WEBVTT 00:00:03.461 --> 00:00:05.772 Newscaster: There's a large path of destruction here in town. 00:00:05.772 --> 00:00:08.972 ... hit here pulling trees from the ground, shattering windows, 00:00:08.972 --> 00:00:12.052 taking the roofs off of homes. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:12.052 --> 00:00:14.290 Caitria O'Neill: That was me 00:00:14.290 --> 00:00:17.552 in front of our house in Monson, Massachusetts last June. 00:00:17.552 --> 00:00:20.852 After an EF3 tornado ripped straight through our town 00:00:20.852 --> 00:00:22.685 and took parts of our roof off, 00:00:22.685 --> 00:00:24.754 I decided to stay in Massachusetts 00:00:24.754 --> 00:00:26.521 instead of pursuing the master's program 00:00:26.521 --> 00:00:29.506 I had moved my boxes home that afternoon for. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:29.506 --> 00:00:32.490 Morgan O'Neill: So, on June 1st we weren't disaster experts, 00:00:32.490 --> 00:00:34.654 but on June 3rd we started faking it. 00:00:34.654 --> 00:00:36.888 This experience changed our lives. 00:00:36.888 --> 00:00:38.755 And now we're trying to change the experience. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:38.755 --> 00:00:41.129 CO: So tornadoes don't happen in Massachusetts. 00:00:41.129 --> 00:00:43.329 And I was cleverly standing in the front yard 00:00:43.329 --> 00:00:44.843 when one came over the hill. 00:00:44.843 --> 00:00:48.027 After a lamppost flew by, my family and I sprinted into the basement. 00:00:48.027 --> 00:00:51.078 Trees were thrown against the house, the windows exploded. 00:00:51.078 --> 00:00:52.760 When we finally got out the back door, 00:00:52.760 --> 00:00:55.144 transformers were burning in the street. NOTE Paragraph 00:00:55.144 --> 00:00:56.945 MO: So I was here in Boston. 00:00:56.945 --> 00:00:58.977 I'm a PhD student at MIT, 00:00:58.977 --> 00:01:01.093 and I happen to study atmospheric science. 00:01:01.093 --> 00:01:02.927 Actually it gets weirder. 00:01:02.927 --> 00:01:06.111 So I was in the museum of science at the time the tornado hit, 00:01:06.111 --> 00:01:08.227 playing with the tornado display. 00:01:08.227 --> 00:01:10.127 So I missed her call. 00:01:10.127 --> 00:01:12.127 So I get the call from Caitria, I hear the news, 00:01:12.127 --> 00:01:13.875 and I start tracking the radar online 00:01:13.875 --> 00:01:17.216 to call the family back when another supercell was forming in their area. 00:01:17.216 --> 00:01:20.014 And I drove home late that night with batteries and ice. 00:01:20.014 --> 00:01:22.381 We live across the street from an historic church 00:01:22.381 --> 00:01:24.897 that had lost its very iconic steeple in the storm. 00:01:24.897 --> 00:01:27.299 It had become a community gathering place overnight. 00:01:27.299 --> 00:01:30.231 The town hall and the police department had also suffered direct hits, 00:01:30.231 --> 00:01:33.397 and so people wanting to help or needing information 00:01:33.397 --> 00:01:34.502 went to the church. NOTE Paragraph 00:01:34.502 --> 00:01:37.145 CO: We walked up to the church because we heard that they had hot meals, 00:01:37.145 --> 00:01:39.112 but when we arrived we found problems. 00:01:39.112 --> 00:01:41.478 There were a couple large, sweaty men with chainsaws 00:01:41.478 --> 00:01:43.096 standing in the center of the church, 00:01:43.096 --> 00:01:44.713 but nobody knew where to send them 00:01:44.713 --> 00:01:46.680 because no one knew the extent of the damage yet. 00:01:46.680 --> 00:01:49.097 And as we watched, they became frustrated and left 00:01:49.097 --> 00:01:51.263 to go find somebody to help on their own. NOTE Paragraph 00:01:51.263 --> 00:01:52.532 MO: So we started organizing. 