Let's not forget: Relief efforts don't start from scratch

Today more than ever, I believe in the power of Disaster Risk Reduction.   In the power of understanding risk and acting on it in timely fashion to make sure that our society can continue to function even in presence of extreme hazardous events. There is already an extensive community of people who has been working hard to engrave in the hearts and minds of politicians, technocrats,  decisions makers and people in general that we “ the human race”  have the power to manage our own risk and minimize the risk of disaster. Yet despite our progress we have to be honest in recognising that we have not yet achieved our goals.

Learning from a Veteran

   

More than one year has passed since I arrived to the Philippines, and already I have met many exceptional people. But  today especially I had a wonderful experience full of humble and wise words as I spent time with my dear friend Ma'am Tabique – a true veteran of the field.

WCDRR: Experiences from the field without a filter

It’s all too easy to get caught up in the academics of DRR when the reality of implementation can be quite different. This talk I did in Sendai during the WCDRR aims at capturing practical ideas gathered from field experience of DRR projects and encapsulating them in a series of dos and don’ts for practitioners and those interested in fresh perspectives from the field.

Sendai to the Field: Making the connection - Part 1

As practitioners observing the WCDRR from the sidelines, a common sentiment can be summed up in the question “Is this framework really going to change what we do?” Or like so many of these agreements and declarations will it remain in the lofty clouds of politics, rhetoric and academia? I would like to think that there is a practical application for the new framework and I hope to explore and contribute to that translation through this Blog.