Leveraging participatory monitoring for enhanced disaster monitoring and management

Participatory monitoring, which actively involves community members in data collection and analysis, has emerged as a valuable tool for disaster monitoring and management. This chapter highlights the advantages of integrating participatory monitoring with Earth observation techniques to enhance disaster response. Participatory monitoring captures spatially refined data, provides real-time insights, validates existing data, and advocates for equitable policies, thereby empowering communities and enhancing the accuracy and relevance of disaster data, particularly in underserved areas. Through two case studies focused on air pollution and flood monitoring, this chapter illustrates the practical application of participatory monitoring in disaster scenarios. It concludes with a discussion of the challenges and limitations of this approach, offering recommendations for future research and implementation. Overall, this chapter underscores the potential of participatory monitoring to not only strengthen local disaster resilience but also contribute to more informed disaster management strategies on a broader scale.