00:01:52.532 --> 00:01:55.679 Why? It had to be done. We found Pastor Bob 00:01:55.681 --> 00:01:57.765 and offered to give the response some infrastructure. 00:01:57.765 --> 00:02:01.065 And then armed with just two laptops and one AirCard, 00:02:01.065 --> 00:02:07.078 we built a recovery machine. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:07.078 --> 00:02:08.106 (Applause) NOTE Paragraph 00:02:08.106 --> 00:02:09.316 CO: That was a tornado, 00:02:09.316 --> 00:02:12.315 and everyone's heading to the church to drop things off and volunteer. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:12.315 --> 00:02:14.032 MO: Everyone's donating clothing. 00:02:14.032 --> 00:02:16.366 We should really inventory the donations that are piling up here. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:16.366 --> 00:02:19.148 CO: Yeah, and we need a hotline. Can you make a Google Voice number? NOTE Paragraph 00:02:19.148 --> 00:02:21.336 MO: Yeah, sure. And we need to tell people what not to bring. 00:02:21.336 --> 00:02:24.920 I'll make a Facebook account. Can you print fliers for the neighborhoods? NOTE Paragraph 00:02:24.920 --> 00:02:27.436 CO: Yeah, but we don't even know what houses are accepting help at this point. 00:02:27.436 --> 00:02:29.287 We need to canvas and send out volunteers. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:29.287 --> 00:02:30.989 MO: We need to tell people what not to bring. 00:02:30.989 --> 00:02:32.986 Hey, there's a news truck. I'll tell them. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:32.986 --> 00:02:35.092 CO: You got my number off the news? 00:02:35.092 --> 00:02:37.227 We don't need any more freezers. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:37.227 --> 00:02:40.366 MO: The insurance won't cover it? You need a crew to tar your roof? CO: Six packs of juice boxes arriving in one hour? 00:02:40.366 --> 00:02:42.190 Together: Someone get me Post-its! NOTE Paragraph 00:02:42.190 --> 00:02:43.035 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:02:43.035 --> 00:02:45.293 CO: And then the rest of the community figured out 00:02:45.293 --> 00:02:46.625 that we had answers. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:46.625 --> 00:02:48.759 MO: I can donate three water heaters, 00:02:48.759 --> 00:02:50.440 but someone needs to come pick them up. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:50.440 --> 00:02:51.960 CO: My car is in my living room. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:51.960 --> 00:02:54.941 MO: My boyscout troop would like to rebuild 12 mailboxes. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:54.941 --> 00:02:58.208 CO: The puppy's missing, and insurance just doesn't cover the chimneys. NOTE Paragraph 00:02:58.208 --> 00:03:01.407 MO: My church group of 50 would like housing and meals for a week 00:03:01.407 --> 00:03:02.858 while we repair properties. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:02.858 --> 00:03:05.093 CO: You sent me to that place on Washington Street yesterday, 00:03:05.093 --> 00:03:06.925 and now I'm covered in poison ivy. 00:03:06.925 --> 00:03:09.932 So this is what filled our days. 00:03:09.932 --> 00:03:12.279 We had to learn how to answer questions quickly 00:03:12.279 --> 00:03:14.547 and to solve problems in about a minute or less, 00:03:14.547 --> 00:03:16.898 because otherwise something more urgent would come up, 00:03:16.898 --> 00:03:18.247 and it just wouldn't get done. