Europe is currently faced with the largest refugee crisis it has known since World War II, with over four million Ukrainians having fled their country since 24 February 2022 and the start of the war in Ukraine.
As an H2H organization specialized in Information Management, CartONG has been adapting its response and the support it provides to its partners thanks to the dedication of its staff and of its network of volunteers. As needs evolve, we will continue to adapt the assistance we provide over the weeks and months to come. Here is a snapshot of a few key endeavors.
Most of our support is currently centered on Médecins Sans Frontières via their GIS Centre. In the last few weeks, we have tirelessly been working on harvesting basic data on Ukraine and its surrounding countries as well as data about security events in Ukraine. Additional work is also being conducted on harvesting existing maps and GIS products to make available to MSF staff in the field. Our GIS team has also produced a significant amount of static maps on cross borders, conflict areas and several affected cities – 120 so far, most of which are for MSF internal use. We have also developed 6 geoapps on Portal for ArcGIS which help with a better follow-up of MSF activities and their support to health facilities, as well as of security events. In the coming weeks, CartONG will centralize all existing geoapps in a custom-designed dashboard, with the support of MapAction.
Our team has also been supporting UNHCR on data management, by providing them with information on the temporary sites set up at the Ukrainian borders. Once again, our volunteer community has been of great support helping with data collection and key translation endeavors. As such, a group of around 15 volunteers is currently helping with mapping points of interest for ICRC. Additionally, several volunteers helped translate the names of cities and health facilities from local languages to English, before HOT published the information on HDX for the whole sector to use.
In the last few weeks, CartONG has also been meeting with the members of the GIS sub-group of the Information Management Working Group of OCHA to exchange with its pairs. In addition, we have been taking part in several exchanges with the H2H Network and the CHD - Coordination Humanitaire & Développement.
Do not hesitate to contact us if you have specific IM requests linked to the Ukrainian conflict. We will work to tackle any request we receive in the most consistent manner, in particular to avoid duplicating data collection and data visualization efforts.
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~ Promoting responsible data and data protection applied to humanitarian actors and settings ~
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In October 2021, CartONG engaged in its first ever partnership with the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (MEAE) through its Crisis and Support Center (CDCS) regarding an initiative focused on the promotion of responsible data and data protection applied to humanitarian actors and settings over the November 2021 to October 2023 period. Through this project, CartONG hopes to directly support a dozen French humanitarian actors in applying and implementing responsible data practices in their program data management and, consequently, improve the quality of their programs. More specifically, the provided support aims at encompassing the entire chain of the data life cycle from data collection to the sharing of data, through the processing stages, analysis and destruction of such data. Learn more in this short article.
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~ An update about the "Strengthening Information Management within CSOs" project ~
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In December 2019, CartONG launched a 3-year project dedicated to strengthening the way Information Management is handled by francophone Civil Society Organizations with the support of the French Development Agency. More than 2 years in, where do we stand? What is the latest news? And what is planned for the last 8 months of the project? Using the more casual format of an interview, here is a quick update which highlights in particular the launch of the Learning Corner in January 2022 with, among others, its Data Analysis and Data Visualization toolboxes, and the very recent release of some guidance on improving program data management training practices within the sector (in French only).
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~ The emergency monitoring system for ACF France is now fully operational ~
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CartONG provided support over the last few months to Action Contre la Faim France in building a lightweight Information Management system to classify and follow up on the severity of a crisis. The system was designed to help field teams quickly channel standardized information via a Kobo form to help clarify the kind of support emergency desks based at HQ can deliver to operations in the context of an emergency. Once the information has been filled out by the field team (using a first set of information available to them at the time such as contextual aspects, the capacity of ACF to address the said crisis, secondary sources available, etc.), the lightweight form calculates a severity score based on a framework defined by the Emergency Readiness and Response Unit (ERRU) in close cooperation with the field. ACF is currently undertaking a testing phase of the system in the field to help us enhance its functionalities in accordance with their own tools.
