THAILAND FIELDWORK 2016: CU-GISTDA BIG DATA FIELDWORK ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT

We are now calling for participants in Thailand Fieldwork scheduled in January, 2016.
This program is open for EBA Consortium member universities.
For Keio students:

Currently, we are accepting application from Keio students. Application procedures are written below.

For ASEAN students:
EBA local contacts (http://www.eba-consortium.asia/?page_id=1331) will have a separate announcement and selection process.

FIELDWORK CONTENT

Overview: In today’s digital age, the role of big data has become increasingly important in many aspects of life. One notable area is the use of big data to help prevent and mitigate the effects of natural disasters such as earthquake, tsunami, and drought, and flooding. In the CU-GISTDA* fieldwork, participants will be challenged with various learning activities designed to guide them through the life-cycle of big data, from understanding data, data collection, data pre-processing, data analysis, to data visualization. They will learn how big data differs from traditional data in terms of its complexity and treatment, and get to experience first-hand how big data is used to manage flooding risk, which is the most frequent natural disaster in Thailand.

*About CU-GISTDA: The Space Krenovation Park or SKP is one of the latest facilities of the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) located in Sriracha, Chonburi Province.  It has been created to enhance Thailand’s capability in the research and development of space-related technology, as well as to support the actual realization of industrial products based on the innovative research ideas.  Hence, the name “Krenovation” comes from the combination of three words: knowledge, creation, and innovation. The park houses many facilities including the Thaichote Ground Control Station and the GIS training center.

In addition, during the fieldwork, students will also learn

–       Overview of disaster management using GIS technology

–       Types of disaster, and types of data needed for managing each type of disaster

–       Data collection methods and tools for flooding disaster

–       Data importing (pre-processing) methods and tools for flooding disaster

–       Data analysis methods and tools for flooding disaster

–       Big data approach

–       Introduction to Thai language and culture

Objectives

–       To introduce participants to the life-cycle of big data

–       To provide participants with hand-on experience on using traditional data/big data for managing flooding disaster

Outcomes: At the end of the fieldwork, the participants should be able to answer these questions:

1. What is big data?
2. How is big data different from traditional data in the following aspects:
   1. Collection
   2. Pre-processing
   3. Analysis
   4. Visualization
   5. What role does big data play in our everyday life?

Locations: The fieldwork will take place on main 2 locations.

–       Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok

–       Space Krenovation Park (SKP), Sriracha, Chonburi (See Item A, Section IV)

Participants will also visit the Coastal Radar Station in Bang Saen, Chonburi for technical tour and field activity.

Schedule: The fieldwork will take place from January 8, 2016 to January 17, 2016. The overall schedule is shown in the Table.

Table 1  Overall schedule of the CU-GISTDA Big Data fieldwork (Tentative)

How to apply: (for Keio students)
Both undergraduates and graduate students (who are able to communicate in English) are eligible for the program.
All you have to do is:

• Fill out APPLICATION FORM (from: http://goo.gl/vmX1TK) in English
• Write an 300-word essay stating your interest in the theme of the fieldwork (either in English or Japanese)

Then submit these two materials to eba-submit@ml.keio.jp with subject: “Thailand Fieldwork Application- Your Name”. The deadline is 23:59 JST, Monday, 16 November 2015. Screening result will be announced in the following week.
Costs:
Keio students should pay the airplane ticket fee (to/from Bangkok) on your own. However, the good news for Japanese students is if selected, you are also eligible to apply for JASSO scholarship (70,000 JPY) which should help cover part of your Fieldwork related expenses.

In addition to the airplane ticket fee, EBA committee will collect a participation fee. For now, the participation fee has not been decided yet as the preparation work is still undergoing. However, it should be around 30,000〜50,000 JPY (including accommodation, local transportation, part of the food costs, and other services during the trip).
Submission Deadline:
23:59 JST, Monday, 16 November 2015
Notes:
JASSO scholarship is only for Japanese citizen（日本国籍の学生のみ申請可能）. If you are planning to apply for JASSO scholarship, you are also required to submit a student report（成績表）. For further information, please refer to the following URL (P.8〜11)http://www.jasso.go.jp/scholarship/documents/h27tanki_h_tebiki.pdf
Contact:
For more information, please contact us via email at eba-ra-group@keio.jp