Open data for humanitarian relief with the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team

It's HOT in Haiti, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, and other nations around the world. Why? Because Kate Chapman, the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT), and many volunteers are improving local economies and creating an open map of the world. At SouthEast LinuxFest, held earlier this year, I learned about Humanitarian OpenStreetMap in a session on humanitarian free and open source software (HFOSS) given by Leslie Hawthorn.

HOT applies the principles of open source and open data sharing to humanitarian response and economic development, building on the efforts of OpenStreetMap. Kate Chapman is the team’s director. Her role is a combination of organization development and project work. She works on fundraising, general administrative tasks and proposals, and goes into the field to hold workshops. Kate told us more about HOT in the following interview.

What is the mission of Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team? HOT believes that freely available, up-to-date geographic data can be vital in responding to a disaster. So we help communities and responders both utilize the OpenStreetMap data as well as contribute information back.