How can social media help us respond to natural disasters?

As monsoons hit India, the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay is looking to turn to Twitter for real-time weather updates directly from the source.

The idea is to use digital elevation, along with the tweets of local residents, to better map monsoon floods and give real-time alerts, reports Thomson Reuters Foundation.

“What we are not able to do is minimize the damage caused by floods … [but] crowdsourcing information can validate forecasts, help tweak predictions and improve relief and rescue operations,” Prasoon Singh, lead for the Center for Global Environment Research of New Delhi-based Energy and Resources Institute, is quoted as saying by Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Social media has been a lifeline in Children Believe’s work, too. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, it helped support education and community well-being. Juana, a community leader from our program in Nicaragua, turned to WhatsApp and Facebook to communicate with families and ensure their health while students used WhatsApp to continue learning.

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About Children Believe

Children Believe works globally to empower children to dream fearlessly, stand up for what they believe in — and be heard. For 60+ years, we’ve brought together brave young dreamers, caring supporters and partners, and unabashed idealists. Together, we’re driven by a common belief: creating access to education — inside and outside of classrooms — is the most powerful tool children can use to change their world.

About Childfund Alliance

A member of ChildFund Alliance, Children Believe is part of a global network of child-focused development organizations working to create opportunities for children and youth, their families and communities. ChildFund helps nearly 23-million children and their families in 70 countries overcome poverty and underlying conditions that prevent children from achieving their full potential. We work to end violence against children; provide expertise in emergencies and disasters to ease the harmful impact on children and their communities; and engage children and youth to create lasting change and elevate their voices in decisions that affect their lives.