[Radix] Re: Disaster Risk Science and Education

[Ilan Kelman]

Following November's message to Radix http://www.ecie.org/pipermail/radix/2009-November/000426.html about our colleague Ailsa Holloway's work on "Crafting Disaster Risk Science: Environmental and geographical science sans frontières" http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/ojs/index.php/ijcre/article/view/1182 , she has published the article "An academic first for Africa" in one of South Africa's newspapers.  See an excerpt below or http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-02-22-an-academic-first-for-africa for the full article.  Congratulations for such impressive work in disaster risk science, education, and action.

Ilan

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Mail & Guardian

An academic first for Africa
			AILSA HOLLOWAY
												Feb 22 2010 15:44

[...]

When the Disaster Mitigation for Sustainable Livelihoods
Programme (DiMP) was established in 1998 at the University of Cape
Town, one of the key challenges was developing a curriculum...So we combined
academic research with hands-on engagement in Cape Town communities.

DiMP postgraduate students have since conducted exploratory disaster
risk reduction research on topics such as informal-dwelling fires as
well as studies of the economic and social losses caused by severe
weather events such as floods. 

The DiMP interacts with government. As a result, South Africa's 2002
Disaster Management Act and its national implementation framework have
a strong disaster risk reduction focus, prioritising education,
training and disaster management research, as well as skills to
implement the new legislation. 

With $2.9-million provided by USAid, DiMP is implementing a programme
called Periperi U (Partners Enhancing Resilience for People Exposed to
Risks -- focus on Universities) to strengthen disaster risk reduction
scholarship and practice at universities in Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana,
Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda, as well as
South Africa. 

Since 2000 the DiMP has taught professional “Disasters and Development”
short courses to more than 500 delegates from diverse countries...As a result,
for the first time in Africa, there is now an emerging
academic architecture for disaster risk-related scholarship and
engagement. This can change the stereotype of Africa as a beneficiary
of international relief.

It also highlights the value university-based units, such as the DiMP,
can bring to partnerships that address Africa’s urgent development
priorities.
 		 	   		  
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