Harrison Cole. (2020). Accessible Mitigation Planning: Tactile Hazard Map Design and Evaluation. In Amanda Hughes, Fiona McNeill, & Christopher W. Zobel (Eds.), ISCRAM 2020 Conference Proceedings – 17th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 1031–1037). Blacksburg, VA (USA): Virginia Tech.
Abstract: While creating a community hazard mitigation plan (HMP) has become recognized as a key component of successful disaster management, significant portions of the process are often inaccessible to people with vision disabilities. Maps in particular are often large, visually dense documents that are printed on two-dimensional paper, or distributed via PDF with no alternate text. For people with profound low vision or who are blind, alternative media is required. The research discussed here proposes that tactile maps may present an accessible and cost-effective medium for representing geospatial data relevant to the hazard mitigation planning process. Using flood insurance rate maps (FIRMs) distributed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a starting point, this paper proposes an evaluatory framework for transcribing conventional maps into tactile documents, as well as characterizing users' experiences using them for mitigation planning, directions for future research and generalizing the process for applications in other domains.
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Johanna Sefyrin, & Sofie Pilemalm. (2016). ?It?s More Important to be Fast than to be Informed? – Gender, Age, Disability and Ethnicity in Relation to IT in the Swedish Rescue Services. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: This study is work in progress starting with the point of departure that everyday accidents strike unjust, and with the purpose to explore how gender, age, disability and ethnicity are understood, and included ? or excluded ? in relation to the information systems involved in rescue operations performed. Empirical material was gathered through interviews mainly at the Swedish Rescue Services, and the analysis shows that this kind of information is not included in the involved information systems, and that it is considered rather irrelevant. On the other hand, it is indicated that this information might well be relevant for the performance of rescue operations, discussed in terms of how gender, age, disability and ethnicity are reconfigured in the organization, something that opens up for the design of information systems that are more attentive to these issues, and that might possibly contribute to better supporting those in vulnerable positions.
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