DIONISO

DIONISO(Innovative Seismic Home Automation Technologies for the Safety of Buildings and Facilities) projectlaunched in 2012 and completed in 2022, had as its overall objective the definition of innovative interdisciplinary industrial research pathways, aimed at emergency and rescue management, through the realization of specific home automation, wearable and robotic devices, combining security and privacy.

The project

For CIMA Research Foundation, as a consultant to project partner EUCENTRE Foundation EUCENTRE Foundation, the objective was to study regulatory innovations regarding emergency planning for civil protection risk in general and earthquake risk in particular; to reflect on the participatory approach of local communities in building systems for risk prevention and management. Finally, we wanted to understand the critical legal issues related to the use of home automation devices in the home environment: accountability, privacy, transparency and inclusion.

Results

  • Review of materials and results provided by University of Cagliari/Cinsa (sub D3.7.1.1) and TerraSafeiLab (sub D3.7.2.2/.3.4);
  • Reconnaissance of Italian participatory procedures in civil protection planning;
  • Examination of the effectiveness of participatory procedures in terms of risk awareness and activation and adherence to individual and collective protection measures; identification of improvement actions;
  • Analysis of the legal criticalities related to the introduction of home automation devices of the kind referred to in the project into the home environment;
  • Description of a participatory process model that can eliminate-or at least mitigate-the critical issues highlighted in the analysis under sub-paragraph d, with evidence of Indicators of Effectiveness.

CIMA Research Foundation’s contribution

As a consultant to the project, CIMA Research Foundation conducted a study on regulatory innovations regarding emergency planning for civil protection risks, with a specific focus on earthquake risk. The study provided a model for local communities’ participatory approach to systems for risk prevention and management, taking into consideration the critical legal issues related to the use of the devices used within the project in domestic environments.

The model contained in the study was fed by the work carried out by CINSA of the University of Cagliari on “Legal issues related to the concrete realization of the right to safety, in the Italian and European regulatory context.”

The model has enabled the formation of an informed consent of citizens toward DIONISO home automation devices and the development of a greater sensitivity and protective culture toward the seismic safety of buildings. Globally, it also facilitates governance aimed at prevention, safety and security with respect to seismic risk.