9 September 2011: The UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)’s Asia-Pacific centre for training local authorities, CIFAL Jeju, convened a workshop on knowledge and skill sharing for more resilient and integrated disaster risk management among the region’s municipalities. The workshop aimed, among other things, to build capacities for disaster risk management among participants from the region.

The workshop, which was held from 7-9 September in Jeju, Republic of Korea, was a collaborative UN training event jointly developed by the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR), the Capacity for Disaster Reduction Initiative (CADRI) and UNITAR. During the workshop, participants learned about common challenges and shared applicable good practices in disaster risk reduction (DRR) efforts from across the region to better adapt their local planning. In addition, the UNISDR-led “Making Cities Resilient” campaign was introduced and their “Ten Essentials” for making cities resilient was discussed in depth among participants. One of the lessons learned from the workshop was that protecting ecosystems and natural buffers to mitigate hazards, and adapting to climate change was not an achievement or a challenge for participating delegations. This suggested that insufficient attention is paid to these areas within the Asia-Pacific region, and that there is a need for increased attention to integrating topics such as deforestation, natural resources management and land-use management within national to local DRR. [UNITAR Press Release]