Colombia Earthquake Simulation – testing ground for volunteer mapping and response cooperation. In the aftermath of some of the recent disasters we witnessed an increasing number of new actors entering the field of international humanitarian response operations.
The development of ICTs opened to a variety of individuals and groups unprecedented space for engagement, regardless their physical location and affiliation to traditional responders. It was predominantly the Haiti earthquake response that pointed out the potential (and limitations) of this volunteer online engagement. Despite the fact that the actual impact, added value and benefit of these emerging initiatives is still being determined and evaluated in order to clearly identify the lessons learned and future steps, some baselines are already obvious and undeniable.