October 10th - International Day for Disaster Reduction

[Snowy Owl]

CHILDREN MUST BETTER EDUCATED TO MINIMIZE DISASTER RISKS ? UN
New York, Oct 9 2007 6:00PM
On the eve of the International Day for Disaster Reduction, a top United Nations official today stressed the necessity of improving children?s disaster preparedness and bolstering their safety in the classroom.

?Too many children are dying because they are not educated to live with disasters or because they are attending classes in unsafe buildings. Making schools safer must be the priority of every government in a disaster-prone country,? said S?lvano Brice?o, Director of the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (<"http://www.unisdr.org/">ISDR).

?Disaster risk reduction has no cost compared to the loss of a school full of children buried alive in a mudslide or crushed by a falling building.?

Speaking to reporters in New York, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes said that the Day is especially timely since ?more people are threatened by these natural hazards and disasters and extreme weather events than at any time in history.?

In the past three decades, the number of disasters triggered by natural hazards ? increasingly a result of climate change ? has tripled, he said.

?The number of people affected has roughly been doubling every ten years, and that?s a trend which is now accelerating, and this means in effect that five times more people are likely to be affected in any one year than a generation ago.?

The ISDR today issued a new publication ? entitled ?Towards a Culture of Prevention: Disaster Risk Reduction Begins at School? ? which gives 35 practical examples of how to improve school safety.

Good examples of projects to prepare children for natural hazards can be found in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mozambique, Costa Rica, France Madagascar, the Philippines, Iran, Tanzania and Peru, while India, Japan and Nepal?s safety initiatives can be replicated globally.
<script><!-- D(["mb","\u003cbr /\>?Teaching our children today is empowering the next generation to address disaster risk more effectively tomorrow,? Mr. Brice?o said.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>To introduce children to basic concepts in disaster risk reduction, the French, Spanish, Chinese and Russian language versions of ?Stop Disaster,? an online game, were launched today.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>In the game, which was released in English last year, players are presented with disaster scenarios and must reduce its risk with a given budget.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>ISDR?s efforts to educate children are part of its larger ?Disaster Risk Education Begins at School? campaign focusing on improving the safety of school buildings and integrating disaster risk reduction into school curricula.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>The campaign kicked off last year with the support of UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UN Children?s Fund (UNICEF), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the non-governmental organization (NGO) ActionAid International and other partners.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>To commemorate the Day, ISDR is convening a roundtable discussion in Geneva to identify how to build on the campaign?s results.\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>Other events celebrating the Day will take place in Brussels, Belgium; Kobe, Japan; Bangkok, Thailand; Dushanbe, Tajikistan; and Panama.\u003cbr /\> 2007-10-09 00:00:00.000\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>___________________\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>For more details go to UN News Centre at \u003ca onclick\u003d\"return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)\" href\u003d\"http://www.un.org/news\" target\u003d_blank\>http://www.un.org/news\u003c/a\>\u003cbr /\>To listen to news and in-depth programmes from UN Radio go to: \u003ca onclick\u003d\"return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)\" href\u003d\"http://radio.un.org/\" target\u003d_blank\>http://radio.un.org/\u003c/a\>\u003cbr /\>______________________________\u003cwbr /\>_\u003cbr /\>\u003cbr /\>To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:\u003cbr /\>\u003ca onclick\u003d\"return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)\" href\u003d\"http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/\" target\u003d_blank\>http://www.un.org/apps/news\u003cwbr /\>/email/\u003c/a\>\u003cbr /\>\u003c/div\>",0] ); //--></script>
?Teaching our children today is empowering the next generation to address disaster risk more effectively tomorrow,? Mr. Brice?o said.

To introduce children to basic concepts in disaster risk reduction, the French, Spanish, Chinese and Russian language versions of ?Stop Disaster,? an online game, were launched today.

In the game, which was released in English last year, players are presented with disaster scenarios and must reduce its risk with a given budget.

ISDR?s efforts to educate children are part of its larger ?Disaster Risk Education Begins at School? campaign focusing on improving the safety of school buildings and integrating disaster risk reduction into school curricula.