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~ A few lessons learned from a unique 12-month initiative
in Tajikistan ~
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From February 2021 to February 2022, CartONG implemented a project entitled “Addressing climate change through participatory mapping: using technology and community-based approaches to support climate change adaptation in rural Tajikistan” with the support of its local partner, Little Earth. The project was part of a larger initiative carried out by GIZ in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan and financed by BMZ. Learn more about it here. In the final weeks of the project, CartONG and Little Earth worked together on compiling the key learnings from this unique initiative. On the plus side, what stands out is that the Agile project management methodology appears to be a particularly relevant approach for this kind of project. Additionally, the train-the-trainer approach with Little Earth was a success and something to replicate. The team however stressed out that some time was lost on designing the project methodology which would have been better used spent in the field conducting community activities. It was also clear to both partners that, in future projects, more time would need to be spent on clarifying concrete outcomes of how the collected data should be used in the long-run – including by other field actors. CartONG will make sure to build on those lessons learned for future projects whose contexts are similar to this one.
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NEW PROJECT - CartONG launched a new project named “MapInclusive” in January 2022, which is funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ programme. The project aims to accompany migrant people in France and Greece towards learning new digital skills through digital mapping activities. To carry out this European project, CartONG is working hand in hand with Social Hackers Academy (SHA), an Athenian NGO. For 18 months, digital mapping activities will be offered to migrants in France and Greece, including mapathons adapted to their needs and skillsets, as well as a series of workshops to discover a variety of digital mapping tools.
NEW PROJECT - CartONG is one of the 7 associations participating in the “ACTIV’ECSI” project, led by the NGO Pays de Savoie Solidaires and co-financed by the French Development Agency. Started in January 2022, this 3-year initiative aims to strengthen the commitment of Savoie-based inhabitants in favor of a more united and sustainable world. CartONG and the associative members of “La Fabrique du vivre ensemble” network will develop innovative ECSI (Education for Citizenship and International Solidarity) actions and tools, as well as launch new partnerships.
A NEW TRAINING - CartONG will provide an Excel training session to the program team of Acting For Life at the beginning of April. This 4-day training will allow the participants to review the basics of data collection via Kobo and how to clean and organize data collected via Excel. It will also encompass an overview of the main functionalities of Excel, from conditional formatting to array formulas, also covering the most common analysis features to provide a solid and comprehensive overview of the different uses of Excel.
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CARTONG IN NUMBERS THIS QUARTER
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120 maps and 6 geoapps created in support of MSF’s operations in Ukraine and neighboring countries
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Around 60 local stakeholders (town and neighborhood leaders, community workers, etc.) participated in 6 participatory workshops in Morombe district in Madagascar. |
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MISSIONS AND TRAINING ACTIVITIES
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MISSION - This quarter, we organized the second mission of our collaboration with OSM-MG in Morombe and Toliara in Southeast Madagascar in support of the Avotia project of Secours Islamique France. Using the needs assessment from our first deployment, we implemented a new methodology combining OSM field data collection and participatory workshops using satellite imagery with local stakeholders. The data collection was conducted with 6 students from the University of Toliara we had trained on OSM during the first mission. This allowed us to complete a comprehensive mapping of 6 small towns’ infrastructures, as well as some of the agricultural activities - amongst others - conducted by the local communities. The first maps that were delivered following the mapping sessions were then presented during a workshop with various organizations in Antananarivo. This new collaboration has once again demonstrated the potential of OpenStreetMap to build a low-cost sustainable GIS for field organizations, and the relevance to combine various participatory approaches.
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TRAINING - In February 2020, just before the pandemic sent us into lockdown, CartONG had the chance to facilitate a 2-day in-person training on Data Protection in Humanitarian Assistance for a dozen of actors - an initiative part of the training catalog proposed by VENRO, the umbrella organization of development and humanitarian NGOs in Germany. Two years later, we renewed this experience, this time using an online format. A group of 16 participants coming from 14 organizations and a variety of backgrounds and positions met 6 times over 2 weeks to learn, reflect and discuss about Data Protection. The objectives of this training were to obtain a good overview and understanding of the concept of data protection applied to the aid sector, evaluate the maturity of each participant’s organization on the topic, learn how to protect data and get an overview of the tools and methods that can be used to improve data security. In the end, we sought to engage everyone in their responsible data journey and demonstrate how each and everyone can be an active actor on the subject. In the coming weeks, CartONG will continue to support the participants via individual coaching sessions organized at their request.
A quick panorama of some of the other training activities we conducted this quarter...
- 3 days of “Online GIS Basic” training as an introduction to GIS conducted in support of MSF, with 14 people attending.
