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Displaying 30 of about 96 resultsNEW YORK, 31 March, 2016 - An earthquake off the coast of south-west Japan on 5 November, 1854, triggered a large tsunami that left 15,000 homes either damaged or completely destroyed.
A local farmer, Hamaguchi Goryo, noticed the receding waters and immediately recognised this tell-tale sign of tsunami risk. He set fire to his entire year’s harvest of…
YAOUNDE, 13 October 2015 – Residents of a flood-prone community in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé are deploying local knowledge to curb the risk of disasters and epidemics by tackling the trash that blocks drainage ditches.
To honour its members' efforts, the 25,000-strong community of Nkolbikok has been named a Champion of Disaster Risk Reduction by UNISD…
The Government of Jamaica, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) - Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean, and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) are pleased to announce that the VII Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas and the Caribbean will be held next year in 2021.…
Suva –Local wisdom, ownership and leadership are critical factors for effective humanitarian action in support of communities exposed and vulnerable to climate and disaster risk. Preparedness and response planning need to be more collaborative and inclusive, the Pacific Resilience Partnership (PRP) ’s webinar on ‘Local Humanitarian Action for a Res…
PHNOM PENH, 23 April 2012 - At the start of a week-long trip to Cambodia, the UN's senior official for disaster risk reduction, Margareta Wahlström, met yesterday with a 64-year-old grandmother who saved the lives of her five grandchildren during last year's heavy monsoon rains.
Khut Yoy was looking after her five grandchildren in Yout village in Prey…
GENEVA, 8 March 2012 - The UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, Margareta Wahlström, marked International Women's Day today with a call to governments in the world's most disaster-prone countries to "empower girls and women through education and access to resources as part of building resilience to disasters at comm…
UNISDR's Acting Director, Helena Molin Valdes, spoke about the need for improving access to information in dealing with disasters, during the four-day Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi from 12-15 December, where she was a featured speaker.
"There is a communication gap that leaves people, especially the poor, vulnerable to natural disasters."
In urban…
DURBAN, 2 December 2011 - Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) is the driving force behind a major effort to have the voices of cities and local governments heard at the UNFCC-COP17 climate negotiations in Durban.
The Durban Climate Change Adaptation Charter is being debated and drafted during the course of a three day meeting which opened toda…
GENEVA, 8 January 2014 – Herders whose livestock was devastated by a cyclone are taking steps to reduce their vulnerability and exposure to future disasters.
A combination of freakish freezing temperatures, high winds and severe floods after a cyclone in November in Puntland, Somalia, hit several communities hard.
Dozens of people died and up to one m…
TACLOBAN, 10 December 2013 – The City of Tacloban which accounts for almost 50% of the dead and displaced in the Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Yolanda) disaster, is to hold a summit inviting mayors and other public representatives to come to the city to talk about the lessons learned for disaster risk management.
The announcement comes with recognit…
GENEVA, 15 November 2013 – The prompt evacuation of 1,000 people from a tiny island that had all 500 houses destroyed by Typhoon Haiyan saved the entire population according to a local leader who has been a long-time champion for disaster risk reduction.
The former Mayor of San Francisco, Cebu Province, Alfredo Arquillano, said years of work to strengt…
Stuart Mawbey is an emergency service volunteer worker and manager as well as a person living with disabilities. He has spent the last 15 years assisting in emergencies in the Australian States of South Australia and New South Wales. Here he reflects on the immense personal satisfaction he derives from his volunteerism as well as the ongoing challenges…
GENEVA, 3 September 2013 – Double amputee Firoz Ali Alizada believes that people living with disabilities are the biggest untapped resource for disaster planners around the world.
The 31-year-old uses the example of his home country Afghanistan where people living with disabilities remain on the margins of decision making despite providing such a compe…
GENEVA, 29 July 2013 – The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) and partners today launched the first-ever survey of people living with disabilities on their coping capacity in the face of a disaster event. Margareta Wahlström, head of UNISDR, said today: “The survey will focus on a major blind spot in disaster management, the needs of the one…
KOBE, 11 March 2013 - UNISDR Chief Margareta Wahlström today announced that children from Japan who continue to live with the consequences of the Great East Japan Earthquake, will attend the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction in May.
Ms. Wahlström who has recently returned from her fourth visit to Japan since the earthquake, said: "The resilien…