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The joint PDC-Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative (EMI) Megacities Disaster Risk Management Knowledge Base is a detailed resource containing sound practices for risk reduction and management, as well as "City Profiles" for some of the world's most complex urban environments. Click the map to launch.
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If a major earthquake were to strike a heavily populated city in the global community, the results could well be catastrophic. Nightmares including this year's massive earthquake in South Asia, as well as the recent tragedies of Bam, Iran (2003), and Gujarat, India (2001) could pale in comparison to major earthquake occurring in a complex urban environment.
Realizing this urgent (and perhaps inevitable) reality, PDC has partnered with the Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative (EMI) to launch the Megacities Disaster Risk Management Knowledge Base (http://www.pdc.org/emi)--a resource to share and understand disaster risk management sound practices used in many of the world's most disaster-prone cities.
"We are pleased to be partnering with the Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative on this important program to reduce the impacts of disasters in complex urban environments around the globe," said PDC Senior Manager Jim Buika. "By sharing sound practices on disaster risk reduction methods, we can foster better understanding and creative mitigation strategies in these highly vulnerable 'Megacities'."
The Knowledge Base highlights a collection of disaster risk management sound practices and "City Profiles" for 20 participating cities around the globe (shown in the map above). Currently, seven City Profiles are available that contain information about pertinent risk management activities and relevant organizations. Additional profiles will be added in the near future. A searchable suite of more than 30 sound practices across several different categories has also been uploaded for review and comment.
The Knowledge Base is being updated regularly as more information becomes available.
This product is the result of the Cross-Cutting Capacity Development (3cd) Program--a collaboration between researchers, policy makers, and practitioners to assist megacities in reducing their vulnerability to disasters. PDC is the main partner in this program, and is benefiting from previous work initiated at the Earthquake Disaster Mitigation Research Center in Japan. Other sponsors include Kobe University, the United Nations Development Program, the ProVention Consortium, the World Bank's Hazard Management Unit, and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.
To learn more about the 3cd Program and the Knowledge Base, or to contribute a disaster management sound practice, please visit http://www.pdc.org/emi or contact PDC Senior Manager Jim Buika at jbuika@pdc.org, or Jeanette Fernandez, 3cd Program Component 1 Coordinator, at jfernandez@pdc.org.
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