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Communicating with communities (CwC) during post-disaster reconstruction: an initial analysis (Natural Hazards Article, 2016, 84:3)

Abstract: International organisations have acknowledged that providing information to and communicating with communities affected by disasters should be considered as an integral part of the humanitarian aid. Yet little is known on the information and communication needs of the population during the disaster reconstruction phase. This paper presents a case study of the information and communication needs of the population and the role of social media during the reconstruction process after the earthquake that struck Emilia-Romagna (Northern Italy) in 2012.

Data was collected through field notes and a multiple choices questionnaire distributed online and by hand to community-based groups. Results show that the most sought information concerns housing and infrastructure reconstruction, funds/refunds, business recovery and damage assessment and that city councils and regional council are considered as the main source of the information. Communication channels used to search for reconstruction-related information vary between online and offline respondents. Social media technology is used by citizens affected as a platform to read and share recovery information and post queries rather than as an engagement tool with recovery agencies. Main barriers to engagement are lack of trust towards the authorities and the belief that authorities do not use social media to communicate with citizens. In this context, community-based groups, especially those supported by social media, play an important role in sharing recovery-related information to other residents, clarifying legal acts and regulations and providing informational support to the affected population.

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Communicating the City: Meanings, Practices, Interactions – what roles do media and communication have in lived experiences of the city?

This book by Giorgia Aiello, Matteo Tarantino and Kate Oakley examines how human meanings, practices and interactions produce and are produced by urban space is the focus of this timely and exciting addition to the study of urban communication.

Challenging notions of the ‘urban’ as physically, economically or technologically determined, this book explores key intersections of discourse, materiality, technology, mobility, identity and inequality in acts of communication across urban and urbanizing contexts. From leisure and media consumption among Chinese migrant workers in a Guangdong village to the diverse networks and communication infrastructures of global cities like London and Los Angeles, this collection combines a range of perspectives to ask fundamental questions about the significance and status of cities in times of intensified mediation and connectivity.

With case studies from Italy, Britain, Ireland, Russia, the United States and China, this international collection demonstrates that both empirical and critical knowledge on the relationship between communication and urban life has become vital across the humanities and social sciences.

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Lost in Translation: The Misinformed Journey of Migrants Across Italy (Internews report 2017)

In April 2017, an Internews team conducted a rapid assessment on information needs among refugees and migrants in Italy, visiting formal reception facilities (hotspot, CAS, CARA) in Lampedusa, Agrigento, Catania, and informal centers in Ventimiglia and Rome.

The numbers of people attempting to reach Italy from points in North Africa (namely, Libya) through extremely dangerous routes, as well as those who perish on the journey, are staggering. It is impossible to know how many deaths occur while traversing the African continent, or while in captivity in Libya. One migrant said, ominously, “for every 1,000 of us there are here (in Italy), 5,000 have died along the way.” Before they board overcrowded wooden boats or dinghies destined for Italian shores, migrants report being tortured and held for ransom, arbitrary and prolonged detention, as well as brutal sexual abuse while they are in Libya. Their phones are taken, and they have no means of accessing critical services or information.

Migrants embark on a months-long (or more) journey without realizing how dire it is, or the brutality that awaits them in Libya. When asked if they would make the voyage again, knowing what they know now, an overwhelming number of migrants said that they would surely not. Countries of origin and transit are as critical to the information landscape as is Italy itself, and this is why finding an effective way to bring narratives about the journey back to countries of origin is a critical piece in the puzzle of the European migration crisis.

Lost in Translation examines the critical role of local media and provides recommendations for addressing the information void contributing to the refugee crisis.

Digital Democracy: The Tools Transforming Political Engagement (Nesta paper 2017)

This paper shares lessons from Nesta’s research into some of the pioneering innovations in digital democracy which are taking place across Europe and beyond.

Key findings

  • Digital democracy is a broad concept and not easy to define. The paper provides a granular approach to help encompass its various activities and methods (our ‘typology of digital democracy’).
  • Many initiatives exist simply as an app, or web page, driven by what the technology can do, rather than by what the need is.
  • Lessons from global case studies describe how digital tools are being used to engage communities in more meaningful political participation, and how they are improving the quality and legitimacy of decision-making.
  • Digital democracy is still young. Projects must embed better methods for evaluation of their goals if the field is to grow.

 

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