VisAdapt: A Visualization Tool to Support Climate Change Adaptation

Abstract

In this article we present the design and implementation of the web-based visualization tool VisAdapt, developed to support homeowners in the Nordic countries to assess anticipated climate change risks, which are expected to negatively impact their living conditions and to identify possible adaptation measures. The tool guides the user through a three-step visual exploration process to facilitate the exploration of risks and adaptive action, specifically modified to the users' location and house type. We have developed VisAdapt over the course of three years in close collaboration with domain experts and end users to ensure the validity of the included data and the efficiency of the visual interface. Although Nordic homeowners are the targeted end-users of VisAdapt, the insights gained from the development process and the lessons learned from the project could be valuable for researchers in a wide area of application domains. These include how to make global changes tangible on the local level, how to develop easily accessible flow of information and how to incorporate end-user evaluations in the development process.2

A spatial decision support system for enhancing resilience to floods: bridging resilience modelling and geovisualization techniques

“…The main target users are private landowners, but this tool can also be used by land-use planners and property managers. The tool, VisAdapt (Johansson et al, 2016), is intended as a guide on how to prepare for climate events liable to affect individual homes. It is very simple to use, so every citizen can employ it.…”

“…Since we wanted to analyse urban resilience at the community scale as finely as possible, we chose to analyse the IRIS (Islets Grouped for Statistical Information) scale which constitutes the basic building block for the dissemination of infra-communal data. Network accessibility Accessibility of networks by public road within a 100 m radius Municipality data Positive Opach and Rod, 2016;Lhomme et al, 2013) The concept of "open" and accessible science has been developed to strengthen dialogue and commitment among scientists and the local population around common issues and problems by creating a language and vocabulary understandable to everyone. While there are obvious limitations to open data -security, privacy and property protectionit is nonetheless accepted that using ideas and knowledge freely is a universal right.…”

“…While there are obvious limitations to open data -security, privacy and property protectionit is nonetheless accepted that using ideas and knowledge freely is a universal right. This is why we chose to use a data source whose access, use and downloading are free: not only to ensure the reproducibility (Jovanovic et al, 2018) of the methodology but also to participate in the education and communication of the concept of resilience.…”

Visualiseringens roller i klimatkommunikation – ett mottagarperspektiv

“…2015;Sheppard 2015). Geographic visualization (or geovisualization) makes use of geospatial data and maps to visually represent aspects of, for example, climate change (Lieske 2012;Bishop et al 2013;Bohman et al 2015;Neset et al 2016a), and information or data visualization more broadly concerns the visual representation of complex and large datasets of various kind (Kraak, 2003;Tominski et al 2011;Schneider 2012;Spence 2014;Newell et al 2016;Herring et al 2017;Johansson et al 2017).…”

Informaciono-komunikaciona tehnologija kao podrška upravljanju vanrednim situacijama

“…Pored alata za krizno mapiranje, razvijaju se i drugi web-alati za vizuelizaciju. Jedan od njih je alat 'VisAdapt', razvijen sa ciljem da pomogne korisnicima da procene kako će predviđene klimatske promene uticati na njihove domove i identifikovati moguće mere prilagođavanja (Johansson et al, 2017). Mada je u radu prikazan slučaj nordijskih zemalja, on je jasan signal kako će se u budućnosti (čak i za potrebe osiguravajućih kuća radi procene premije osiguranja) sve više razvijati ovakvi alati (Glaas et al, 2015).…”