A Resilient Future: Science and Technology for Disaster Risk Reduction

This course aims to introduce participants to existing and emerging technologies suitable for disaster risk reduction while promoting the overall aim of sustainable development. The course focuses on three main natural hazards- floods, landslides and earthquakes. It also discusses the challenges and limits of adapting and adopting technologies depending on context (Global North and Global South) with examples from Switzerland, Nepal, Colombia, Philippines and other countries. Image: “Earthquake in Nepal” by Asian Development Bank (www.adb.org) is licensed under BY-NC-ND 2.0 (permission granted 18 January 2016)

• Explain Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) related concepts and science and technology for DRR.
• Identify and describe existing and emerging technologies for landslide and flood reduction.
• Explain methodological tools to assess vulnerabilities and risk and strengthen the resilience of communities at risk of landslides, floods and earthquakes.
• Exemplify the role and the challenges of science and technological innovations for disaster risk reductionin an interdisciplinary manner including the importance of social aspects.
• Recognize some of the actors active in DRR and international policy frameworks and technology for DRR.

• University degree or equivalent.
• Background in engineering, environmental sciences, architecture, geography, anthropology, international relations or any curriculum sharing a global perspective. This list is not exhaustive. We encourage people of all disciplines and backgrounds to join.
• Motivation, persistence, and interest in learning about disaster risk reduction.
• Notions of statistics and calculus may help participants to better understand some concepts and equations used in somevideos; however, these equations are not key to the success in the course.