Ridvan Bilgin – Innovative Technology and Disaster Management Approaches

About Rıdvan Bilgin

Interdisciplinary professional bridging disaster management and information technologies

Rıdvan Bilgin is an interdisciplinary professional who bridges disaster management and information technologies, with more than 25 years of software development experience and nearly 15 years of active field operations. He combines his academic background in Computer Engineering and Economics with the experience he has gained at AFAD in disaster education, disaster management, project management and disaster planning. Bilgin focuses on developing scalable digital solutions that support data-driven decision-making mechanisms during crises.

His work sits at the intersection of field operations, public institutions and technology, bringing together practical needs from the ground with modern software architectures and international disaster risk management frameworks.

Field Experience & Operational Role

Since 2010, Rıdvan Bilgin has served within AFAD in various disaster and emergency operations at national and international level. His responsibilities have covered both front-line search and rescue activities and coordination roles in multi-agency environments.

Key disaster operations in which he has actively participated include:

• 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş Earthquakes (“Disaster of the Century”): Involved in search and rescue and coordination processes, contributing to the development and use of digital tools that supported real-time coordination of teams on the ground.
• Libya – Derna Floods (2023): Supported international coordination efforts and played an active role in reporting and information management processes.
• Other Major Incidents: Took part in operational coordination units and field team management during large-scale events such as the İzmir Earthquake (2020), Western Black Sea floods (2021) and various wildfire responses.

These experiences allow Bilgin to approach disaster management not only from a theoretical or purely technical perspective, but also from the vantage point of real field constraints, human factors and operational realities. As a result, the digital solutions he works on are designed to be directly applicable, user-centric and aligned with multi-agency coordination principles commonly used in international disaster response systems.

Digital Transformation, Software & Disaster Technologies

Starting his career as a software developer in the late 1990s, Rıdvan Bilgin has built deep technical expertise in Python, Django, PHP, JavaScript, React, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Linux-based system administration, web performance and SEO. Over time, he has channelled this technical background into disaster management and public-sector information systems, with a particular focus on the digital transformation of disaster risk reduction and response processes.

Drawing on his field experience, Bilgin has contributed to the design and development of disaster/crisis coordination software that supports:

• Tracking team location, assignment and status information in a structured and reliable way.
• More systematic management of response workflows, from deployment to demobilisation.
• Enhancing situational awareness for decision-makers through better data organisation and reporting.

In addition, he has served as the system lead for the province-wide migration to PARDUS (the national Linux distribution) in Bursa, contributing to the adoption of open-source, secure and sustainable infrastructure within public institutions.

Scientific, Academic & Project-Based Work

Rıdvan Bilgin is also involved in research and project work that brings together disaster management and information technologies. Notable activities include:

• TÜBİTAK 1001 Project: Contributing to studies that develop deep learning-based impact maps from satellite, UAV and drone imagery after earthquakes, helping to make AI-based analyses more realistic and actionable through integration with field knowledge.
• EU-Funded Initiatives: Taking part in coordination and implementation processes in Erasmus+, UCPM and Horizon projects aimed at strengthening disaster management capacity and fostering international cooperation.

Through these engagements, Bilgin maintains a close connection with both public institutions and the academic community, adopting an approach that brings together practical implementation and conceptual frameworks in disaster risk management.

Education, Training & Capacity Development

Rıdvan Bilgin holds bachelor’s degrees in Computer Engineering and Economics. He complements his technical profile with continuous learning in disaster education, project management, communication and leadership.

At Türkiye’s first Disaster Education Center, he has:

• Served as technical office lead for simulation and information systems.
• Supported disaster awareness and preparedness training activities.
• Managed the digital infrastructure used in exercises and training programmes.

He has participated in the JICA Disaster Education Center Capacity Development programme in Japan, which enabled him to observe international good practices on-site and adapt these insights to the Turkish disaster education system. In addition, he has completed various trainings in project management, Agile/Scrum approaches and international best practices, reinforcing a working style that values methodological robustness and transparent reporting.

Through this blend of field experience, technical expertise and training roles, Bilgin contributes to strengthening individual and institutional disaster preparedness and response capacity.

Competence Areas & Professional Interests

The main areas in which Rıdvan Bilgin works and maintains professional interest can be summarised as:

• Disaster and emergency management
• Search and rescue and field coordination
• Disaster information systems and coordination software
• Data-driven decision support systems

• Digital transformation and open-source solutions in public institutions
• Web technologies, performance and search visibility
• Artificial intelligence and generative AI applications, especially in disaster management and decision support processes

In these areas, he follows both evolving needs from the field and current trends in the IT world, aiming to produce solutions that are applicable, sustainable and compatible with institutional realities.

Vision

Rıdvan Bilgin recognises that disasters cannot be completely prevented; however, their impacts can be significantly reduced through sound planning, strong institutions, trained human resources and well-designed technological infrastructures. Guided by this understanding, he focuses on contributing to information systems that are:

• Grounded in real needs from the field,
• User-friendly and transparent,
• Supportive of cooperation and interoperability between institutions.

In short, Rıdvan Bilgin is a professional who seeks to transform his combined experience in software engineering and disaster management into concrete outcomes that contribute to protecting human life and strengthening institutional preparedness and response capacities.