- 2 days of reminder training on data collection given to each country involved in the Chad Lake Basin project (Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon) implemented by Plan International Germany.
- An online training on how to use QGIS has been organized for 10 field staff of the RESILAC consortium.
- 2 in-person introductory sessions on Information Management were organized at Bioforce for future Programme Coordinators and future Logistics Managers.
- One remote training on M&E tools and practices was delivered to 12 field staff of Expertise France based in Mali, the Comoros, Greece, Mauritania, Tunisia, and Morocco.
- In the framework of the Maps from here & abroad project co-financed by Fondation de France, CartONG facilitated, in January and February, 6 workshops with 18 migrants hosted by CADA Grand Chambéry - FOL 73. The participants created subjective maps telling their stories. These workshops have been built in close cooperation with a psychiatric nurse from EMPP, as well as social workers from FOL 73.
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Learning Corner: discover the new section of the IM Resource Portal!
CartONG invites you to discover the new Learning Corner of the IM Resource Portal. This subsection of the portal complements its resource library and blog section by providing practical tools in French and English for humanitarian and development field practitioners. Acting as a constant companion, its main objective is to support them on their path to mastering Information Management. Check out the first few publications in English: the First Steps with Program Data Management Toolkit as well as the Covid-19 Focus Toolkit, the Data Analysis Toolkit as well as the Data Visualisation Toolkit.
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~ Upcoming Get-Together! ~
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Our next Get-Together will take place on June 18th and 19th in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. We will share more information in the coming weeks about the logistics and the program of the weekend. In the meantime, save the date!
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~ 5th exchange day on program data management ~
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The 5th exchange day on program data management will be held on May 10, 2022! Organized by CartONG, this exchange day is intended for all French-speaking CSO representatives interested in program data management and wishing to exchange with their peers on the subject. The location of the event, the registration link and the full agenda will be communicated in the near future.
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~ Join us at SoTM France ~
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CartONG will participate in the annual meeting of OSM France contributors, the State of The Map FR (SoTM), which will take place this year in Nantes from June 10th to 12th. More information to be communicated at a later stage.
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~ 2021: what a year for Missing Maps! ~
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Huge thanks to our volunteer community for their support in 2021! Here is a short visual recap!
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In early 2022, the mobilization of our community of OSM contributors is still going strong, with regular remote mapathons taking place every Monday evening and Thursday morning. Since January, we have been able to organize a few face-to-face activities in Grenoble, Montpellier and Strasbourg as well as several interventions in universities. Our contributors have already supported three projects in Ethiopia and Haiti, and they are currently participating in the mapping of refugee sites in Chad and Lebanon. The quality of the data we map in OSM being a priority for CartONG, we also organized a first JOSM and data validation training in January for 11 volunteers. Three more sessions will take place in 2022. We will keep you posted!
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~ Ongoing volunteer projects ~
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Thanks to the help of our volunteers, we are currently supporting 8 NGOs: People and the Sea (mapping of the seagrass beds around the island of Malapascua), Ocean Eye (webmap of plastic samples collected and analyzed by the NGO), Dahari (data collection tools to monitor reforestation), SOS Faim Mali (interactive map of cereal banks), AVEC l’Ethiopie (webmap to follow a WASH program), Apoyo Urbano (data collection training), ICRC (data mining in the context of the Ukrainian crisis) and SOS Méditerranée (creation of a dashboard highlighting the actions of the NGO).
Curious about the association’s volunteering activities? Join us every second Wednesday of the month from 6 to 8pm to learn more during our francophone “Volunteer happy hour”. The next meeting will be on April 13th. More info here.
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~ Check out this new podcast about volunteering! ~
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Our volunteers are in the spotlight! CartONG participated in a Bubble Art media francophone podcast on volunteer engagement. With two other NGOs (TECHO and Dialogues en humanité), we talked about the importance of volunteering in solidarity initiatives, and how to engage volunteers online. Find the radio version of the podcast here.
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CartONG is currently looking for a:
- GIS Officer - webmaps, applications & servers - more information here
- Event Management Intern for the 2022 GeOnG forum - more information here
- Program Data Management and Capitalization Intern - more information here
- Civic Service Volunteer in Participatory Mapping & Community Building - more information here
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