The campaign kicked off last year with the support of UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UN Children?s Fund (UNICEF), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the non-governmental organization (NGO) ActionAid International and other partners.

To commemorate the Day, ISDR is convening a roundtable discussion in Geneva to identify how to build on the campaign?s results.

Other events celebrating the Day will take place in Brussels, Belgium; Kobe, Japan; Bangkok, Thailand; Dushanbe, Tajikistan; and Panama.
2007-10-09 00:00:00.000

 

[Snowy Owl]

Re: October 10th - International Day for Disaster Reduction

DISASTER RISK REDUCTION HAS NEVER BEEN MORE PRESSING, SAYS BAN KI-MOON

With recent calamities such as floods, storms, and droughts serving as a reminder of the devastating effects of natural hazards, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says the need to engage fully in disaster risk reduction has never been more pressing.

?We have a moral, social and economic obligation to act now in building resilient communities and nations,? Mr. Ban states in a message marking the International Day for Disaster Reduction, observed annually on 10 October.

Declaring that ?disaster reduction is everybody?s business,? he urges governments, civil society and the private sector, international financial institutions and other international organizations to invest in disaster reduction.<script><!-- D(["mb","\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>Mr. Ban also cites the importance of stepping\nup implementation of the Hyogo Framework ? a plan of action adopted by\nStates nearly three years ago to reduce vulnerability to natural hazards.\n\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>Disaster reduction is about stronger building\ncodes, sound land-use planning, better early warning systems, environmental\nmanagement and evacuation plans and, above all, education, he states.\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>?It is about making communities and individuals\naware of their risk to natural hazards and how they can reduce their vulnerability,?\nthe Secretary-General adds. \u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>Last year the UN International Strategy for\nDisaster Reduction (ISDR) launched a global awareness campaign entitled\n?Disaster risk reduction begins at schools,? which emphasizes the key\nrole that education can play in teaching children about the hazards that\nthey face around their communities.\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>S?lvano Brice?o, Director of the ISDR Secretariat,\nnoted that children are among the most vulnerable groups in society to\ndisasters. However, success stories from the campaign show that children\ncan play an active part in disaster risk reduction. \u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>On the occasion of the International Day,\nthe ISDR has issued a new publication ? entitled ?Towards a Culture of\nPrevention: Disaster Risk Reduction Begins at School? ? which provides\n35 practical examples of how to improve school safety.\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>?Too many children are dying because they\nare not educated to live with disasters or because they are attending classes\nin unsafe buildings. Making schools safer must be the priority of every\ngovernment in a disaster-prone country,? Mr. Brice?o said.\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>* * *\u003c/font\>\n\u003cbr\>\n\u003cbr\>\u003cfont size\u003d\"2\" face\u003d\"Arial\"\>CLIMATE CHANGE THE FOCUS OF SECRETARY-GENERAL?S\nTRIP TO WASHINGTON",1] ); //--></script>

Mr. Ban also cites the importance of stepping up implementation of the Hyogo Framework ? a plan of action adopted by States nearly three years ago to reduce vulnerability to natural hazards.

Disaster reduction is about stronger building codes, sound land-use planning, better early warning systems, environmental management and evacuation plans and, above all, education, he states.

?It is about making communities and individuals aware of their risk to natural hazards and how they can reduce their vulnerability,? the Secretary-General adds.

Last year the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) launched a global awareness campaign entitled ?Disaster risk reduction begins at schools,? which emphasizes the key role that education can play in teaching children about the hazards that they face around their communities.

S?lvano Brice?o, Director of the ISDR Secretariat, noted that children are among the most vulnerable groups in society to disasters. However, success stories from the campaign show that children can play an active part in disaster risk reduction.

On the occasion of the International Day, the ISDR has issued a new publication ? entitled ?Towards a Culture of Prevention: Disaster Risk Reduction Begins at School? ? which provides 35 practical examples of how to improve school safety.

?Too many children are dying because they are not educated to live with disasters or because they are attending classes in unsafe buildings. Making schools safer must be the priority of every government in a disaster-prone country,? Mr. Brice?o said.