While the typhoon in the Philippines has dominated international headlines these past two weeks, we also have to remember that the Philippines was also hit by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in the province of Bohol just weeks earlier. In both cases, my family and friends were affected as most of my family members are from the provinces of Bohol and Cebu. My Lolas house was damaged in northern Cebu because of the typhoon but thankfully, shes safe and sound. Climate change, youve now made this personal. A big part of me has been restless these past few weeks. Its been truly heartbreaking to see pictures and reports emerge out of the Philippines showcasing the extent of destruction and loss of human lives. But its also restored my faith in humanity as to how quickly people and communities, both in the Philippines and around the world, have opened up their hearts with love and generosity to help those in need. In response, I helped to organize a hackathon in New York City two weekends ago with an amazing group of people at NextDayBetter. Im now helping to organize a hackathon in Toronto this week building on that momentum from NYC as well as support from people in Manila, Cebu, Paris and other cities around the world. Its been incredible to see the outpour of international and local support for the Philippines at a time when the country needs as much help as it can. But we also have to remember that while relief and rescue operations are extremely important right now, its going to take months, if not years to rebuild lives, houses and communities. A big part of the reason we went the hackathon route was because we saw a need for innovation when it comes to immediate disaster relief efforts. More importantly, we saw a need for innovation in the rebuilding process in the Philippines months from now at a point in time when the worlds attention will no longer be focused on the country. When all is said and done, this is now personal. Typhoon Haiyan has made it clear that we cannot simply rebuild what existed before. How then, might we help rebuild a more resilient Philippines? Im in this for the long haul. Join me. betakit/new-york-startup-leads-toronto-hackathon-for-typhoon-haiyan-victims/
Posted on: Tue, 26 Nov 2013 05:02:22 +0000
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