Why do we need an emoji for earthquakes? |
Emojis are now in common-use across the world on a variety of technology devices. Some research suggests that emojis are now the world's fastest-developing language.
With the world's population growing, and more people living in areas that are susceptible to natural disasters, these events can potentially affect many lives and vital infrastructure . We need to ensure that these events can be communicated easily. Of all natural hazards, the largest number of people are exposed to earthquakes - that's 2.5 billion people living worldwide. On average, hundreds of millions of people worldwide feel earthquakes every year. Currently, although there is an emoji for other natural disasters and weather events (🌋🌀🌊🌪️), there is no universal emoji for earthquakes and ground shaking. With recent technological developments in social media-based earthquake detection and earthquake early warning systems, having a concise, internationally-universal way of describing an earthquake that breaks language barriers could have important implications for mitigating their hazards, and maybe even saving lives. The global search for #emojiquake begins. |
What will make a good earthquake emoji?We are looking for an emoji that ticks most of the following boxes:
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How does the competition work?
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How will the emoji become internationally recognised?
Once the winning emoji has been selected, the steering committee will work with the winning designer to submit a full emoji proposal to be added to the unicode emoji selection group.
The emoji will have a good chance to getting accepted by Unicode due to the case for its anticipated use in improving public safety. |
How can I nominate my earthquake emoji design?
Once you have created your emoji design and you are happy with it, please email it to emojiquake@gmail.com.
Please ensure that your image conforms to the following guidelines:
If you are considering designing and emoji, and you would like some inspiration, you can view our current submissions by clicking here |
Who is on the earthquake emojii steering group?
- Dr. Stephen Hicks - Seismologist - University of Southampton, UK (email: s.hicks@soton.ac.uk)
- Dr. Zoë Mildon - Earthquake geologist - University of Plymouth, UK
- Dr. Chris Rowan - Geologist - Kent State University, US
- Dr. Remy Bossu - Secretary-General - European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre
- Dr. Jean-Paul Ampuero - Earthquake Seismologist, GEOAZUR, France
- Dr. María Martínez Cruz - Volcanologist - Volcano and Earthquake Observatory, National University of Costa Rica
- Elizabeth Angell - Earthquake Anthropologist - Columbia University
- Dr. Sara McBride - Earthquake Communication Scientist - United States Geological Survey.
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