Shanghai disaster risk reduction forum

Forum on Disaster Risk Reduction
Associated with the Shanghai Expo 2010 'Better Cities, Better Life'
Shanghai, 28-30 July 2010

Announcement

Background
The theme of the Shanghai Expo 2010 is "Better City, Better Life," - the wish for a better living in present and future urban environments. This theme represents a central concern of the international community for future policy making relative to urban strategies and sustainable development.

A “Forum on Disaster Risk Reduction” will be held in Shanghai at the Everbright Convention & Exhibition Center from 28-30 July 2010. The Forum couples an exhibit of technologies to help in the prevention, recovery and rehabilitation processes related to disasters in cities, with an international Conference of local authorities within the context of the “Making Cities Resilient” Campaign. The Forum is being convened by DEVNET in collaboration with UNISDR, UN-Habitat and ICLEI.

Objectives
The Shanghai World Expo 2010 provides a timely opportunity for a dialogue of world-wide leaders, policy makers, visionaries and creative thinkers with their Chinese peers. The “Forum on Disaster Risk Reduction” will bring together representatives of local authorities from China and selected cities throughout the world, as well as international and other technical
organizations and networks. It will aim to advance knowledge and information sharing based on innovative practices and experience in disaster risk reduction, with a view to foster partnership development, particularly between local and national governments, civil society and
community-based organizations. It will also help to monitor progress in urban risk reduction, refine guidance documentation and good practice. The demonstrations and exhibits of sample technologies applicable to different aspects of disaster risk reduction will add a concrete context for those in charge of managing disaster prevention and response, allowing them to strengthen their knowledge base and identify potential opportunities for risk reduction.

The main objectives of the Forum will be to:

a) Promote an exchange of practical knowledge related to disaster risk reduction, including preparedness, rehabilitation and reconstruction of urban areas.
b) Facilitate knowledge and information exchange between cities and departments in China and their international homologues, in the area of disaster risk reduction.
c) Foster new multi-stakeholder partnerships - between community groups,
local and national authorities, and public-private sectors - aimed to
reduce disaster risk at sub-national levels.

Programme
Plenary sessions
The Forum will alternate between plenary sessions and working groups. It will also provide for demonstrations by the exhibitors of technology as well as a study tour in the City of Shanghai on 31st July 2010. The Conference plenary sessions will focus on the practical implications of urban risk reduction, and present concrete examples by cities, local governments and national authorities on:

The role and leadership of local governments in addressing the different aspects of risk reduction as part of their service provision and urban development plans.
The national plans and instruments that support such initiatives and leadership, and
The role of community-based and civil society organizations in this process.

Examples from recent recovery experiences in China, Haiti and other countries will also be presented.

Working groups
The Conference will also consist of the following three working groups.
Working Group 1 - Local HFA progress review and monitoring: This working group will focus on the identification of basic indicators that can help monitor status of implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA). It will also contribute to the design of the process and methodology to assess implementation of the HFA at the local and sub-national levels.
Working Group 2 - Capturing Local Governments and partners’ good practices and experiences - Tools and methodologies for reducing vulnerabilities and climate change: This working group will concentrate efforts in mapping existing initiatives and making them available as a tool for local authorities and practitioners to actively reduce vulnerabilities and the impacts of climate change. Outcomes of this working group will aim to support local authorities in the implementation of the “Ten Essentials for Making Cities Resilient”.
Working Group 3 - Operationalizing Disaster Reduction in Post-Disaster Transition to Development: The third working group will focus on recovery, one of the Campaign’s ten essentials. The objective of this working group is to advance knowledge creation on innovative practices and experience in this area, with a view to foster cooperation between local and national governments, civil society organizations and the private sector.

The results of the working group deliberations will be presented and discussed in a final plenary session, which will review and adopt the recommendations of the conference and agree on the way forward. The recommendations and case studies presented in the Conference will be used in assessment reports and awareness raising material produced by UNISDR, and will inform training programmes and guidance documents in the context of the “Making Cities Resilient” Campaign.