Grassroots Disaster Response During Superstorm Sandy: Successes, Failures and Opportunities
October 2014 –“Grassroots Disaster Response During Superstorm Sandy: Successes, Failures and Opportunities” Devin Balkind of the Serapis Foundation gave an intriguing talk on his role as a technologist working in the grassroots emergency response community following Hurricane Sandy. Balkind talked about the emergence of grassroots aid organizations such as Occupy Sandy, and the increasing role of social media in facilitating disaster relief. Balkind closed with a discussion on the need for common data standards to facilitate exchange of information between governmental and non-governmental organizations, including emergent grassroots entities following disaster.