1. Crowdsourcing VGA
An Elegant Solution to a Thorny Problem
Ron Cannarella
DLNR/DOFAW
Ph (808) 587-4189
Ronald.J.Cannarella@hawaii.gov

2. Crowdsourcing VGA
An Elegant Solution to a Thorny Problem
Ron Cannarella
DLNR/DOFAW
Ph (808) 587-4189
Ronald.J.Cannarella@hawaii.gov

3. Crowdsourcing VGA
An Elegant Paradigm to Solving Some
Seemingly Easy Problems
And, More Importantly,
Making Some Headway on the
Ron Cannarella Wicked Problems.
DLNR/DOFAW
Ph (808) 587-4189
Ronald.J.Cannarella@hawaii.gov

4. But First, A Disclaimer
 I do not endorse any one vendor or
product.
 I am not authorized to speak on behalf
of my employer (the State of Hawaii),
our partners, or anyone else. Blame
me.
 Goal #1: Provide food for thought.
 Goal #2: Save Paradise without getting
killed or fired. I just wanna help.

5. Does Ron Have Street Cred?
 Been in the business of saving the
planet since I was 10.
 Been in government since I was 10.
 Been practicing GIS since ArcInfo 6
 Recently completed landscape level
planning process for Hawaii, SWARS.
 I only talk about things I know about
from experience.

6. And Yet
Every day I am amazed at how much I
don’t know.
One hour after my abstract was
accepted, it was already obsolete. Every
day since has been an epic journey of
discovery.
It began one afternoon . . .

7. After Several Years of Failures
Failure #1: Database Working Group
Spent Years Trying To Develop Unified
Biological Database. Gave Up in 1995.
Failure #2: Tried to Develop Custom app
for ArcPad so DOCARE Could Issue
Citations in the Field. Even Had a
Dedicated I.T. Guy. Gave Up in 2010.

8. After Several Years of Failures
Failure #3: Still Cannot Make Definitive
Map of Invasive Species “Hot Spots”
Failure #4: Lost Track of the “Heritage
Database”.
Failure #5: Still Trying to Develop
Protocol and Database for Tracking
“Act 82” Warning Signs.

9. But Also Many Successes
 SWARS very successful “First Try” to Map
All Forestry Issues, on All Lands, All
Ownerships, Including Urban Areas.
 Learned Where Our Data Gaps Were.
(Invasives!!!)
 Created New and Innovative Layers (the
“Urban Realm Layer”)
 New Partnerships (TNCH, LANDFIRE, ORMP
You Rock!)
 Developed First “Climate Change” Strategy

10. Then One Day . . .
ESRI Podcast SMCH
What
Crowdsourcing VGI Tara Next?
Coombs Pau
Hana
honolulu311
Burt Lum
Forest Frizzell
Code for
America
Royce Jones
Unconferenz
Ken Schmidt
Another Reality
Royce Jones CitySourced
Tara Coombs

11. And Now, Some Definitions
 Crowdsourcing
“A Distributed Problem-Solving Process
Where Tasks Are Outsourced to An
Undefined Public; The Crowd.
Source: Wikipedia, the Best Example of
Crowdsourcing.. My Condolences to the
Encyclopedia Britannica Family.

13. 3 Parts to the System
1. The Smart Phone App (free)
2. The Dispatch Console, 311 Center
(annual fee, based on population)
3. Website CitySourced.com (free)

14. And, drumroll…
 The annual fee is based on population.
 The City & County has 90% of the
population, cost approx $50K / year
 Data submitted from non-county lands
is not utilized. (Tossed, ignored?)
 For cities of 1 – 5 million people, annual
fee is $75K
 CitySourced would LOVE to cover the
whole State of Hawaii.

