using mobile phones to improve understanding of climate change projects in the pacific dr. adam...

Using mobile phones to improve understanding of climate change projects in

the Pacific

Dr. Adam BumpusAssistant Professor, University of MelbourneCo-Founder, ApidaeTw: @adambumpus

• 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

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:1.Technology must be social

2.Perceptions matter3.Coordination is key

Issues

• 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)

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?

ICT4d issues and opportunities

ICT4D exists, but limited on climate change and development

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

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

$

Peer-to-peer exists: Public-Private Partnerships

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.

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

Key Issues

Some infrastructure barriers exist, but mostly technically feasible

Key issues: social and cultural issues are crucial

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

Community preferences for information transfer:

1.Face-to-face discussion with project implementers2.Mobile text messages

3.Internet

Key issues1. Its still social and cultural

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)

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 structuresAccess differentiated by vulnerability, gender, age? Needs more work

2. Perceptions Matter

Key issues2. institutional Perceptions: Ict is a desktop pc

“But most people are not connected to mobile phone networks” - Regional donor representative

“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

“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

3: Coordination is Key

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

How can we explain some of this?

Opportunities for spaces and scales of innovation

ICTs as a tool to integrate useful data

ICTs and climate change as mutually supportive

cross-cutting policy issues

Clim

ate

finan

ce

Dat

a fo

r ac

coun

tabi

lity

Effective interaction with communities

MNRE Min Comms and IT Min Health

Telco 1 Telco 2

Gaps and disjunct in vertical finance and data flows

Competition and piggybacking business models

Local participation and innovation on

communication

Horizontal coordination in policy and practice

Scales of innovation

National Govm’t

SPC UNDPAusAID PIFS SPREP

Donors / IGOs

Polic

y innovati

on

Public-private innovationPolicy innovation

Global

Local Local interests

Opportunity for ICTs in improving climate change projects

Enablers

• 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

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

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

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

Thank you!

abumpus@unimelb.edu.auT: @adambumpus