The University of Balamand, through the GIS Center at the Faculty of Engineering in collaboration with Open Map Lebanon organized a two-day online international conference entitled: “Beirut Blast: A Paradigm Shift in Open Geospatial Data” on November 6 and 7, 2020. The conference brought together decision-makers, practitioners, engineers, scientists, and technologists working in Beirut Blast relief efforts and heritage, and those interested in fostering an open data culture.

The conference aimed to capitalize on the paradigm shift by promoting open geospatial data to enable fast recovery in times of crisis. This can mitigate many of the problems faced by researchers, academics, and other organizations working in the humanitarian or development sector, especially in the light of the Beirut Blast.

Professor Rami Abboud gave the welcoming address and the first keynote emphasizing the University of Balamand’s commitment to placing its technology, skills, and expertise at the service of national development. He also underlined the need for a culture of openness and sharing that promotes the healthy exchange of information to augment academic research, humanitarian work, and public policy at the national level. Prof. Abboud also commended the efforts of the GIS Center at the Faculty of Engineering underlining the role of its director Dr. Amal Iaaly in establishing the collaboration with Open Map Lebanon and initiating this event.

Open Map Lebanon (OML) cofounders Melda Salhab, Sherif Maktabi, Marc Farra, Michelle Melki, and Joanne Harik gave a brief introduction to their NGO. OML is a growing community of volunteer technologists, mappers, academics and data scientists supporting the relief effort in Beirut and believe that there are obvious benefits to open and safe data sharing. Open Map Lebanon was founded after the 4th of August 2020’s Beirut Blast. In addition to Professor Abboud, the conference featured three keynote speakers. Dr. Andrew Schroeder, Vice President of Research and Analysis for Direct Relief and Co-Founder and Board President of WeRobotics.org, spoke about Direct Relief’s efforts in light of the Beirut Blast and showcased innovative analysis of the blast using Facebook Data for Good. Ms Mathilde Morée, Account Executive at Planet, spoke about their satellite constellation that images the earth every day and how their data can contribute to various applications, including studying the blast and rebuilding Beirut. Brigadier General Sami ElHoyek, head of the Beirut Forward Emergency Room (FER), spoke about the national efforts for relief and recovery since the blast, highlighting the role of the Lebanese Army and its cooperation with key stakeholders in that respect.

The conference included ten panel discussions that focused on different aspects of the Beirut Blast and the need for high quality open data and its various applications. The panels featured speakers, including members of government, researchers, academics, and practitioners who all shared their views, expertise, and work. Topics included the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon, data governance, disaster management, and blast modelling, and data science in data scarcity, and the impact of the blast on Beirut’s cultural identity. The event also featured a panel dedicated to the cultural identity and geography of Beirut and the impact of the blast on it. This panel involved thought leaders, academics, and students who all shared their experiences and views on the topic. Conference also features training sessions on open data, open mapping, and, drone operations.

The conference attracted more than 600 attendees from around the world and over 65 speakers of who’s who in the fields of GIS, Geospatial data science, disaster response, public health, and other industries. The discussions focused on the importance of establishing a culture of cooperation and openness between stakeholders in Lebanon in order to unify efforts and make geospatial data openly available, which would facilitate emergency response, decision making, public governance, academic research, and, most importantly, boost national resilience.

Click here to access list of speakers: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/beirut-blast-a-paradigm-shift-in-open-geospatial-data-tickets-126703087345#