MANILA, Philippines and SAN FRANCISCO, May 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Open Garden and Ateneo de Manila announce today they are joining forces on the deployment of FireChat Alerts, a breakthrough technology that will increase community resilience in the Philippines.
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FireChat Alerts is the first service that leverages peer-to-peer mobile mesh networking technology for disaster preparedness. It acts as a resilient and large-scale broadcasting system that allows governments and organisations to reach people on their smartphones and deliver text and visual information including early warning, emergency and health advisories, as well as weather and traffic information. It works even when cellular networks and Internet access are not available.
The Ateneo Social Computing Science Laboratory, Department of Information Systems and Computer Science led by Maria Regina E. Estuar, Ph.D, is the home of eBayanihan disaster management system. The laboratory is recognised for its pioneering work with several private and government entities on developing new technology for disaster risk reduction.
"We're very keen to understand and apply the potential of new technologies for practical purposes in the Philippines," said Marlene M. De Leon, Ph.D, Chairperson of the Department of Information Systems and Computer Science at the Ateneo de Manila University. "The ability to create a new type of resilient mobile network could have far-reaching implications and benefits for emergency communications and disaster prevention."
"The Philippines are widely recognised as a forward-thinking nation in terms of leveraging technology for disaster preparedness," said Marina Azcarate, Head of Global Marketing at Open Garden. "We are honored to partner with Ateneo de Manila, the leading research university in the nation."
For more information about Ateneo de Manila, please visit www.ateneo.edu.
For more information about FireChat Alerts, please visit www.opengarden.com/firechat-alerts or watch this short video.
About Ateneo de Manila
Ateneo de Manila is a leading private research university founded in 1859. It offers programs from elementary to graduate schools. It currently hosts more than 20,000 students across four campuses.
Aside from teaching and research, Ateneo de Manila also engages in social outreach. The Department of Education has recognised several Centers of Excellence within Ateneo de Manila, including Information Technology. The Ateneo de Manila University also hosts a research hub in disaster risk reduction, preparedness and management, the Ateneo Sustainability Institute and the Ateneo Innovation Center, a part the School of Science & Engineering.
About Open Garden & FireChat
Open Garden is a San Francisco-based startup dedicated to connecting the next 5 billion mobile devices with peer-to-peer connections. Open Garden is the creator of FireChat.
Often called the "people's network," FireChat is a free messaging app, available on iOS and Android devices. Built on revolutionary peer-to-peer mesh networking technology, FireChat allows people to communicate privately or publicly, with other people "offline" even if they cannot connect to the Internet or to a cellular phone network.
Launched in March 2014, FireChat has reached the top 10 among social networking apps in 124 countries around the world. In 2015, FireChat received an Innovation Award at SXSW, the Boldness in Business Award by the Financial Times, and the Tech4Resilience Award by Making All Voices Count.
For more information about how FireChat works, please watch this short video.
Press Contacts: press@opengarden.com
