The Social Science Extreme Events Research (SSEER) web map is an initiative of the CONVERGE project headquartered at the Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado Boulder. The map is free to access.
The map highlights the location of SSEER researchers by geographic location and includes information about them, including their organizational affiliations and job titles. Future versions of this map will allow users to view researchers’ disciplinary foci, methodological expertise, the types of hazards and disasters they study, the events they have researched, and other information. The map is designed to serve as a resource for connecting researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to advance ethically-grounded disaster research and move it into action. When disaster strikes, the map can also be invaluable in identifying locally-affected researchers to ensure that they are recognized and included in post-disaster research efforts.
While this is not yet a complete census of the global social science hazards and disaster research community, it represents a first attempt to map the geographic location of researchers and—as additional layers are added—highlight their extraordinary range of skills and disciplinary expertise. If you are a social or behavioral scientist who studies hazards and disasters and are interested in joining the SSEER network, please complete the 7-minute sign-up survey. The map will be updated regularly, and the associated census of social scientists will be released annually.
SSEER is a National Science Foundation-supported network for social science hazards and disaster researchers. The purpose of SSEER is to identify and connect social science researchers to one another, to interdisciplinary teams, and to communities at risk to and affected by hazards and disasters. For additional information, please contact Lori Peek, Principal Investigator.