Potential of participatory GIS in Disaster Risk Management and Health Emergencies

Abstract

Disaster risk management and health emergencies one of the important topics in the 2030 Agenda. In Brazil, it has acute contours, as the occurrence and magnitude of these events have grown. Major efforts and investments in disaster risk management have been made. A key element is to incorporate popular knowledge into analysis models. In this sense, residents of Nova Friburgo, together with educational and / or research institutions and public authorities, created in 2014 a collaborative network aimed at reducing disaster risks. One of the actions intended by this Network is the construction of a GIS capable of supporting disaster risk management activities and health emergencies. This paper discuss the construction of this database. Efforts were made in surveying, organizing and systematizing geographic information from various sources and scales, in addition to applying participatory mapping techniques to gather information from residents. As a result, this GIS has become a tool for integrating scientific and popular knowledge that can support the set of processes related to disaster risk management and health emergencies on a local scale.