A Scenario-Based and Game-Based Geographical Information System (GIS) Approach for Earthquake Disaster Simulation and Crisis Mitigation

Abstract

The current research study aims to introduce the experience of implementing a serious game using the concept of game-based GIS approach for crisis management during earthquake disasters. In this study, we aimed to develop a game-based GIS approach and examine its efficiency for simulating earthquake rescue management in Tabriz city. In designing this game, typical scenario-based, game-based GIS methods and techniques were employed, and the proposed approach was applied to crisis management. To achieve this goal, we addressed the technical details regarding the development and implementation of the scenario-based and game-based GIS approach. Based on the results, game-based simulations can be considered an efficient approach for disaster simulation and can improve the skills of rescue teams. The outcome of this application is an intellectual game that almost all users at any age can play, and the game can challenge their ability to solve critical issues. The results are critical for explaining the effectiveness of rescue teams and crisis management facilities. As we intended to develop an approach for the simulation of earthquake disasters and emergency responses, we therefore conclude that the results of this study can also be employed to improve the skills of rescue teams and citizens for dealing with crises resulting from earthquake disasters. As a result of this research, the developed tool is published, together with this paper, as an open source and can be employed for any scenario-based analysis in other case studies. By presenting a-state-of-the-art approach, the results of this research study can provide significant contribution to further the development of GIScience and its applications for disaster and risk mitigation and management.

A Multiple Geospatial Approach for Intangible Cultural Heritage Tourism Potentiality Mapping in Iran

“…Iran, with its enormous cultural heritage, customs, events, and traditions, is known as a critical country for domestic tourism [36,37]. The ICH capability of Iran is based on a wide range of national and local attractions, including ancient and historical sites, natural landscapes, museums, religious shrines and holy sites, rituals and customs, indigenous arts and handicrafts, traditional foods and drinks, habitation installations and entertainment, transportation facilities, and so on [1,38,39]. Nowadays, with the aim of developing and expanding ICH tourism, the country has a significant strategic opportunity in the methodical growth of inbound tourism [40].…”

“…As this table also shows, each group also includes subcategories that were all collected and developed as a spatial dataset for the modeling task in this study. The selection of relevant criteria was based on previous related studies [7,9,12,13,25,[33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50] and discussions with experts and stakeholders. For this goal, initial data from the Iranian Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism (IMC-HHT) were obtained.…”

“…There are several efficient spatial aggregation methods, such as weighted overlay, fuzzy overlay, weighted sum, weighted liner combination, and ordered weighted average (OWA). Previous studies applied these methods and aimed to compare the efficiency of different aggregation methods, as in [38]. Many studies acknowledged the efficiency of the OWA for spatial aggregation and based on the literature review and suggestions from the previous studies, we used the OWA as an aggregation function to create the ITPA map, as in [4,55].…”