SOTERIA (Online and Mobile Communications for Emergencies) is a research project funded by EC FP7. Its aim is to develop software and recommendations for the effective use of information published on social media during emergency situations. The project consortium includes law enforcement agencies, large industrial groups and innovative SMEs.
Used to interact on a daily basis with sophisticated communication technologies, such as smartphones, asynchronous/instant messaging systems and mobile software applications that permit Internet connection with the main social media platforms, citizens expect that the organisations responsible for their safety (PSOs, Public Safety Organisations) could use the very same instruments with the same immediateness and easiness. The latest technological developments can in fact help establishing a timely and efficient bi-directional communications channel between PSOs and citizens, either before, during and after emergency and/or crisis situations. Using these instruments it becomes possible to retrieve and share information which is essential for the efficient intervention of public safety organisations and law enforcement agencies.
SOTERIA aims to innovate citizens’ and PSOs’ approach to communication during emergencies in order to guarantee:
- The understanding of social media impact on emergency management systems;
- The use of all communications channels available during an emergency situation, including social media, for the reciprocal benefit of PSOs and citizens;
- The exploitation of mobile platforms’ ubiquitous nature to localise and efficiently communicate with the citizens in danger;
- The improvement of the situational awareness by using techniques, such as text and video mining, applied to the information published on social media platforms.
Respecting both the organisational culture of the European emergency services and the legislations on privacy, ethics and fundamental rights of the various Member States, the SOTERIA project will develop recommendations and software tools for PSOs and citizens to benefit from social media during emergency situations.
For additional details visit the SOTERIA project website: http://soteria.i112.eu
Documentation
SOTERIA flyer – ENSOTERIA Project Partners
Project funded by the European Commission under the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7, grant agreement no. 606796)