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Spring 2020 | By Laura J. Cole

What would become the largest and most complex聽outbreak of the Ebola virus to date began in December聽2013 with an 18-month-old boy. The outbreak would聽last for more than two and a half years, with more than 28,600聽cases reported across West Africa and more than 11,325 deaths.

As a then-geographic information systems聽(GIS) analyst at the Red Cross, Drishtie聽Patel 麻豆精品 S�08 麻豆精品 S�12MNM was responsible for聽providing relief workers on the ground with聽accurate geographic data, so they could locate聽and assist people even in the most rural parts聽of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

She knew one problem would be the same聽as it had been for the many relief efforts she 麻豆精品 S檇聽been a part of up to that point: Uncharted聽roads, bridges and physical structures would聽make finding those who were infected聽difficult, especially as they had a tendency to聽flee their villages and move to more remote聽locations out of shame.

麻豆精品 S淥utside of the cities, these countries are聽mostly forest, 麻豆精品 S� Patel says. 麻豆精品 S淎s people moved聽farther away, we couldn 麻豆精品 S檛 track them. There聽was no easy way to contain the movement聽of people in one area, so the disease spread聽farther. 麻豆精品 S�

This left patients unnecessarily vulnerable聽and at risk. The other problem: While that聽missing information was being collected,聽the outbreak was gaining traction, costing聽valuable time.

麻豆精品 S淭housands of towns and cities are invisible聽on the world map, 麻豆精品 S� Patel wrote in an article聽during the outbreak. 麻豆精品 S淭his makes it difficult聽for disaster responders to come to residents 麻豆精品 S櫬燼id when an earthquake, landslide or typhoon聽strikes. 麻豆精品 S�

Though catastrophic, the Ebola outbreak聽was only one out of the more than 60,000聽disasters the Red Cross responds to each year.聽That 麻豆精品 S檚 a lot of information just waiting to be聽collected that could mean life or death for聽hundreds of thousands of people.

Realizing it would be helpful to have聽data-rich maps prior to a disaster, Patel聽became part of a team that set out to pre-map聽areas in countries that often receive the least聽resources. Today, she 麻豆精品 S檚 expediting that process聽as part of a Facebook team that uses artificial聽intelligence to improve the detail, quality and聽accuracy of maps in less time.

Many of us take maps for granted. Whether聽lost in a city or on a nature trail or heading聽to a new place for the first time, we turn聽to our phones. In the palm of our hands聽is any number of web mapping services,聽such as Google Maps, ready to help us find聽our way.

But if you 麻豆精品 S檝e ever traveled to a remote聽location and found yourself sans internet聽or staring at a giant swatch of beige or green聽with only a single blue dot to guide you, you 麻豆精品 S檝e聽probably realized how important maps are.

麻豆精品 S淢aps are incredibly powerful and highly聽visual, 麻豆精品 S� says Timothy Hawthorne, UCF聽associate professor of GIS. 麻豆精品 S淭hey are able to聽share information quickly to show a challenge聽or opportunity and inform decisions across聽organizations, so people in need get resources聽in a more timely manner. 麻豆精品 S�

Getting resources to people in need relies聽on disaster-relief mapping, or humanitarian聽mapping. An attempt to ensure communities聽in need get help during political crises,聽epidemics and natural disasters, humanitarian聽mapping has been around for decades. But聽its latest iteration started in 2004, after聽the Boxing Day tsunami hit 13 countries聽in Southeast Asia and killed more than聽230,000 people.

麻豆精品 S淚t took weeks for actual maps of any value聽to be made [available] for people, 麻豆精品 S� says Dale聽Kunce, who previously led the international聽data and maps team at the American Red聽Cross. 麻豆精品 S淭here 麻豆精品 S檚 this very famous story of a聽gentleman deploying with a map that was聽50 years old, the best map he had for Banda聽Aceh, Indonesia [where the 9.1 magnitude聽earthquake that set off the tsunami hit].聽Banda Aceh, Indonesia, does not look like that聽anymore, nor had it in the last 20 years before聽the tsunami happened and 30-foot waves聽rolled over everything. 麻豆精品 S�

Today, there is a global network of volunteers who come together online and on the ground after a disaster strikes to compile maps that help responders reach those in need. These volunteers use an open-source web platform called (OSM), which was founded in 2004.

麻豆精品 S淥SM is commonly referred to as the聽 麻豆精品 S榃ikipedia for maps, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� says Patel. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚聽essentially a crowdsourced mapping project聽that brings together mappers from around the聽globe to collaboratively build and maintain a聽free editable map of the world. 麻豆精品 S�

While organizations such as the聽Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team聽(HOT) specialize in responding to聽international humanitarian crises by聽connecting OSM volunteers to help聽impacted areas remotely, it still takes time聽to coordinate, map and clean the data before聽it can be used. Responders were getting聽better information but losing valuable time.聽Relief organizations such as the American聽Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders聽realized a need to do more.