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:18.247 --> 00:03:20.630 MO: We didn't get our authority from the board of selectmen 00:03:20.630 --> 00:03:23.831 or the emergency management director or the United Way. 00:03:23.831 --> 00:03:26.730 We just started answering questions and making decisions 00:03:26.730 --> 00:03:29.230 because someone, anyone, had to. 00:03:29.230 --> 00:03:31.646 And why not me? I'm a campaign organizer. 00:03:31.646 --> 00:03:32.729 I'm good at Facebook. 00:03:32.729 --> 00:03:33.880 And there's two of me. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:33.880 --> 00:03:35.080 (Laughter) NOTE Paragraph 00:03:35.080 --> 00:03:39.297 CO: The point is, if there's a flood or a fire or a hurricane, 00:03:39.297 --> 00:03:40.896 you, or somebody like you, 00:03:40.896 --> 00:03:42.929 are going to step up and start organizing things. 00:03:42.929 --> 00:03:45.598 The other point is that it is hard. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:45.598 --> 00:03:48.729 MO: Lying on the ground after another 17-hour day, 00:03:48.729 --> 00:03:50.312 Caitria and I would empty our pockets 00:03:50.312 --> 00:03:53.396 and try to place dozens of scraps of paper into context -- 00:03:53.396 --> 00:03:56.229 all bits of information that had to be remembered and matched 00:03:56.229 --> 00:03:57.480 in order to help someone. 00:03:57.480 --> 00:03:59.346 After another day and a shower at the shelter, 00:03:59.346 --> 00:04:01.797 we realized it shouldn't be this hard. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:01.797 --> 00:04:03.012 CO: In a country like ours 00:04:03.012 --> 00:04:04.612 where we breathe wi-fi, 00:04:04.612 --> 00:04:08.333 leveraging technology for a faster recovery should be a no-brainer. 00:04:08.333 --> 00:04:10.864 Systems like the ones that we were creating on the fly 00:04:10.864 --> 00:04:12.201 could exist ahead of time. 00:04:12.201 --> 00:04:13.853 And if some community member 00:04:13.853 --> 00:04:18.067 is in this organizing position in every area after every disaster, 00:04:18.067 --> 00:04:20.184 these tools should exist. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:20.184 --> 00:04:22.700 MO: So we decided to build them -- 00:04:22.700 --> 00:04:23.966 a recovery in a box, 00:04:23.966 --> 00:04:26.267 something that could be deployed after every disaster 00:04:26.267 --> 00:04:27.892 by any local organizer. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:27.892 --> 00:04:29.549 CO: I decided to stay in the country, 00:04:29.549 --> 00:04:31.250 give up the master's in Moscow 00:04:31.250 --> 00:04:33.517 and to work full-time to make this happen. 00:04:33.517 --> 00:04:35.017 In the course of the past year, 00:04:35.017 --> 00:04:38.500 we've become experts in the field of community-powered disaster recovery. 00:04:38.500 --> 00:04:40.717 And there are three main problems that we've observed 00:04:40.717 --> 00:04:43.608 with the way things work currently. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:43.608 --> 00:04:46.308 MO: The tools. Large aid organizations are exceptional 00:04:46.308 --> 00:04:49.083 at bringing massive resources to bear after a disaster, 00:04:49.083 --> 00:04:51.734 but they often fulfill very specific missions 00:04:51.734 --> 00:04:52.984 and then they leave. 00:04:52.984 --> 00:04:54.984 This leaves local residents to deal 00:04:54.984 --> 00:04:58.487 with the thousands of spontaneous volunteers, thousands of donations, 00:04:58.487 --> 00:05:00.292 and all with no training and no tools. 00:05:00.292 --> 00:05:03.192 So they use Post-its or Excel or Facebook. 00:05:03.192 --> 00:05:06.426 But none of these tools allow you to value high-priority information 00:05:06.426 --> 00:05:09.091 amidst all of the photos and well wishes. NOTE Paragraph 00:05:09.091 --> 00:05:10.357 CO: The timing. 