"If there is someone from Pangandaran who has been impacted by the disaster, they can also find information on the location of the nearest shelter through this application," Zola explained his research result.

His research that was titled "MIGAMI (Mitigasi Bencana Tsunami) – An AR&VR Mobile Application using Artificial Intelligence for Tsunami Mitigation" won him the runner-up position at the ESRI Young Scholar Award 2022.

ESRI Young Scholar Award is an annual competition that was held by ESRI, a company that designed geographic information software such as ArcGIS and ArcMap. This year's competition was won by Muhammad Faisal Anshory, a student from Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering ITB.

Through this research, Zola wants to create a community that is resilient to tsunamis and similar disasters. To become resilient, the community needs to undergo regular training that can mimic real-world situations. "So, I hope that this application can be implemented to the public, starting from Pangandaran. If it is proven to be successful, its implementation can be expanded to the surrounding area," he said.

The application research coincides with Zola's thesis topic. His enthusiasm for this topic began with a story from his lecturer who explained that Pangandaran has a significant risk of a tsunami. Therefore, he intends to design a disaster mitigation application.

Zola said that he did not learn how to develop an application from lectures in college. "So, choosing this topic brings its own advantage, that is to gain new knowledge," he said. Zola also said that he felt pressured when he held a presentation using English in front of juries and experts during the final session. He also said that it was his first time holding an English presentation.

Zola expressed deep gratitude to his supervisor, Dr. rer. Nat. Wiwin Windupranata, who has helped him in his research. He also delivered a message that advises us to commit ourselves with all our heart and enthusiasm when we are striving for something.

"I believe that there are no inherently easy jobs in our life, everything requires struggle, even though what you are striving for may be considered ordinary by other people, but if you can commit your heart and spirit into it, it can turn into a process towards a great reward," he said in the of the interview.

Reporter: Kevin Agriva Ginting (Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering, 2020)
Translator: Favian Aldilla Rachmadi (Civil Engineering, 2019)