15. DLNR Has Very Concrete Needs
 Act 82 Signs must be inspected
regularly, and documented. Perfect for
Crowdsourcing
 Populations of rare species must be
monitored regularly
 DLNR routinely responds to reports of
dead birds, etc.
 DOCARE officers need to know where
they are when issuing a citation

16. Now, about that 311 part
(Disclosure: I don’t know hardly nothing about this from personal experience.)
1. That’s where the magic happens
2. Must have buy-in of 311 dispatch staff
3. Hearing rumblings of “my workload just
skyrocketed because of this thing”
4. Solution must be implemented
throughout the enterprise

17. Same Concerns at DLNR
1. Afraid of “too much data”
2. Afraid to raise public expectations
3. Can’t afford to provide every
employee with smart phone
4. General inertia to resist change
5. How can you trust data. What would
Anthony Weiner do?

18. Consider this
 This app cannot create a pothole or
graffiti. Your workload was always
there. Ignoring it only makes the
problem worse.
 Without data you cannot justify
increased resources. “Baby Food or
Bridges?” 1000 mothers with babies
will trump 3 engineers at the Leg.

19. What’s More
 The Feds are requiring the states to spatially
define their priority areas. SWARS was just
the beginning.
 Before SWARS, Hawaii’s Urban &
Community Forestry Program had no
concept of space. Now they have a
sophisticated canopy assessment. Next step,
real urban tree inventory. They will be able to
map priority areas, and opportunities for
collaboration.

20. And Then There Are The
“Wicked Problems”
Check out “Invasive Notes” blog,
ipetrus.blogspot.com
Brilliant author.
Wealth of Information.

21. “Characteristics of a Wicked Problem”
1. There is No Definitive Formulation of a Wicked
Problem.
2. Solutions to wicked problems are not true-or-false,
but better or worse.
3. There is no immediate or ultimate test of a
solution to a wicked problem.
4. Every solution to a wicked problem is a "one-shot
operation"; because there is no opportunity to
learn by trial and error.

22. “Characteristics of a Wicked Problem”
1. Wicked Problems do Not Have an Enumerable Set of
Potential Solutions.
2. Every Wicked Problem is Essentially Unique.
3. Every Wicked Problem Can be Considered to be a
Symptom of Another Problem.
4. Discrepancies in Defining a Wicked Problem Arise
Because the Definition Determines the Nature of the
Problem's Resolution.
5. The Planner Has NO RIGHT TO BE WRONG (Planners
are Liable for the Consequences of the Actions They
Generate).

23. Newly Added Criteria . . .
1. The Problem is Not Understood Until After the
Formulation of a Solution. Stakeholders Have
Radically Different World Views.
2. Constraints and Resources Needed Change Over
Time.
3. The Problem is Never “Solved”.
4. Group Efforts and Compromise Are The Only Way to
Come Close to “Solving” the Problem.
5. They Require Innovative/Creative Solutions.
6. Every Implemented Solution to a Wicked Problem Has
Unintended or Unanticipated Consequences.

24. Footnotes and Conclusions
 I do not advocate one vendor or technology
over another. But we need solutions to some
simple problems, now.
 Build on what is tested and successful.
 Success in Dealing with Wicked Problems
Requires Transparency, Facts and Courage.
 Collaborate, Negotiate or Separate. “Lead,
Follow or Get Out of the Way.”

25. IMHO
 We all have Simple Problems to Solve.
Act 82. Potholes. A Snake Sighting.
Reporting a Wildland Fire. We Can Do
This.
 People Love Hawaii. Especially the
visitors. Empower them to help keep
Paradise Paradise.
 We Have Our Wicked Problems; Hawaiian
Sovereignty, Traffic, Invasives, Sea Level
Rise, Ice/Batu/Tina/Meth, Homelessness.
Community Involvement is Essential.

26. Finally
 Imagine if everyone had a simple app on
their phone to report anything, and that
report instantly went to the right agency.
 Imagine what a partnership with the C&C, the
State, Feds, Counties, Military, School Kids,
NGO’s, Working Together Could Do for the
`aina. The Whole State as One?
 How Elegant a Solution; A Simple Free
Existing GIS App With a Powerful Engine.
Makapu`u Would Again Have A Million Eyes.