.au T: @adambumpus

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