Integration of volunteer and technical communities into the humanitarian aid sector: Barriers to collaboration

Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs) with expertise in the collection, analysis and presentation of data and the development of supporting technologies, have potential to inform humanitarian aid organizations and help increase the efficiency of their operations. This study analyzes the role of V&TCs during recent response efforts and identifies a number of challenges of organizational nature that need to be overcome in order for aid organizations to harness the potential of V&TCs. The study finds that V&TCs can broadly be categorized into software platform development communities, mapping collaborations, expert networks and data aggregators. Evidence of collaboration with aid organizations however remains limited, suggesting a number of barriers need to be overcome, including (1) limited resources; (2) the management of volunteers; (3) different levels of engagement; (4) level of commitment by V&TCs; (5) different ways of working; and (6) aid organizations’ limited knowledge about V&TCs’ expertise.

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