Sitting between two water reclamation sites, Chatham in Chicago's South Side is prone to significant flooding. As climate change intensifies, the neighborhood faces increased challenges, having more National Flood Insurance Program claims than all of Cook County.
Efforts are underway by scientists and citizens to address this issue. Kelly Wagman, a Ph.D. student at the University of Chicago’s Department of Computer Science, is developing a climate app to improve communication between the community and scientists.
This initiative is part of the Community Research on Climate and Urban Science (CROCUS) project led by Argonne National Laboratory, with $25 million funding from the U.S. Department of Energy. The goal is to study microclimates and urban flooding in areas like Chatham.
Working with local groups such as the Greater Chatham Initiative, scientists aim to understand community-specific solutions but face communication barriers. The Amyoli Internet Research Lab seeks to bridge this gap.
Wagman and undergraduates Kanchan Naik and Madison Vanderbilt created several app mock-ups based on feedback from residents during discussions with scientists. Residents selected their preferred design during workshops.
“What came out of that is a flood reporting tool where residents can report basement or street flooding that will show up on a map that other people can see in the community,” Wagman explained. “This will provide the community with a way to have a local data set about flooding and share real-time updates to 311 or their Aldermen.”
The app also benefits scientists who, with consent, can use anonymous data for research purposes. This data complements scientific measurements for more accurate models and AI simulations.
“One of the tensions I’ve noticed is that science likes to have global, generalizable outputs, whereas communities are looking for very localized, direct benefit,” Wagman noted. “The scientists have worked very hard to engage with the community, and the community has been really great about also engaging with the scientists.”
Residents expressed interest in educational resources about how their data contributes to scientific research. Wagman plans to include research results in the app for better awareness.
“It’s important to note that, especially when working with a community partner, you don’t want to just drop in and then leave,” Wagman stated. “We’ve had discussions from the beginning to inform them that I’m going to graduate... If the community is interested in keeping it running, we’ll make sure to figure out a sustainable strategy.”
Funding for this project comes from UChicago Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation and a UChicago Big Ideas Generator seed grant.