Make communities the starting point in tsunami risk reduction - experts [excerpt]
http://www.alertnet.org/db/an_art/55076/2009/09/14-170250-1.htm "The closer the warning gets to the most vulnerable people, the more it fades out," said Marcus Oxley, chairman of the Global Network of Civil Society Organisations for Disaster Reduction. http://www.globalnetwork-dr.org/ "This does make you question the effectiveness of national or international warning systems. Even if you have the best policy at the national level, there is no guarantee that this will bring about changes at the local level where people are at risk, live and work." [...] In a report released in June 2009, called Clouds but little rain..." Views from the Frontline, http://www.globalnetwork-dr.org/reports/VFLfullreport0609.pdf the Global Network chaired by Oxley found that community participation in the decision-making process was one of the lowest scoring indicators and concluded that the emphasis must shift from international and national policy making to policy execution at local levels if lives are to be saved. In Orissa, India, for example, local people are involved in drawing up maps of vulnerable areas and assessing potential risks, a vital step in building resilient communities, the report said. Community radio is being established in Bangladesh so that warnings of imminent disasters can be circulated in local languages. The review spanned 48 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas and collected the views of over 7000 local government officials, civil society and community representatives mainly through face-to-face interviews. "The question is how can we design the technology so that it serves the people. The problem with the 'last mile' is that it's trying to design the people to serve the technology," said Ilan Kelman, a senior research fellow at CICERO, the Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo. "The starting point should be with the local community, asking them what they know already and what are their concerns." _______________________________________________ cr-india mailing list [email protected] https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/cr-india
