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GCRISociety and Human DevelopmentIn development
Innovation and practical technology

Innovation and practical technology

Technology relevant to society and human development and information and public trust: what it can do, the constraints it faces and its consequences for people and institutions.

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Publisher
The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation
Field
Society and human development, Information and public trust
Status
In development
Service level
R0: information and enquiries

Innovation pipeline

Society and human development · Stage gates

Gate review in 8 dGCRI · Society and Human Development

By readiness level

TRL 2 to 301
Social cohesion surveyconcept tested
TRL 4 to 502
Education continuity planlab validation
Displacement trackinglab validation
TRL 6 to 701
Shock-responsive social…pilot with owner
Adoption review01
Research ethics frameworkowner decides

Readiness criteria

pilot vs gate

Evidence of effect79 · req 70Safeguards74 · req 80Operating cost known27 · req 60Owner commitment89 · req 75

Pilot issues

  1. I-1Data licence for pilot siteTo check5 d
  2. I-2Observer protocol signedDone5 d

Society and Human Development · Innovation pipelineInnovation pipeline, in outline: domain structure with placeholder names and illustrative values, not a record.

01In brief

The short answer.

Innovation at Society and Human Development is the evaluation of technology relevant to society and human development: the need it addresses, the evidence behind it, its constraints and its consequences for safety, rights and the environment. Promising work can be built in Nexus Foundry and tested in Nexus Universe; nothing is called proven before test and review, and no product is endorsed.

02Canvas

Draft to published version.

Canvas · draft to published versionDesign, not a record
Innovation and practical technology: an innovation through readiness gatesAn idea is tested as a concept, validated in the lab, piloted with an owner under safeguards and reviewed for adoption; each gate asks for evidence of effect, safety and cost before the next stage. Design of the process, not a record of a run.

Fig.How a finding is reviewed before it is published. Design, not a record.

03Geography

People and exposure in Latin America and the Caribbean.

For innovation and practical technology, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on population density and true-colour imagery, framed on Latin America and the Caribbean; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.

The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.

Layers 2

People and exposure, for this page

Latest available

NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth

Loading the latest NASA imagery.

Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.

For innovation and practical technology, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on population density and true-colour imagery, framed on Latin America and the Caribbean; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place; claim ceiling INTEGRATED.

Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Blue Marble · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Natural Earth · Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2ASources and licences

  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University. 2018. Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11. NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). CC BY 4.0
  • VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • MODIS land products (vegetation indices, gross primary production, land cover), NASA LP DAAC and LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • VIIRS Black Marble night-time lights, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; distributed by the NASA Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive and Distribution System (LAADS DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
  • © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via NASA GIBS (coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). ODbL
  • Blue Marble, NASA Earth Observatory; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Context on the globe and flat map: coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names from NASA GIBS reference layers (OpenStreetMap data, ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors); Blue Marble imagery as an optional base; 3D terrain and the elevation read-out from the ASTER GDEM elevation colour index (5 m to 200 m classes, exaggerated for legibility). Boundaries are drawn as published and imply no position on any territory.
  • Globe: MapLibre GL JS 6.9.1, BSD-3-Clause, © MapLibre contributors.
  • Observed (EO): Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2A (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026), Microsoft Planetary Computer
  • Optional layers (35 sources in the layer list: live, forecast, observed and context) print their provider credit on the map and here when switched on; forecasts are model output and derived indices are estimates.

Layers and dates

  • Population density, 2020: Population: CIESIN, Columbia University, Gridded Population of the World v4.11 (2018), NASA SEDAC, CC BY 4.0 · static
  • True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026
  • Land surface temperature, day, 8-day composite: VIIRS NOAA-20 Level 3, 8-day, NASA LANCE · 14 Sep 2026
  • Land cover type (IGBP), yearly: MODIS Terra and Aqua land cover (MCD12Q1), NASA LP DAAC · 2024
  • Flood water, 3-day composite: VIIRS Global Flood Product, NASA LANCE · 14 Oct 2026
  • Night-time lights, daily: VIIRS Black Marble (VNP46A2), NASA LAADS DAAC · 12 Oct 2026

04Approach

Evaluate before adopting.

  1. 01

    Need

    Which problem does the technology address, and for whom?

  2. 02

    Evidence

    What has been demonstrated, under what conditions, and what remains untested?

  3. 03

    Constraints

    Cost, skills, infrastructure, data and governance requirements.

  4. 04

    Consequences

    Effects on safety, rights, equity and the environment.

05Technologies under assessment

What could change human development practice, and what it still has to show.

TechnologyWhat it could changeWhat remains to be shown
Mobile data for displacement trackingFaster estimatesPrivacy, coverage
Shock-responsive registriesFaster supportInclusion errors
06Build and test

From idea to tested capability.

Promising work can be built in Nexus Foundry and tested under controlled conditions through Nexus Universe. No technology is described as proven before it has been tested and reviewed.

07Key terms

Terms used on this page.

Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.

TermDefinition
Technology readiness levelA scale from basic principles to proven operation that describes how mature a technology is.
Responsible innovationAnticipating and governing the effects of new technology together with society.
TestbedA controlled setting, from a lab rig to a field site or sandbox, for trying a technology before it meets real conditions of use.
Human securityFreedom from fear, freedom from want and freedom to live in dignity, as set out by the UN General Assembly.
08Sources

Where this page's references lead.

The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.

09Questions

Questions and answers.

Does the platform endorse products?
No. It evaluates technologies and publishes what it finds, with limits. It does not endorse, certify or recommend products or vendors.
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