GSN Magazine June 2016 Digital Edition
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Convy on Net-Centric Security<br />
New Mobile Technology for<br />
Disaster Response<br />
By John Convy, Convy Associates, Washington, DC<br />
When disasters and conflicts take<br />
place, communications and power<br />
infrastructure can be severely damaged<br />
or rendered nonexistent, and<br />
must be restored as vital components<br />
for response and recovery. Government,<br />
aid agencies,<br />
and NGOs are increasingly<br />
depending on<br />
digital communications<br />
to deliver food,<br />
shelter, medical aid,<br />
and conduct searches<br />
and rescues.<br />
Surprisingly, some<br />
people displaced by disasters<br />
are initially more concerned<br />
with communicating with friends<br />
and family than receiving food or<br />
water. In our ultra-connected world,<br />
mobile connectivity has become a<br />
basic and essential human need.<br />
When disasters bring down critical<br />
infrastructure, first responders<br />
now rely on many new forms of<br />
mobile technology. Mobile seems to<br />
improve and advance on a monthly<br />
basis, along with a fast-growing demand<br />
for instant and accurate information<br />
for billions of people worldwide.<br />
The mobile industry is responding<br />
with a dramatic surge in new tools<br />
and inventions.<br />
One of these that I happened upon<br />
recently is a text messaging, contacts,<br />
calendaring, and task management<br />
With Gyst, an incident commander, first<br />
responder, or disaster service worker can<br />
communicate, collaborate, and coordinate<br />
with anyone, anywhere in the world who<br />
can receive SMS or MMS messages.<br />
app from a startup in Austin, Texas,<br />
founded by former Dell executive<br />
Bruce Kornfeld. Named Gyst, Inc.<br />
(gystapp.com), the company is funded<br />
by angel investors, including former<br />
BlackBerry board member Jim<br />
Estill.<br />
Kornfeld told me that<br />
Gyst is designed to be a<br />
powerful productivity tool<br />
for professional and organizational<br />
communications<br />
that he hopes will<br />
revolutionize in-the-field<br />
emergency and disaster<br />
26<br />
Bruce Kornfeld<br />
response, and make disaster service<br />
workers better connected and more<br />
effective.<br />
“There is a growing need for specialized<br />
text applications to help in<br />
disaster response situations, because<br />
it’s common for wireless<br />
voice communications<br />
to be down, but<br />
for data to still be up,”<br />
Kornfeld explained.<br />
“If voice calls are impossible,<br />
as long as an<br />
SMS or cellular data<br />
connection is available,<br />
Gyst can function<br />
optimally.”<br />
At its core, Gyst is a productivity<br />
and organizational tool. But, because<br />
of its unique capabilities, I think it<br />
may find a place among disaster response<br />
organizations, by positioning<br />
itself as a useful means of<br />
fast, global communications<br />
for both agencies and<br />
individual users.<br />
“Gyst has the ability to<br />
operate anywhere in the<br />
world, and connect with<br />
any user who has a cellular<br />
data connection. It helps