Citizen Science and Community-Based Flood Monitoring: Empowering Local Early Warning Systems
Natural disasters have been increasing globally, with flooding being the most common and impacting millions annually. The risk of floods is on the rise, particularly affecting vulnerable populations in low- and middle-income countries. Comprehensive flood risk reduction strategies are essential to enhance preparedness, mitigate risks, and improve disaster response. Early warning systems (EWS) play a crucial role in minimizing the impact of floods, but concerns have been raised regarding the reliability and accessibility of warning information, often driven by power imbalances among stakeholders.
To address these concerns, the integration of a citizen science approach into existing flood EWS has emerged as a viable solution. By empowering local communities to actively participate in flood monitoring and early warning, this approach can promote inclusivity, incorporate local perspectives, and equitably distribute expertise. This article explores how the integration of citizen science can transform the dynamics and responsibilities linked to flood management, while also highlighting the challenges in sustaining long-term participation and overcoming institutional barriers.
Citizen Science for Flood Early Warning Systems
Citizen science, a global volunteer-based method, has shown potential in generating actionable knowledge for early warnings and impact assessments in disaster risk reduction. In the context of flood EWS, citizen science involves local volunteers collaborating with professionals and agencies to collect and analyze flood risk data using inexpensive sensors, monitoring networks, participatory mapping, and modeling.
This approach fosters the equitable distribution of expertise and decision-making power, ultimately improving the efficiency of EWS by evolving it into a community-based early warning system (CBEWS). The concept of a CBEWS highlights the crucial role of community participation in understanding flood hazards, monitoring and warning, effective communication, and prompt response.
Enhancing Risk Knowledge
Citizen science can enhance the deliberation among diverse stakeholders through transdisciplinary collaboration, providing valuable resources for researchers and decision-makers to explore local perspectives on floods. For example, integrating citizen science into a flood EWS in Indonesia aimed to develop community-based rainfall data management, improving the accuracy of measurements, enhancing students’ understanding of natural sciences, and increasing community literacy regarding floods and their mitigation.
Improving Monitoring and Warning
Building citizen scientists’ capacity to monitor risks reduces dependency on external authorities while enabling local actions. Low-cost sensors and participation techniques help collect real-time data for predicting disasters and issuing warnings. For instance, citizen science-based hydrological monitoring in Nepal’s Karnali River Basin used low-cost sensors, increasing data coverage and empowering locals to improve flood resilience.
Strengthening Communication and Dissemination
Citizen science and community flood monitoring initiatives boost social capital, improve risk communication, and enhance local engagement, leading to a more balanced exchange of warning information. However, challenges remain in achieving equal participation and collaboration between scientists and citizen scientists.
Enhancing Response Capabilities
Citizen science enhances the engagement of at-risk local actors and institutions in both normal and emergency situations to improve their response capabilities. For example, in Senegal, by employing participatory downscaling and integrating local knowledge, weather forecasts were tailored for flood-prone areas, enabling farmers to make informed cropping decisions, which led to enhanced yields and contributed to the preservation of lives and livelihoods during flood events.
Addressing Power Dynamics
While citizen science holds great potential, it also encounters various challenges. Ensuring the inclusion of diverse participants and representation in communities characterized by power imbalances can be difficult, often leading to elite capture and the deliberate abandonment of responsibilities by other institutions. Adequate allocation of resources also becomes a challenge when funding is scarce and competing priorities exist.
To sustain citizen involvement, it is essential to evaluate volunteer interests and address trust and transparency issues that may arise in EWS due to uncertainties and failures. Government agencies may also resist citizen science initiatives if strong partnerships are lacking, and early enthusiasm for projects may wane over time, making it crucial to assess motivations.
The Akaki Catchment Case Study
This study was conducted in the downstream areas of the Akaki catchment in Ethiopia, where flooding presents a critical challenge. The area experiences significant precipitation from June to September, with frequent flood events between May and November. The predominant land use is agricultural, and the region is home to vulnerable communities.
Integrating Citizen Science in Flood EWS
Researchers from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and Addis Ababa University (AAU) began a study on flood risk in the Akaki catchment, revealing that the formal flood EWS lacked community engagement, leading at-risk communities to rely on informal networks for flood information. To address this, the research team integrated a citizen science approach into the existing flood EWS.
Eleven citizen scientists were identified, representing diverse social backgrounds in terms of gender, age, and geographic location. They were engaged in various aspects of the CBFEWS, including co-generating knowledge, monitoring and warning, communicating and disseminating information, and enhancing the response capabilities of at-risk communities.
Impacts on Power Dynamics
The integration of citizen science in the Akaki flood EWS had a significant impact on power dynamics. It facilitated collaboration among citizen scientists and various stakeholders through site visits, training sessions, documentation efforts, and participation in meetings, empowering them to gain risk-related knowledge and enhance their critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
The collaborative strategy also significantly improved communication among stakeholders, particularly through the visits of citizen scientists to the Legedadi dam and the Ethiopian Meteorological Institute. This cooperation has empowered at-risk communities to voice their flood-warning needs, promoting inclusive disaster readiness and response.
The engagement of citizen scientists in the flood EWS also enabled them to gain access to training aimed at advancing their skills for monitoring and interpreting data, reducing the need for constant communication with external authorities. Additionally, the incorporation of citizen science within the Akaki flood EWS has markedly enhanced the communication capabilities and the credibility and accessibility of warning messages, fostering trust among all participants.
However, the sustainable engagement of citizen scientists in flood EWS remains a challenge. Citizen scientists face obstacles such as demands on time, financial constraints, and the requisite effort, while the lack of legal frameworks and institutional structures at the local level for community-based flood initiatives creates a heavy reliance on personal connections, hindering long-term sustainability.
Conclusion
The integration of citizen science into flood early warning systems has the potential to transform power dynamics, enhance community resilience, and promote equitable flood management practices. By empowering local communities to actively participate in flood monitoring and early warning, this approach can improve the reliability and accessibility of warning information, foster inclusive disaster preparedness and response, and challenge existing power imbalances that may marginalize vulnerable groups.
However, sustaining long-term citizen engagement and addressing institutional barriers remain key challenges. Policymakers, practitioners, and communities might want to work together to create an enabling environment that supports citizen science initiatives, allocates adequate resources, and recognizes the diverse capabilities and motivations of local actors. By doing so, we can harness the power of citizen science to build more resilient and equitable flood management systems, ultimately safeguarding lives and livelihoods in the face of rising flood risks.
Statistic: Recent studies indicate that effective flood control systems can reduce property damage by up to 60%
