Activity Report

Announcement: Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2023

29 September 2023

As announced previously, Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) will hold the Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2023 (ACDR2023) "Effective Implementation of DRR Measures -Enabling Digital Transformation in DRR" in cooperation with Committee of Emergency Situations of Tajikistan and Cabinet Office of Japan. This annual conference will take place in Dushanbe, Tajikistan and online on 20 October 2023. We are pleased to announce the latest information on the conference as below. Those wishing to participate in this conference in person or online can register on the ACDR2023 website.

(The link can be found below).

ACDR2023 website

https://acdr.adrc.asia/

Date and time (Tajikistan time, UTC+5)

9:00-17:00, 20 October 2023

Tentative Programme (as of 29 September 2023)

- Opening Remarks

- Round Table: Information from ADRC member countries on the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR)

- Session 1 "Innovative Solutions for Resilient Societies: DRR Technologies for Earthquakes and Geological Hazards"

- Session 2 "Adaptation to the Climate Crisis: Innovative Approaches to Monitoring and Responding to Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs), Forest Fires and Intensifying Floods"

- Closing Remarks

All updates including the latest version of the programme will be shared through the above-mentioned website. We are looking forward to seeing you in Dushanbe or online soon!

(2023/09/29 15:00)

Announcement: Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2023

31 August 2023

Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) will host the Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2023 (ACDR2023) "Effective Implementation of DRR Measures - Enabling Digital Transformation in DRR" on 20 October 2023 in Dushanbe, the Republic of Tajikistan. The conference will be conducted in a hybrid format (in-person and online).

ACDR2023 will focus on disaster risk in landlocked countries, with sessions on "Innovative Solutions for Resilient Societies: DRR Technologies for Earthquakes and Geological Hazards" and "Adaptation to the Climate Crisis: Innovative Approaches to Monitoring and Responding to Glacial Lake Outburst Floods(GLOFs), Forest Fires and Intensifying Floods."

Details of the conference will be made available on the ACDR2023 website in due course.

ACDR 2023 website: https://acdr.adrc.asia/home/acdr2023

(2023/8/31 15:00)

First Webinar on Climate Change Projection for DRR

28 August 2023 (Online)

In collaboration with the additional members of the Advanced Study of Climate Change Projection (SENTAN) Program, ADRC co-organized the first webinar on "Climate Change Impact Projection for Disaster Risk Reduction in Asia-Pacific Region" on 28 August 2023. The first webinar featured the climate change impact in Fiji with the presentation from Mr Jasneel Chandra, Scientific Officer in Climatology at Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS). Mr Jasneel Chandra reported that the sea level at Lautoka Wharf in Fiji has been on average increasing at 4.3mm/year between 1993 and 2022. As result, some villages (e.g., Veivatuloa and Vunidogoloa) are easily flooded and inundated by sea water causing the relocation of many coastal houses.

Since one of the objectives of the webinar was to share the results of climate change projections, the following Japanese experts also made presentations related to climate change in Fiji:

1) Prof. MORI Nobuto, Research Division of Atmospheric and Hydrospheric Disasters, Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University.

2) Dr NAKAEGAWA Toshiyuki, Head of Second Laboratory, Department of Applied Meteorology Research, Meteorological Research Institute (MRI) of Japan Meteorological Agency.

3) Dr MURATA Akihiko, Head First Laboratory, Department of Applied Meteorology Research, Meteorological Research Institute (MRI) of Japan Meteorological Agency.

4) Mr MORI Noriyuki, Deputy Director, International Center for Water Hazard and Risk Management.

5) Prof. TACHIKAWA Yasuto, Hydrology and Water Resources Research Laboratory, Kyoto University.

Lastly, Associate Professor KOBAYASHI Kenichiro (Kobe University) and Dr Gerry Potutan (ADRC) co-facilitated the event. Materials can be accessed on the website:

https://www.adrc.asia/sentanpro/webinar01.html

(2023/09/04 15:00)

QZSS 'DC Report' Demonstration in Malaysia

21-25 August 2023 (Malaysia)

One of the services of Quasi Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) is the Satellite Report for Disaster and Crisis Management (DC Report), which the National Space Policy Secretariat of the Cabinet Office Japan (NSPS-CAO) is promoting to countries in the Asia-Pacific region. QZSS can transmit a warning message to the ground, and it is useful in areas that have no internet/cellular communication system. It also serves as redundant system when the existing ground communication systems are damaged by extreme disaster events.

Under the supervision of the NSPS-CAO, a project team comprising representatives from ADRC, Asia Air Survey Co., Ltd. and NTT Data Corporation visited Malaysia on 21-25 August 2023 to demonstrate the QZSS 'DC Report' technology. Through the local support of the Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Centre (DPPC) of the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), the project team conducted the following key activities:

1) Visited the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) Prime Minister Department of Malaysia in Putrajaya to brief key officials of the QZSS DC Report technology.

2) Visited the town of Hulu Langat, Selangor in two consecutive days to set-up, demonstrate, test, and discuss the performance of QZSS prototype receivers.

3) Convened with key government agencies and stakeholders to share respective local initiatives on disaster early warning systems (EWS) and administered the survey questionnaire to all local participants.

4) Discussed the next steps and endeavors was made as well.

The QZSS 'DC Report' demonstration in Malaysia showed that the prototype receivers, as tested in Hulu Langat, are capable of receiving the warning message transmitted through QZSS. In view of this outcome, local stakeholders expressed interest in the technology and discussed with the project team options of integrating it with the existing early warning technologies and practices in Malaysia.

(2023/08/31 15:00)

ASEAN Interregional Dialogue on Disaster Resilience (AIDDR)

21 August 2023 (Singapore)

ADRC participated in the first ASEAN Interregional Dialogue on Disaster Resilience (AIDDR) held on 21 August 2023 in Singapore. Adopting the theme, "Regional Perspectives on Building Resilience from Transboundary Risks," AIDDR convened regional organizations in Asia-Pacific region to explore strategies and current approaches to understanding, managing, and reducing transboundary disaster risks and their impacts on other emerging disaster risk issues. AIDDR aimed at achieving two key objectives:

1) explore potential avenues for fostering collaborative efforts between regional organizations on DRM, and

2) lay the groundwork for establishing interregional partnerships and collaboration with a specific focus on knowledge exchange and capacity building.

Speaking on behalf of ADRC, Dr Potutan mentioned that one of the challenges in managing transboundary disasters is that the disaster risk management (DRM) systems of impacted countries usually differ, such as protocols and logistical approaches. In this context, ADRC facilitated cooperation among its 31-member countries by providing a common platform for:

1) information-sharing on transboundary risks, such as assigning a universal identification of transboundary disasters using the GLIDE number system; and

2) early warning of transboundary risks using satellites, particularly through the Quasi Zenith Satellites System (QZSS) and Sentinel Asia.

Based on the discussions at the AIDDR, the ASEAN Secretariat indicated to facilitate the following next steps:

1) continue the inter-regional dialogue among regional organizations to strengthen collaboration;

2) conduct capacity mapping of regional organizations to inform initiatives for greater cooperation and synergy; and

3) pursue proposal for collaboration in the areas of data sharing, early warning, and knowledge exchange.

(2023/08/28 15:00)