Engaging the Public in Forest Fire Awareness through a Mobile Application

Abstract

The widespread use of mobile devices has resulted in remarkable advancements in their capacity to offer and disseminate online information virtually anywhere. Users are increasingly open to installing applications that furnish valuable information to address specific situations. This paper describes joint efforts in research and development of a mobile application, called Citizen Engagement App (CEA), and related methods for engaging the public in forest fire danger awareness, data collection and presentation services. The primary objective is to provide insights into the developed methods and technologies employed. The methods are separated into two domains, namely the domain of citizen engagement approaches to educate people about forest fire prevention, and the domain of mobile application development employed for disseminating knowledge and reporting on hazardous situations in the forests. The evaluation of the mobile application took place both in the pilot demonstrations and meetings with the public to pinpoint any gaps and challenges.