00:05:10.357 --> 00:05:13.841 Disaster relief is essentially a backwards political campaign. 00:05:13.841 --> 00:05:15.073 In a political campaign, 00:05:15.073 --> 00:05:18.741 you start with no interest and no capacity to turn that into action. 00:05:18.741 --> 00:05:20.109 You build both gradually 00:05:20.109 --> 00:05:23.060 until a moment of peak mobilization at the time of the election. 00:05:23.060 --> 00:05:25.725 In a disaster, however, you start with all of the interest 00:05:25.725 --> 00:05:27.408 and none of the capacity. 00:05:27.408 --> 00:05:29.842 And you've only got about seven days to capture 00:05:29.842 --> 00:05:33.141 50 percent of all of the Web searches that will ever be made 00:05:33.141 --> 00:05:34.408 to help your area. 00:05:34.408 --> 00:05:35.842 Then some sporting event happens, 00:05:35.842 --> 00:05:38.674 and you've got only the resources that you've collected thus far 00:05:38.674 --> 00:05:42.121 to meet the next five years of recovery needs. 00:05:42.121 --> 00:05:44.309 This is the slide for Katrina. 00:05:44.309 --> 00:05:46.758 This is the curve for Joplin. 00:05:46.758 --> 00:05:50.317 And this is the curve for the Dallas tornadoes in April 00:05:50.317 --> 00:05:51.691 where we deployed software. 00:05:51.691 --> 00:05:53.107 There's a gap here. 00:05:53.107 --> 00:05:56.808 Affected households have to wait for the insurance adjuster to visit 00:05:56.808 --> 00:05:59.208 before they can start accepting help on their properties. 00:05:59.208 --> 00:06:03.196 And you've only got about four days of interest in Dallas. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:03.196 --> 00:06:04.910 MO: Data. 00:06:04.910 --> 00:06:07.042 Data is inherently unsexy, 00:06:07.042 --> 00:06:08.610 but it can jumpstart an area's recovery. 00:06:08.610 --> 00:06:10.126 FEMA and the state 00:06:10.126 --> 00:06:13.542 will pay 85 percent of the cost of a federally declared disaster, 00:06:13.542 --> 00:06:16.259 leaving the town to pay last 15 percent of the bill. 00:06:16.259 --> 00:06:17.942 Now that expense can be huge, 00:06:17.942 --> 00:06:21.876 but if the town can mobilize X amount of volunteers for Y hours, 00:06:21.876 --> 00:06:24.259 the dollar value of that labor used 00:06:24.259 --> 00:06:26.460 goes toward the town's contribution. 00:06:26.460 --> 00:06:28.010 But who knows that? 00:06:28.010 --> 00:06:30.743 Now try to imagine the sinking feeling you get 00:06:30.743 --> 00:06:34.626 when you've just sent out 2,000 volunteers and you can't prove it. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:34.626 --> 00:06:37.642 CO: These are three problems with a common solution. 00:06:37.642 --> 00:06:40.629 If we can get the right tools at the right time 00:06:40.629 --> 00:06:42.913 to the people who will inevitably step up 00:06:42.913 --> 00:06:44.598 and start putting their communities back together, 00:06:44.598 --> 00:06:47.449 we can create new standards in disaster recovery. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:47.449 --> 00:06:50.731 MO: We needed canvasing tools, donations databasing, 00:06:50.731 --> 00:06:53.829 needs reporting, remote volunteer access, 00:06:53.829 --> 00:06:55.964 all in an easy-to-use website. NOTE Paragraph 00:06:55.964 --> 00:06:57.230 CO: And we needed help. 00:06:57.230 --> 00:07:00.130 Alvin, our software engineer and cofounder, has built these tools. 00:07:00.130 --> 00:07:01.814 Chris and Bill have volunteered their time 00:07:01.814 --> 00:07:04.465 to use operations and partnerships. 00:07:04.465 --> 00:07:07.814 And we've been flying into disaster areas since this past January, 00:07:07.814 --> 00:07:10.179 setting up software, training residents 00:07:10.179 --> 00:07:14.597 and licensing the software to areas that are preparing for disasters. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:14.597 --> 00:07:17.996 MO: One of our first launches was after the Dallas tornadoes this past April. 00:07:17.996 --> 00:07:21.648 We flew into a town that had a static outdated website 00:07:21.648 --> 00:07:24.131 and a frenetic Facebook feed trying to structure the response. 00:07:24.131 --> 00:07:25.430 And we launched our platform. 00:07:25.430 --> 00:07:27.615 All of the interest came in the first four days, 00:07:27.615 --> 00:07:29.299 but by the time they lost the news cycle, 00:07:29.299 --> 00:07:30.931 that's when the needs came in, 00:07:30.931 --> 00:07:33.996 yet they had this massive resource of what people were able to give 00:07:33.996 --> 00:07:36.148 and they've been able to meet the needs of their residents. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:36.148 --> 00:07:38.297 CO: So it's working, but it could be better. 00:07:38.297 --> 00:07:42.197 Emergency preparedness is a big deal in disaster recovery 00:07:42.197 --> 00:07:44.745 because it makes towns safer and more resilient. 00:07:44.745 --> 00:07:47.212 Imagine if we could have these systems ready to go in a place 00:07:47.212 --> 00:07:49.296 before a disaster. 00:07:49.296 --> 00:07:51.629 So that's what we're working on. 00:07:51.629 --> 00:07:53.580 We're working on getting the software to places 00:07:53.580 --> 00:07:55.745 so people expect it, so people know how to use it 00:07:55.745 --> 00:07:57.362 and so it can be filled ahead of time 00:07:57.362 --> 00:07:59.980 with that microinformation that drives recovery. NOTE Paragraph 00:07:59.980 --> 00:08:01.482 MO: It's not rocket science. 00:08:01.482 --> 00:08:04.181 These tools are obvious and people want them. 00:08:04.181 --> 00:08:06.530 In our hometown, we trained a half-dozen residents 00:08:06.530 --> 00:08:08.513 to run these Web tools on their own. 00:08:08.513 --> 00:08:10.797 Because Caitria and I live here in Boston. 00:08:10.797 --> 00:08:12.147 They took to it immediately, 00:08:12.147 --> 00:08:13.795 and now they are forces of nature. 00:08:13.795 --> 00:08:16.514 There are over three volunteer groups working almost every day, 00:08:16.514 --> 00:08:18.731 and have been since June 1st of last year, 00:08:18.731 --> 00:08:21.997 to make sure that these residents get what they need and get back in their homes. 00:08:21.997 --> 00:08:24.830 They have hotlines and spreadsheets and data. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:24.830 --> 00:08:26.397 CO: And that makes a difference. 00:08:26.397 --> 00:08:29.147 June 1st this year marked the one-year anniversary 00:08:29.147 --> 00:08:30.696 of the Monson tornado. 00:08:30.696 --> 00:08:33.945 And our community's never been more connected or more empowered. 00:08:33.945 --> 00:08:35.963 We've been able to see the same transformation 00:08:35.963 --> 00:08:38.014 in Texas and in Alabama. 00:08:38.014 --> 00:08:40.180 Because it doesn't take Harvard or MIT 00:08:40.180 --> 00:08:42.579 to fly in and fix problems after a disaster, 00:08:42.579 --> 00:08:43.847 it takes a local. 00:08:43.847 --> 00:08:46.430 No matter how good an aid organization is at what they do, 00:08:46.430 --> 00:08:48.096 they eventually have to go home. 00:08:48.096 --> 00:08:50.079 But if you give locals the tools, 00:08:50.079 --> 00:08:53.212 if you show them what they can do to recover, 00:08:53.212 --> 00:08:56.946 they become experts. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:56.946 --> 00:08:59.528 (Applause) MO: All right. Let's go. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:59.533 --> 00:09:01.645 (Applause)