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Twitter: @HarvardCGA
Website: https://gis.harvard.edu/event/cities-covid-mitigation-and-mapping-c2m2-symposium
Background
In late 2019, the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and resulting illness, COVID-19, in Wuhan, China rapidly expanded across the globe resulting in the declaration of a global pandemic by WHO in early 2020. A highly contagious disease, the rapid transmission of the virus resulted in immediate first-order impacts, which included increasing numbers of cases and case fatalities, stressing hospital capacity, and generating government responses in the form of border restrictions, lockdowns, quarantines, and public health guidance. The worldwide scale of second-order impacts soon became evident, including a global economic crisis impacting all aspects of society, exacerbating chronic conditions of food insecurity, limited access to health services, and loss of livelihoods. This pandemic crisis magnifies fundamental inequities that require measures to plan for and adapt to the longer-term impacts of COVID-19. These implications highlight the need to generate robust data to track the impacts of the virus, identify vulnerable populations, and monitor mitigation plans that integrate information from diverse sources and multiple scales.
About the Symposium
The Cities' COVID Mitigation Mapping (C2M2) program is an initiative of the Office of the Geographer and Global Issues at the U.S. Department of State that builds partnerships to enhance geospatial capacity, generate data, and share maps to support planning for mitigating COVID-19 second order impacts.
The C2M2 Program is a global set of urban projects with the goal to build capacity for enabling mitigation strategies through application of geospatial approaches (tools, training, and technology) to address the second-order impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This symposium focuses on mapping for mitigation of second-order impacts by exploring geospatial outcomes to inform data-driven decision making.
We will hear from experts who have been at the forefront of monitoring the pandemic, producing critical data on local economies, and providing an understanding critical needs for societies to adapt to the conditions imposed by pandemic strategies.
Over three consecutive days, we will focus on different themes that have emerged from the pandemic: migration, livelihoods, and gender. These three themes reflect the general topics of economy, society, and well-being. We will discuss how the pandemic influences information needs, data sharing, and requirements for long-lasting sustainable projects and partnerships. The fourth day will demonstrate hands-on tools developed by C2M2 partners and collaborators.