public forum at unwcdrr

Public Forum at UNWCDRR

Public Forum at the United Nations World Conference
on Disaster Risk Reduction (UNWCDRR)

The 3rd UNWCDRR was held on 14-18 March 2015 in Sendai, Japan. 6,500 from 187 countries participated in the main conference of UNWCDRR and the total number of more than 156,000 joined the public forum. At the last day of the Conference, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) was adopted as a blueprint and guideline of the DRR efforts for the next 15 years.

SFDRR includes four priorities for action

1
Understanding disaster risk
2
Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk
3
Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience
4
Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response and to “Build Back better” in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction

The APRU Multi-Hazards Program will strengthen its programs and activities to contribute to its implementation in collaboration with international organizations, governments, the private sector as well as NGOs.

During UNWCDRR, on 17 March, the APRU Multi-Hazards Program organized a public forum titled “Science and Practical Disaster Risk Reduction ~ Role of Universities/Academia in DRR” at the Kawauchi Campus in Tohoku University as a part of an official event under UNWCDRR.

Further details on UNWCDRR

The sessions and speakers of the Public Forum

Opening
Opening

  • Remarks: Dr. Christopher Tremewan(Secretary General of APRU)
  • Remarks: Prof. Fumihiko Imamura (Director of IRIDeS, Tohoku University)
  • Presentation: Dr. Gordon McBean (ICSU)

Session 1
Session 1

Bridging the gap between science and practice
Speakers:
  • Dr. Manu Gupta (ADRRN)
  • Prof. Supot Teachavorasinskun (Chulalonkorn University)
  • Mr. Rowan Douglas (Willis Research Network)
  • Dr. Yoshiko Abe (Kokusai Kogyo)
  • Mr. Masaaki Miyamoto (Pacific Consultants)

Session 2
Session 2

How can science and technology contribute to practical DRR?
Speakers:
  • Prof. John Rundle (University of California, Davis)
  • Dr. David Green (NASA)
  • Dr. Gerald Bawden (NASA)
  • Ms. Margaret Glasscoe (Jet Propulsion Laboratory-California Institute of Technology)
  • Prof. Shinji Toda (IRIDeS, Tohoku University)
  • Prof. Yih-ChiTan (National Taiwan University)
  • Prof. Hui Zhang (Tsinghua University)

Session 3
Session 3

Role of social science in DRR
Speakers:
  • Prof. Hugo Romero (University of Chile)
  • Prof. Reid Basher (Victoria University of Wellington)
  • Prof. Rajib Shaw (Kyoto University)
  • Prof. Karl Kim (University of Hawaii, Manoa)
  • Prof. Takako Izumi (IRIDeS, Tohoku University)
  • Dr. Badaoui Rouhban (Former Director for Section for Disaster Reduction, UNESCO)

Report