Thus was born Missing Maps, a聽partnership between the American Red聽Cross, the British Red Cross, Doctors聽Without Borders and HOT to map the most聽vulnerable areas in the developing world聽before disasters occur. Here 麻豆精品 S檚 how it works:聽Remote volunteers from anywhere on the聽planet trace roads and buildings using聽satellite imagery into OSM. Community聽volunteers on the ground confirm data聽and add local details, such as street names,聽road conditions and building types. And聽humanitarian organizations use the聽collected data to plan for crisis responses.

Drishtie Patel 麻豆精品 S�08 麻豆精品 S�12MNM (center) works with locals to map their community in a remote area of Rwanda, close to the Burundi border. 麻豆精品 S淐yahinda is a region that is prone to landslides, mosquito-borne illnesses, and is going through a food shortage 麻豆精品 S� but its people aren 麻豆精品 S檛 even visible to most of the globe, 麻豆精品 S� she says.

Missing Maps partners working with聽OSM completely changed how relief聽organizations respond.

麻豆精品 S淢issing Maps started with disaster聽response, but now it 麻豆精品 S檚 pretty much used聽for the entire planning phase 麻豆精品 S� everything聽from preplanning to post-planning, 麻豆精品 S� says聽Patel, who was one of the founding members聽of the Missing Maps project at the American聽Red Cross.

One example shows how the project helped prove the impact building materials have on health.

麻豆精品 S淭he data showed a strong correlation to a separate health project, and the team involved realized all of the people who lived in temporary mud houses were having health issues, such as asthma, 麻豆精品 S� says Patel. 麻豆精品 S淭he problem was actually the infrastructure of the houses, and that correlation wouldn 麻豆精品 S檛 have happened if it wasn 麻豆精品 S檛 made available visually. As a result, another service was created to help rebuild permanent structures made of brick, which resulted in drastic health improvements. 麻豆精品 S�

Patel never planned on being a cartographer.

There are people who are self-proclaimed聽 麻豆精品 S渕apaholics. 麻豆精品 S� They talk about things like聽Mappy Hours and Mapternoons 麻豆精品 S� where聽humanitarian-driven volunteers contribute聽a significant amount of time to map entire聽countries with other community-focused聽individuals.

But for Patel, mapping is simply an聽offshoot of her real calling: to help people聽in need.

She grew up in Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe in a middle-class family, where she acknowledges she had a comfortable, somewhat privileged upbringing. But around her, chaos started to unfurl just as she was entering her teenage years. Upheavals began in the African nation in 1999 after the World Bank and IMF suspended aid. What followed were years of food shortages, economic hardship and political unrest.

麻豆精品 S淶imbabwe was a pretty amazing country聽to grow up in until I hit my teens, 麻豆精品 S� says聽Patel. 麻豆精品 S淚t just became [constant chaos] 麻豆精品 S斅爏hortage of gas, standing in lines for basic聽things and no power most of the time. 麻豆精品 S�

In times of plenty, the governments聽of many countries are able to provide聽assistance to their people. In times of need,聽few can. In these times, people turn to聽nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),聽such as the Red Cross, to help them survive.

Patel knew then she wanted to work with聽the helpers, even volunteering with the Red聽Cross during high school.

麻豆精品 S淚 think I 麻豆精品 S檝e always just been drawn to a聽nonprofit mission, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淎 lot of times聽it 麻豆精品 S檚 the NGOs who end up coming in on the聽ground to provide support, and they make聽a real difference. That 麻豆精品 S檚 when things get聽better, whether it 麻豆精品 S檚 for refugee movements,聽a health outbreak or a political crisis. 麻豆精品 S�

When the situation in Zimbabwe became聽dangerous, Patel 麻豆精品 S檚 family applied for the聽U.S. green card lottery and won a few years聽later. Patel, who was in high school at the聽time, didn 麻豆精品 S檛 want to move to the United聽States. Like many teenagers, she didn 麻豆精品 S檛聽want to leave behind her extended family,聽friends and everything she knew. But that聽move would eventually lead her to UCF聽 麻豆精品 S� where she majored in organizational聽communication and earned a master 麻豆精品 S檚 in聽nonprofit management and a graduate聽certificate in emergency management and聽homeland security 麻豆精品 S� and help Patel find聽her niche.

麻豆精品 S淭he nice thing about the nonprofit聽program was the focus on service-learning聽and practical experience rather than only聽the theoretical stuff, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淓very single聽class, we worked with an NGO. By the time聽I was hired by the Red Cross, I had gotten a聽lot of the hands-on experience I needed to聽jump in and make an immediate impact. I聽was already familiar with certain processes聽and fundamental skills in NGOs, such as聽fundraising and writing grant proposals. 麻豆精品 S�

Her first job at the Red Cross was when聽mapping became a big part of how she聽would fulfill her goal of helping others.聽Her team was responsible for collecting聽whatever public information people on聽the ground needed, such as population聽estimates, road data, number of buildings聽and nearby villages.

麻豆精品 S淚 really liked that, 麻豆精品 S� she says, 麻豆精品 S渁nd I never聽thought mapping would be a big part of that.聽Honestly, it was just something I learned on聽the job. I saw a gap and was lucky enough聽to be in the right place at the right time聽with the right people to be able to push it聽through. 麻豆精品 S�

That luck led her not only to the Missing聽Maps project that she helped start at the聽Red Cross, but also to her current position聽at Facebook, where she 麻豆精品 S檚 using machine聽learning technology to map the world聽even faster.

