EU-Japan Workshop on Research and Innovation in Support of Disaster Risk Reduction

A workshop was organized by the Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI) of Kyoto University in cooperation with the Community for European Research and Innovation for Security (CERIS) on 3-4 March in Uji (Kyoto), Japan. 
The event aimed to discuss EU-Japan cooperation on research and innovation in support of societal resilience to disasters, technologies for first responders, and risk governance in light of international Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) policies such as the UN Sendai Framework for Action. It was attended by 10 EU projects and several Japanese universities and organisations. A first round of thematic discussions focused on ways to use knowledge, experiences and feedback from citizen to improve disaster risk awareness and preparedness, bridge gaps between public authorities and communities, better understand citizen’s behavioural and psychological reactions in the event of a disaster, and how to best use games and gamification to support enhanced disaster prevention and preparedness. A second round of discussions was about return of experiences and R&D feedback, with a focus on technologies and risk management methodologies, e.g. new integrated toolkit for collaborative response and enhanced situational awareness and specific experience were presented resulting from the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Noto Peninsula Earthquake. The third round of discussions was about preparedness and response to complex events, looking at issues related to nuclear emergency preparedness strategy and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, technology evaluation for upskilled first responders and enhanced response to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) events. The event then discussed improved disaster risks management and governance, in particular, enhanced preparedness and management of high-impact low-probability or unexpected events and emergency preparedness and response. Another panel looked at governance issues, discussing co-creation of disaster knowledge and culture in a global context, awareness of risks and vulnerabilities for an enhanced disaster governance, and the importance of foresight in planning for disaster. A final roundtable discussed networking efforts in support of the Sendai DD Framework implementation. This workshop was held at a timely moment linked to current negotiation of association of Japan to Horizon Europe. A full report will be made available on CERIS website. 

Source: European Commission