12th APRU Research Symposium on Multi-Hazards around the Pacific Rim 2016

The Role of Science and Technology in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction

 

Event Report

 

The 12th Multi-Hazards Symposium 2016, held at Kyoto University on 7th and 8th March, focused specifically on the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR), and aimed to discuss how science and technology advancement in combination with social science can strengthen the disaster risk reduction framework and how key priority areas can be addressed through these disciplines.

 

 

President Juichi Yamagiwa, Vice President Junichi Mori and Prof Rajib Shaw welcoming delegates to the Symposium.

 

The key note session chaired by Prof. Rajib Shaw featured presentations by Prof. Kaoru Takara, Prof. Fuihiko Immamura and Prof. Hassan Virji – it provided background and an overview of the advancement of science and technology in DRR, highlighted lessons learnt from the Tohoku earthquake and Tsunami of 2011, and addressed challenges of developing and implementing solutions for DRR. Key messages echoed in all three presentations were the importance of multidisciplinary efforts and linking the development of solutions to policy development and implementation on the ground.

 

Symposium Sessions 

Close to 100 delegates attended the Symposium which featured eight parallel sessions with 46 paper presentations and two plenary sessions over the two day proceedings.

 

The four main sessions of the event each focused on one of the four key areas of the SFDRR: Understanding disaster risk, Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk, Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience, Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response and to ‘Build Back Better’ in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

 

Multiple papers were presented at each session and final discussions from each of these sessions were guided on identifying at least three priority actions for promoting science based decision making, investment in S&T and linking science to people from short, medium to long term.

 

The fifth session presented on day two of the event focused on the importance of partnership working across academia, networks and different stakeholders. Keiko Sakoda Kaneda and Vladimir Tsirkunov from the World Bank highlighted the importance of academic collaborations for exchange and application of knowledge, as well as knowledge development between different regions and ultimately the implementation of solutions for mainstream DRR in developing countries of the region.

 

Presentation by Hassan Virji, International START Secretariat and Keiko Sakoda Kaneda, World Bank

 

Kyoto Declaration 2016 on the Role of Science & Technology in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction

During the final plenary session, Dr Takako Izumi presented the ‘Kyoto Declaration’. The declaration consolidated the discussions and recommendations of the 8 symposium sessions under the three priority areas of ‘Promoting Science based Decision Making’, ‘Investment in Science and Technology’ and ‘Linking Science to People’ along with their specific recommendations for implementation.

 

The following five overarching actions were drawn from these and agreed on by participants: Capacity building through multi-disciplinary/trans-disciplinary implementation research while fostering young ECRs, Continue pushing for S&T innovations to be included in policy/design making on DRR, Foster great collaboration with local institutions and Government, Learn from good practice and foster further collaborations, Continue sharing and collaborating in national and international DRR conferences.

 

The aim is for the proceedings and consolidated recommendations from the Symposium to be shared in the form of a report at the Asian Ministerial Conference for DRR in India later this year, and to utilize and link the findings and recommendations to the next MH Symposium taking place in 2017 which will kindly be hosted by Peking University in Beijing, China.

 

 

Takako Izumi presenting the Kyoto Declaration 2016 to the delegates 

 

View the declaration here

View the program here

View photos of symposium on Flickr

 

The organization of this year’s Symposium was managed by the International Affairs Division of Kyoto University and guided by the Symposium Steering Committee chaired by Rajib Shaw with Deputy Chair Koichi Shiwaku both of Kyoto University.

 

 

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