A single magenta line appears over a聽satellite image of Indonesia. Within a聽matter of seconds, it has spread into a聽vast matrix of intersecting lines across聽the country.

贵补肠别产辞辞办 麻豆精品 S檚 is at work,聽taking high-resolution satellite images聽and turning identified roads into magenta聽pixels. Building upon the work Patel and聽the Missing Maps team did at the Red聽Cross manually tracing map features into聽OSM, Map with AI expedites the process by聽training machines to identify and map roads聽in seconds 麻豆精品 S� a feat that would take human聽volunteers years, if not decades.

In only 18 months, Map with AI enabled聽the team at Facebook to remotely map more聽than 300,000 miles of roads in Thailand,聽more than doubling the available road聽network. That same feat would have taken聽an additional three to five years using the聽traditional method, Patel says.

麻豆精品 S淲e 麻豆精品 S檝e now processed the whole world聽 麻豆精品 S� every single road 麻豆精品 S� using AI, 麻豆精品 S� she says.

麻豆精品 S淲e 麻豆精品 S檝e open-sourced that entire data set,聽and we keep updating it. This would have聽taken decades to do manually. 麻豆精品 S�

That 麻豆精品 S檚 not to say the computers are taking聽over for people. The heart of OSM remains聽people volunteering from all over the world聽to create a community map. Mapathons and聽Mappy Hours aren 麻豆精品 S檛 going away anytime聽soon. Rather, AI helps with some of the聽mundane parts of mapping, so mappers can聽focus on adding more local knowledge.

麻豆精品 S淭he tool strikes a good balance between聽suggesting machine-generated features聽and manual mapping, 麻豆精品 S� said Martijn van聽Exel, a longtime leader in the open mapping聽community, in a release on 贵补肠别产辞辞办 麻豆精品 S檚 tech聽blog. 麻豆精品 S淚t gives mappers the final say in what聽ends up in the map but helps just enough聽to be both useful and draw attention to聽under-mapped places. 麻豆精品 S�

The magenta lines indicate all the roads in Jakarta, Indonesia, that have been mapped using 贵补肠别产辞辞办 麻豆精品 S檚 Map with AI.

During three months last year, volunteers聽using Map with AI mapped missing roads聽in nearly 200 countries, including聽Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia,聽Mexico, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda.

The benefit of being with Facebook, Patel聽says, is all the ways the company is using聽data to help communities around the world.聽For example, through Facebook Data for聽Good, the tech giant has launched Disaster聽Maps and Population Density. During the聽recent Australian bushfires, which burned聽more than 42,000 square miles of land,聽these tools were used by the humanitarian聽aid organization Direct Relief to distribute聽more than 500,000 respiratory masks to聽people in Victoria and New South Wales.

麻豆精品 S淭hese are two products that Drishtie聽made a really strong contribution to, 麻豆精品 S澛爏ays Subbu Subramanian, director of聽engineering at Facebook, who is Patel 麻豆精品 S檚 boss.聽 麻豆精品 S淪he helped work with the various relief聽organizations, as she clearly understands聽their needs, given her former role with聽the Red Cross. She also worked with the聽mapping and technologies team to offer聽solutions that have been used in dozens聽of disasters in the past few months alone. 麻豆精品 S�

And while Facebook has been under聽fire recently for collecting personal data,聽Subramanian says none of these projects聽use or collect personal information.

麻豆精品 S淔or these cases, we don 麻豆精品 S檛 need any聽personal information whatsoever, 麻豆精品 S� he聽says. 麻豆精品 S淭he information that comes to聽us is primarily from cell towers, which聽gives us pretty good aggregated,聽anonymized information as to what聽areas have been impacted. 麻豆精品 S�

All of that information is available to聽others to help aid in relief efforts. It 麻豆精品 S檚 been聽so successful that requests have come from聽across different sectors, including NGOs,聽private companies and governments.

Though Facebook provides the opportunity to do good on a larger scale, Patel admits she had some hesitation initially switching from working for a nonprofit to a tech giant. It certainly wasn 麻豆精品 S檛 what she envisioned back in Zimbabwe or even while completing her studies at UCF.

麻豆精品 S淚 didn 麻豆精品 S檛 want to work for a tech company聽after being in a nonprofit, 麻豆精品 S� Patel says.聽 麻豆精品 S淧ersonally, I felt like a sellout and like I聽was leaving behind what I planned to do聽my whole life. But once I joined the聽Facebook team, I realized this felt like聽another humanitarian project. I get to work聽with a talented group of people that have聽the same goals and just want to do good.

麻豆精品 S淎t the end of the day, maps benefit us in so many ways and truly make people 麻豆精品 S檚 lives easier. They are used for everything such as day-to-day navigation, emergency management, and planning and urban development 麻豆精品 S� to name a few. So whether an organization uses it to get you an Uber faster, give you driving navigation, or an evacuation plan, the usage 麻豆精品 S� and benefit 麻豆精品 S� is endless. 麻豆精品 S