As we come to end of Module 2, we would like to take some time to look
back over the lessons that we have learned about Climate Disaster Risk
Reduction in urban areas. In the same way that we had a discussion at
the end of Module 1, we would like to invite you to start thinking about
cases that have been shared, and discussions that have been had, that
have given you inspiration to drive for change. It would be very
interesting to see if any of you have thought about, or are making plans
to collaborate with other members from the ELLA community, or whether
any of you have started thinking about, or actually getting in contact
with stakeholders in your cities in order to share lessons or come up
with new initiatives to improve DRR. It would be fantastic to share
these ideas, as this might inspire others!
In Module 2 we looked at disaster risk management strategies, early warning systems, and involvement and capacitation of local communities. In each of those discussions we could see that there is significant room for improvement in order to make urban communities more resilient to climate change, able to prevent extreme events turning into disasters, and respond quickly when events occur. It was very interesting to see that in many participants’ cities, disaster risk reduction measures consist of preparation for how to deal with the aftermath of extreme events rather than working to reduce risks and vulnerabilities so that extreme events do not turn into disasters.
Among others, the main barriers that were identified included:
- Lack of long-term planning, which leads to a focus on reactive rather than preventative measures
- Lack of political commitment, and a lack of coordination among actors
- Lack of inclusion of local communities
- Lack of funding, and as such, a lack of technology and local capacity
- Ineffective awareness raising and communication techniques
In the Latin American case studies that were shared and in the responses of participants from Africa and Asia we did see some means to overcome these barriers, and some cities or communities significantly reducing disaster risk. You will remember how the city of Bogotá in Colombia has integrated DRR into city level planning; the inexpensive technologies utilised in the Latin American early warning systems such as radio, internet and mobile phone messaging have proved to effectively raise awareness; the Guardianas de la Ladera and the NUDECs which we discussed last week showed effective methods of involving the local community and building local capacity to reduce disaster risk.
Attached is a summary of the three discussions that we have had related to DRR. This week we would like to invite you to:
- Share any additional good practices that you feel might be successfully adapted to other urban contexts
- Share how the cases that you have read about on ELLA have sparked your interest – this could be in the form of a thought, a conversation with a colleague, more detailed research into any of the cases, a plan to collaborate with a particular participant, or a plan of action, among others
- Share what ideas you have, if any, on how you might work to improve climate disaster risk reduction in cities in your region
Looking forward to a fruitful discussion!
In Module 2 we looked at disaster risk management strategies, early warning systems, and involvement and capacitation of local communities. In each of those discussions we could see that there is significant room for improvement in order to make urban communities more resilient to climate change, able to prevent extreme events turning into disasters, and respond quickly when events occur. It was very interesting to see that in many participants’ cities, disaster risk reduction measures consist of preparation for how to deal with the aftermath of extreme events rather than working to reduce risks and vulnerabilities so that extreme events do not turn into disasters.
Among others, the main barriers that were identified included:
- Lack of long-term planning, which leads to a focus on reactive rather than preventative measures
- Lack of political commitment, and a lack of coordination among actors
- Lack of inclusion of local communities
- Lack of funding, and as such, a lack of technology and local capacity
- Ineffective awareness raising and communication techniques
In the Latin American case studies that were shared and in the responses of participants from Africa and Asia we did see some means to overcome these barriers, and some cities or communities significantly reducing disaster risk. You will remember how the city of Bogotá in Colombia has integrated DRR into city level planning; the inexpensive technologies utilised in the Latin American early warning systems such as radio, internet and mobile phone messaging have proved to effectively raise awareness; the Guardianas de la Ladera and the NUDECs which we discussed last week showed effective methods of involving the local community and building local capacity to reduce disaster risk.
Attached is a summary of the three discussions that we have had related to DRR. This week we would like to invite you to:
- Share any additional good practices that you feel might be successfully adapted to other urban contexts
- Share how the cases that you have read about on ELLA have sparked your interest – this could be in the form of a thought, a conversation with a colleague, more detailed research into any of the cases, a plan to collaborate with a particular participant, or a plan of action, among others
- Share what ideas you have, if any, on how you might work to improve climate disaster risk reduction in cities in your region
Looking forward to a fruitful discussion!
All the best,
Charlotte and the ELLA Team
Charlotte and the ELLA Team
